How is Blue Mountain coffee graded and exported?

Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is graded by bean screen size, not by flavor. No. 1 requires a 17 to 18 screen or larger, No. 2 is 16 screen, and No. 3 is 15 screen, with 17 screen equal to 17/64 inch. All three grades must pass cupping by licensed Jamaican testers, and they show no flavor difference.

Green beans ship overseas in wooden barrels of 70 kg, 30 kg, and 15 kg, marked with the estate name, importer abbreviation, batch number, and arrival port. Japanese importers illustrate this: barrels brought in by ATAKA carry the ATC mark inside a diamond logo, while Ueshima Coffee barrels show UCC. A government-certified certificate of origin goes only to whole-barrel buyers.

Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is globally recognized as one of the top coffees, but do you know how it is graded? This article will guide you through the grading criteria for Blue Mountain coffee—screen size—and the strict cup testing confirmation process. From No. 1 to No. 3, coffee beans of different screen sizes show no difference in taste, but green beans are packaged differently: in wooden barrels or burlap sacks. Barrel-packed Blue Mountain coffee also comes with a certificate of origin, with the estate and importer information printed on the barrel. Additionally, the Jamaican government has clear regulations on the export of defective beans and coffee beans with taste issues. Front Street Coffee reminds you that understanding this grading knowledge helps identify authentic Blue Mountain coffee.

According to Jamaican law, only coffee beans produced in the Blue Mountain region qualify to be called Blue Mountain coffee.

High-grade Blue Mountain coffee is divided into three levels based on bean size: No. 1 requires 17 to 18 screen or larger, No. 2 is 16 screen, and No. 3 is 15 screen, with 17 screen corresponding to a size of 17/64 inches.

These three grades show no difference in flavor—they must all pass evaluation by professional cup testers authorized by the Jamaican government—the only distinction is bean size.

All three grades of green beans must be packed in wooden barrels for export overseas, with barrel specifications of 70 kg, 30 kg, and 15 kg.

The barrel is marked with the name of the producing estate, the importer's English abbreviation, the batch number for each shipment, and the arrival port information.

For example, Blue Mountain coffee imported by the Japanese trading company ATAKA contains the abbreviation ATC within the diamond logo on the barrel;

while Blue Mountain coffee imported by the Japanese company Ueshima Coffee has the abbreviation UCC within the diamond logo on its barrel.

Therefore, by simply observing the Blue Mountain coffee barrel, one can trace which estate in Jamaica's Blue Mountains this bag of coffee came from, who imported it, and to which port it was shipped.

At the same time, Jamaican exporters also issue a green certificate of origin to importers.

This certificate of origin, certified by the Jamaican government, is provided only to importers who purchase in whole barrels (70 kg/barrel, 30 kg/barrel, 15 kg/barrel),

and it states the exporting estate name, importer name, current year's cargo information, quantity, grade number, batch number, and arrival port, among other details.

(It is worth noting that among green coffee beans produced outside Jamaica's Blue Mountain region, only High Mountain coffee beans are packed in wooden barrels.)

As for those green beans that are defective, uneven in size, and poor in appearance but do not taste bad,

the Jamaican government stipulates that such green beans can only be exported abroad in burlap sacks.

And for coffee of even lower quality with flavor defects,

the Jamaican government has strict regulations: such coffee must not be exported in green bean form,

it can only be roasted locally in Jamaica, and must be dark roasted before export,

because only dark roasting can mask or eliminate defective flavors,

while the advantages of Blue Mountain coffee can only be fully revealed when it is light roasted,

so if you buy small-packaged dark-roasted Blue Mountain coffee directly imported from Jamaica in a domestic store,

then it is the lowest grade product among Blue Mountain coffees, though at least it is still genuine Blue Mountain coffee.

(This article is a reprint.)

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