Colombia, with its natural advantages of low latitude and high altitude, has become the world's second-largest producer of Arabica coffee. From commercial blends to the transition toward specialty coffee, from the distribution pattern of southern specialty regions to central commercial regions, from the evolution of varieties like Caturra to Castillo, and to the unique logic of the washed processing method and grading system—this article will guide you through a comprehensive understanding of Colombian coffee green beans. Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) selects a variety of Colombian regional beans, presenting soft acidity and caramel sweetness through medium roasting, unveiling the rich layers of this hot South American coffee land.

Colombia coffee green bean

Many people first encounter Colombian coffee through espresso blends. Colombia possesses exceptional terrain and climate conditions—low latitude paired with high altitude creates an ideal growing environment for coffee trees, especially suitable for Arabica varieties, which also keeps the country firmly in the position of the world's second-largest Arabica coffee producer.

In the early days, Colombia focused more on the commercial bean market, with relatively limited attention to flavor expression and greater quality fluctuations. Therefore, coffee shops typically chose dark roasting and blended with beans from other regions for complementarity, creating espresso recipes with moderate body, not overly intense, and a hint of fruity acidity.

It was not until the late 1990s that the specialty coffee market gradually took shape. Colombia did not lay out its plans in time and missed the early opportunity for specialization, only formally entering this field in 2001. Due to its earlier "slow response" to the specialty market, when the specialty coffee wave truly emerged, Colombian beans were once in a state of "low presence," still mostly used for blending purposes and struggling to stand out on their own.

However, Colombia's climate conditions and the reality that most coffee farms are located at altitudes of 1,200 to 1,900 meters happen to perfectly align with specialty coffee standards. As specialty demand continues to rise, Colombian coffee's position in the specialty market has also been increasingly elevated.

Colombian Coffee Growing Regions

Colombia is located between 3 and 8 degrees north latitude, belonging to the low-latitude coffee-growing belt. The most notable advantage of this latitude is abundant rainfall year-round, with almost no dry season, and average monthly temperatures maintained at 25 to 28 degrees Celsius, allowing coffee trees to grow throughout the year with a high fruiting rate. Because of this, Colombia can harvest Arabica coffee twice a year.

In order to provide higher-quality Arabica beans to the market, Colombia divides its producing regions into two major categories: specialty coffee regions and commercial coffee regions.

Specialty coffee is mainly concentrated in southern Colombia at altitudes above 1,500 meters, covering Cauca, Huila, Meta, Tolima, and Nariño. Coffee produced in these areas typically features delicate berry notes and acidity, accompanied by caramel-like sweetness. Most of the Colombian regional beans currently offered by Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) come from the southern growing belt at 1,500 to 1,800 meters.

Commercial coffee is mainly distributed in central and northern Colombia, including Medellín, Armenia, and Manizales. Coffee from these regions presents a typical Central American style, characterized by soft fruity acidity and nutty, caramel-like aromas.

Colombian Coffee Varieties

Caturra and Catuai are the most commonly cultivated varieties in Colombia. In addition, some well-known estates also grow Geisha and some emerging varieties, such as Colombia (yes, this is indeed a variety name) and Castillo, among others.

Caturra A natural mutation of Arabica Bourbon, discovered in Brazil in 1937. Its tree form is shorter and more compact than Bourbon. Due to its Bourbon lineage, it has weaker disease resistance, but higher yield than Bourbon. Although discovered in Brazil, Caturra does not adapt well to Brazil's growing conditions, so it was not widely promoted there; instead, it became widespread in Central and South America, with large-scale cultivation in Colombia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and other countries.

Catuai A人工 hybrid developed by crossing Caturra with Mondu Novo. Catuai has strong resistance to natural disasters, especially wind and rain. Its tree form is short, and the fruit is firmer than other varieties, making it harder to pick. Fruit colors include red and yellow. To date, no evidence has been found that yellow fruit has better flavor than red fruit. On the contrary, some cupping results show that coffee processed from yellow fruit, while having acceptable acidity, is less clean in the cup than red fruit.

Castillo Starting in 1961, CENICAFE began researching the Timor variety, which carries Robusta lineage, and subsequently continued its research and development. In 2002, it released its second disease-resistant variety, Tabi (a hybrid of Typica, Bourbon, and Timor), and in 2005 introduced Castillo, the most successful disease-resistant variety at the time. After the large-scale outbreak of leaf rust in 2008, Colombia began vigorously promoting the cultivation of Castillo.

Colombia This new variety, sharing the same name as the country, was successfully bred in 2008. It is a hybrid line carrying Caturra and Timor lineage, namely a Catimor variety. However, [FNC] insists that although Colombia is a direct descendant of Catimor, its flavor is far more elegant than ordinary Catimor, because after multiple generations of "backcrossing" with Arabica, the musty, fishy taste of robusta beans has been removed, bringing the flavor closer to Arabica while retaining the disease resistance and high yield advantages of robusta beans, making it an important tool for increasing production in the country.

Colombian Coffee Bean Processing Methods

Colombian coffee mostly uses washed processing, and specialty coffee mostly comes from small to medium-sized self-owned farms. Compared to Brazil's large-scale cultivation model, coffee quality from small farms is usually more outstanding.

After harvesting, coffee cherries are first poured into large tanks. Underdeveloped, inferior beans float to the surface, while ripe, plump fruits sink to the bottom. At this point, the floating defective beans (fruits) are scooped out and removed.

Then a pulping machine is used to remove the outer skin and pulp of the coffee fruit. At this stage, the coffee beans still have a slippery layer of mucilage attached to their surface. The mucilage-covered beans are placed in fermentation tanks to rest for 16 to 36 hours, during which microorganisms gradually break down the mucilage.

After fermentation is complete, the coffee beans are rinsed with plenty of clean water to wash away the residual mucilage. Finally, the washed coffee beans are spread out to dry.

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) believes that the washed processing method best showcases a coffee's quality, directly presenting cup cleanliness and pure flavor. Therefore, Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) has selected a Caturra coffee from the Huila region as an entry-level selection and everyday staple bean, allowing every enthusiast to taste the regional flavor of Colombia at a high cost-performance price.

In addition, the Federacion Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia (FNC) has specifically promoted a specialty coffee program, requiring strict quality control before export. In recent years, many special processing methods have also originated in Colombia, such as barrel aging, anaerobic fermentation, etc. Colombian coffee continues to create new ideas in the specialty field, driving progress.

Colombian Coffee Grading System

Colombian coffee grading focuses on bean size rather than flavor expression. Therefore, if you see the top-grade "Supremo" label, do not directly equate it with good taste—it only indicates that 80% of the beans are above 17 mesh, with no direct correlation to flavor. Therefore, be sure to pay attention to the specific region; southern specialty regions usually indicate the province and place name; if not indicated, it is most likely coffee beans intended for commercial use.

How to Roast Colombian Coffee Beans?

Currently, the Colombian regional coffee beans sold by Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) include:

"Front Street - Huila Region Washed Staple Coffee Beans" Flavor profile: nuts, dark chocolate, caramel, soft fruity acidity

"Front Street - Rose Valley Coffee Beans" Flavor profile: rose, peach, liqueur chocolate

"Front Street - Flower Moon Night Coffee Beans" Flavor profile: strawberry jam, fermented aroma, chocolate

"Front Street - Sidra Coffee Beans" Flavor profile: Sidra, dried fruit, passion fruit, fermented aroma, citrus

"Front Street - Big Belly Button Coffee Beans" Flavor profile: berries, grapes, blackcurrant juice, blueberries

In order to preserve the soft acidity and caramelized sweetness of Colombian regional coffee beans, Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) uses medium roasting while extending the time from the yellowing point to before first crack, allowing the coffee beans to develop better sweetness.

To let every friend taste the aroma of freshly roasted coffee, Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) guarantees that coffee beans are shipped within 5 days after roasting is completed ~!!!

How to Brew Colombian Coffee Beans?

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) uses a V60 dripper to brew Colombian regional coffee. The 60-degree conical dripper has a larger opening, and combined with its unique spiral curve ribs, allows air to escape more easily, thereby improving extraction quality.

Water temperature: 90-91 degrees

Grind size: fine granulated sugar size / Chinese standard No. 20 sieve bowl with 80% of powder passing through

Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15

Coffee dose: 15 grams

Three-stage pouring: First stage, pour 30 grams of water for a 30-second bloom, then pour 95 grams (scale reads about 125 grams), completing the pour in about 1 minute. When the water level drops to 2/3 of the coffee bed, pour the remaining 100 grams (scale reads about 225 grams), completing the pour in about 1 minute 40 seconds. At 2'00", dripping is complete; remove the dripper and extraction is finished.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.