Is Colombian Santa Rita Coffee Delicious? How to Make Colombian Coffee

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Coffee Information

Varieties: Catuai, Caturra

Estate: Santa Rita

The History of Colombian Coffee

The history of coffee cultivation in Colombia can be traced back to the Spanish colonial era in the 16th century. There are several accounts regarding coffee's history in Colombia:

First Account: It is said that coffee was introduced via water routes from Haiti in the Caribbean Sea, through El Salvador in Central America.

Second Account: In 1808, a priest first introduced coffee beans to Colombia from the French Antilles via Venezuela. One version suggests that Colombia's first batch of coffee seeds entered through the Santander Province from Venezuela.

Third Account: The earliest records of coffee cultivation in Colombia appear in the book "The Illustrated Orinoca" by Spanish missionary Jose Gumilla. He described his experiences while preaching along the banks of the Meta River in 1730, mentioning local coffee plantations. By 1787, other missionaries had spread coffee to other parts of Colombia.

Brewing Instructions

Hand-poured Colombian Santa Rita: 15g of coffee grounds, medium grind (using Fuji's ghost tooth grinder #4), V60 dripper, water temperature 88-89°C. First pour 30g of water for a 27-second bloom, then pour to 105g and pause. Wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to half, then continue pouring slowly until reaching 225g. Discard the tail end. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Flavor: Sugarcane, clean, medium body

Colombia: The Land of Coffee

Located in northwestern South America, Colombia is a beautiful country with a long history. From ancient times, indigenous peoples have thrived on this land. It became a Spanish colony in 1531 and gained independence in 1819. In 1886, it adopted its current name to honor Christopher Columbus, the discoverer of the American continent.

Colombia boasts beautiful mountains, pleasant scenery, comfortable climate, spring-like weather year-round, and fresh air. The country is rich in natural resources, with coffee, flowers, gold, and emeralds known as the "Four Treasures." Today, Colombia is the second-largest coffee producer after Brazil, the world's largest exporter of Arabica coffee beans, and the world's largest exporter of washed coffee beans.

Colombian coffee is often described as having a silky smooth texture. Among all coffees, it has the best balance, with a soft, smooth mouthfeel that can be enjoyed anytime. It has received praise unmatched by other coffees: it's known as "green gold."

Coffee Varieties

Caturra

Caturra is a natural variant of the Arabica Bourbon variety, discovered in Brazil in 1937. Its plant is shorter and more compact than Bourbon. Although it inherits Bourbon's bloodline, making it relatively weak in disease resistance, its yield is higher than Bourbon. Despite being discovered in Brazil, Caturra is not well-suited for growing there and wasn't cultivated on a large scale. Instead, it became widely popular in Central and South America, with extensive cultivation in countries like Colombia, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua.

Compared to these botanical characteristics, you might be more concerned about Caturra's flavor. The higher the altitude where Caturra is grown, the better the quality, but correspondingly, the lower the yield. When lightly roasted, Caturra shows distinct acidic aromas and overall brightness. With proper processing, its sweetness can be excellent, but its body is relatively low compared to Bourbon, and its mouthfeel cleanliness is somewhat lacking.

Typically, Caturra produces red cherries, but in very rare regions, there are yellow Caturra varieties. For example, Hawaii grows very small quantities of yellow Caturra.

Catuai

Catuai is a coffee variety artificially hybridized from Caturra and Mundo Novo. Catuai has good resistance to natural disasters, particularly wind and rain.

Catuai plants are relatively short. Compared to other coffee trees, Catuai's fruit grows more firmly and is difficult to pick. The fruit comes in both red and yellow varieties. To date, no difference in flavor has been found between yellow and red fruits. In fact, some cuppers have discovered that although coffee processed from yellow fruits can have good acidity, its mouthfeel cleanliness is worse than that from red fruits.

Catuai was developed in Brazil and is now also widely planted in Central America.

Product Information

Manufacturer: FrontStreet Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee)

Address: No. 10 Bao'an Qianjie Street, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou

Contact: 020-38364473

Ingredients: In-house roasted

Shelf Life: 90 days

Net Weight: 227g

Packaging: Bulk

Taste: Aromatic coffee

Roast Level: Roasted coffee beans

Sugar Content: Sugar-free

Origin: Colombia

Coffee Type: Colombian coffee

Roast Degree: Medium roast

Colombia Santa Rita Special Reserve

Country: Colombia

Region: Antioquia Department

Altitude: 1600-2100 meters

Processing Method: Washed

Santa Rita Estate is located in the Antioquia Department of Colombia, situated in a micro-production region adjacent to the Andes Mountains. This premium coffee is produced through the collaboration of 9 nearby farms. These 9 farms still use traditional methods to process coffee: hand-picking coffee cherries, then applying traditional washed processing, with the processed beans laid out on racks to sun-dry. The environment around the Andes Mountains provides this coffee-growing region with fertile volcanic soil and uniquely advantageous water resources.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473