What Does Jamaica Blue Mountain Taste Like and How to Brew Blue Mountain Coffee

Flavor Profile

Rich and mellow in the mouth, with a perfect balance of coffee's sweetness, acidity and bitterness. Completely free from harsh bitterness, featuring only moderate and perfect acidity with persistent fruit flavors.

The History of Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee

Jamaican Blue Mountain may be the most famous coffee in the world, yet few people know its history or why it commands such a high price. In 1789, the first person to bring coffee to the island of Jamaica was a Frenchman fleeing the French Revolution. The first coffee cultivated was for local French consumption and then for export, and for the first 100 years the local industry remained very small.

In 1932, however, the Jamaican conference passed laws encouraging coffee cultivation to reduce the island's dependence on sugar exports. To safeguard Blue Mountain coffee quality, modifications were made to the Jamaican Coffee Industry to standardize processing, improve coffee quality, equalize marketing and preserve the fate of premium coffee. The Jamaican Industry Association took responsibility for the quality of Jamaica's Blue Mountain coffee. The island's smaller coffee farms also grow well, and the Jamaican Industry Association holds final authority over Jamaica's coffee exports: all coffee must pass through the Jamaican Industry Association to be exported.

Limited Production and Growing Regions

Blue Mountain coffee shipments are extremely limited. In 1717, French King Louis XV ordered coffee cultivation in Jamaica. In the mid-1720s, Jamaica's Governor Sir Nicholas Lawes imported Arabica seeds from Martinique and began promoting cultivation in the St. Andrew area. To this day, St. Andrew remains one of the three major growing regions for Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, the other two being the Portland region and the St. Thomas region.

Global Distribution

Because of Japan's continuous investment in Jamaica's coffee industry, most Blue Mountain coffee is now controlled by Japanese buyers, who have also obtained priority purchasing rights. In 1992, Jamaica sold 688 tons of Blue Mountain coffee to Japan, 75 tons to the United States and 59 tons to the United Kingdom. Today, 90% of Blue Mountain coffee is purchased by the Japanese. Since the rest of the world can obtain only 10% of Blue Mountain, the coffee is always in short supply regardless of price.

Coffee Bean Packaging

This is the coffee bean packaging, authentic imported Blue Mountain.

Jamaica BLUE MOUNT

Country: Jamaica

Altitude: 1600 meters

Region: St. Thomas Parish

Roast Level: Medium Roast

Processing Method: Washed

The "Secret" of Blue Mountain Coffee's Pure Flavor

Their coffee trees all grow on rugged mountain slopes, which makes harvesting extremely difficult. Only local skilled female workers can handle the task. It is crucial to select properly ripe coffee beans during harvesting, since underripe or overripe beans will affect cup quality. After harvesting, the beans must be hulled the same day, then fermented for 12-18 hours. Afterward they are washed and sorted. The next step is drying, which must be done on concrete floors or thick blankets until the beans' moisture content drops to 12%-14%. They are then stored in special warehouses, and taken out when needed for roasting and grinding. These procedures must be strictly controlled, otherwise cup quality will suffer.

Variety: Typica

Processing Plant: Abbey Green Farm

Flavor: Perfect balance of sweetness, acidity and bitterness

Identifying Authentic Blue Mountain Coffee

1. Appearance

Blue Mountain coffee's raw beans are blue-green in color, very uniform in appearance, medium to small in size, with slightly curved ends. After roasting they expand significantly in volume and become very full-bodied.

2. Grinding

Real Blue Mountain coffee beans are grown at high altitudes, so their cellular structure is relatively loose. When ground by hand they feel very crisp, smooth and continuous, without any sense of resistance.

3. Aroma

The aroma is very intense and dense. So-called blended Blue Mountain coffee does not have this type of aroma.

4. Taste

Real Blue Mountain coffee has a balanced and rich taste, with no single flavor overpowering the others or missing, which is something no other coffee bean achieves. This is the most crucial identification point. Blue Mountain peaberries have a subtler aroma and a relatively stronger taste.

5. Sensation

As the world's best coffee, Blue Mountain's classic balanced character inevitably brings a subconscious, indescribable satisfaction when tasting.

Pour-over Jamaican Blue Mountain

15g of coffee, medium grind (Fuji ghost-tooth blade setting #4), V60 dripper, 88-89°C water temperature. First pour 30g of water for a 27-second bloom, then pour to 105g and pause. Wait until the water level drops to half, then slowly pour until reaching 225g. Avoid the tail section. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Manufacturer: FrontStreet Coffee
Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 100g
Packaging: Bulk coffee beans
Roast Level: Roasted coffee beans
Sugar Content: Sugar-free
Origin: Jamaica
Roast Degree: Medium roast

What Is Blue Mountain Coffee?

Blue Mountain coffee refers to coffee brewed from beans grown in Jamaica's Blue Mountains. It is divided into grades including Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee and Jamaican High Mountain Coffee. The Blue Mountains lie in eastern Jamaica. On a clear day, direct sunlight strikes the azure sea surface and the mountain peaks reflect the brilliant blue light from the water, which is how the name arose. The highest peak of Blue Mountain reaches 2256 meters, making it the highest peak in the Caribbean region.

This area sits in the coffee belt, with fertile volcanic soil, fresh air, no pollution, a humid climate, and fog and rain year-round (average precipitation of 1980mm, temperature around 27°C). Such conditions created the world-renowned Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, and they also make it the second most expensive coffee in the world.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If the balanced, low-acid character described here is what you are after, FrontStreet Jamaica Blue Mountain No.1 is the definitive choice. Sourced from the historic Clifton estate and given a medium-dark roast, it opens with nuts, dark chocolate and cream caramel, then settles into a soft, layered sweetness with a clean, lingering finish. FrontStreet suggests a Kono dripper for extra body, 15g of coffee at a 1:15 ratio, water at 87-88°C, and beans rested 4-7 days after roasting. Grind slightly coarser than you would for a light roast, roughly like granulated sugar, then pour in three stages: 30g for a 30-second bloom, to 120g, then to 225g.