Colombian Coffee Characteristics and Brand Introduction - Colombian Coffee Bean Varieties, Processing Methods, and Hand-poured Flavor Profile Description

When you first taste Colombian Huilan coffee, you'll be captivated by its dark chocolate and nutty notes. Especially for those who love chocolate, this coffee will surely win their hearts from the very first sip!

Initially, Colombia didn't focus much on specialty coffee, which is why Colombian coffee beans were commonly found in blends. As the specialty coffee movement advanced, Colombia began to prioritize specialty coffee. Gradually, Colombian coffee beans started appearing on specialty coffee lists, such as FrontStreet Coffee's Colombian Flower Moon Night coffee and Rose Valley coffee. Simultaneously, with market demand, Colombian coffee beans have become a significant player in the specialty coffee market.

Colombian Growing Environment

Colombian coffee beans are notably large and beautiful, thanks to their varieties and exceptional growing conditions. Colombia is located in the northwestern part of the South American continent, bordering Panama in Central America. Situated in the tropics, the climate varies with terrain, featuring rich volcanic soil and annual rainfall between 2000-3000mm. At coordinates 1°-11°15'N latitude and 72°-78°W longitude, Colombia enjoys mild temperatures, humid air, and diverse climates that allow coffee harvesting year-round. The eastern plains, southern regions, and Pacific coast have tropical rainforest climates, while mountainous areas at 1000-2000 meters altitude experience subtropical climates, and the northwest has tropical savanna climates. The average annual temperature ranges from 15.8°C to 20.5°C. Coffee regions average between 18°C and 22.5°C. Colombia's suitable climate provides a true "natural pasture" for coffee. FrontStreet Coffee believes this is the fundamental reason for Colombian coffee's superior quality.

Colombian Coffee (Café de Colombia) originates from Colombia and is one of the few single-origin coffees sold internationally under a country's name. In terms of quality, it has received praise that other coffees cannot match. Compared to other producing countries, Colombia shows greater concern for product development and production promotion. This, combined with superior geographical and climatic conditions, makes Colombian coffee exceptionally high-quality and flavorful, earning global acclaim.

World coffee is divided into two main categories. As the world's largest producer, Brazil's coffee beans are characterized as "hard" with intense flavors. The other category, represented by Colombia, is "soft" with milder, more aromatic profiles. The difference lies in altitude and cultivation methods: Brazil grows coffee in hilly red soil with extensive farming, while Colombia cultivates in mountainous black soil with intensive care. FrontStreet Coffee has found that Colombian coffee emits a light, elegant fragrance—unlike the intense aroma of Brazilian coffee or the acidity of African coffees, it offers a sweet, subtle fragrance that is understated yet sophisticated.

Main Colombian Coffee Growing Regions

Colombia is the world's third-largest coffee producer and exporter, the largest exporter of Arabica coffee beans, and the largest exporter of washed coffee beans. Colombia is most famous for regions like Medellín, Armenia, and Manizales, which are collectively known as "MAM."

Colombia's specialty coffee growing regions are primarily in the south, at altitudes above 1500 meters, including San Augustin in Huila department, Popayán in Cauca department, Nariño department, and Tolima department. Coffees from these areas exhibit refined acidic and berry aromas, with caramel notes and full sweetness.

Colombian Coffee Bean Varieties

Good coffee is inseparable from its varieties. Beyond natural growing conditions, variety is also a crucial factor. Colombia is the world's largest exporter of Arabica coffee beans and washed coffee beans. Most coffee produced in Colombia belongs to the Arabica species, including varieties like Bourbon, Caturra, Typica, and Maragogipe. Classic Colombian coffees are primarily Typica, Caturra, and Catuai.

Caturra and Catuai are the most common coffee varieties in Colombia. Additionally, some renowned local coffee estates grow Geisha coffee and new varieties like Colombia (yes, that's a coffee variety name) and Castillo.

Caturra is a natural variant of the Arabica Bourbon variety, discovered in Brazil in 1937. Its plant is shorter and more compact than Bourbon. While inheriting Bourbon's lineage, it has relatively weak disease resistance but higher yields. Although discovered in Brazil, Caturra isn't suitable for Brazilian growing conditions, so it wasn't widely cultivated there. Instead, it flourishes in Central and South American countries like Colombia, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua, where it's extensively planted.

Catuai is a coffee variety hybridized from Caturra and Mundo Novo. Catuai has good resistance to natural disasters, particularly wind and rain. The Catuai tree is relatively short, and compared to other coffee trees, its fruit grows more firmly and is harder to harvest. The fruit comes in both red and yellow varieties. To date, no superiority in flavor has been found between yellow and red fruits. In fact, some cuppers have discovered that while coffee processed from yellow fruits may have good acidity, the clarity of the coffee's body is inferior to that from red fruits.

Starting in 1961, CENICAFE began research on the Timor variety with Robusta lineage. CENICAFE continued its research efforts, releasing the second disease-resistant variety Tabi (a hybrid of Typica, Bourbon, and Timor) in 2002. In 2005, they released Castillo, their most successful disease-resistant variety to date. After the massive leaf rust outbreak in 2008, Colombia began vigorously promoting Castillo cultivation.

The new variety named Colombia (sharing the country's name), developed in 2008, is a hybrid with Caturra and Timor lineage—essentially a Catimor variety. However, [FNC] insists that while Colombia is a direct descendant of Catimor, its flavor is far more elegant than typical Catimor because Colombia has undergone multiple generations of "backcrossing" with Arabica varieties, eliminating the musty taste of Robusta beans. Its flavor more closely resembles Arabica while maintaining Robusta's disease resistance and high yield advantages, making it a powerful tool for increasing Colombia's production.

Colombian Coffee Bean Processing Methods

As the world's largest exporter of washed coffee beans, Colombia naturally uses washed processing for most of its coffee beans. Additionally, specialty coffee is mostly produced by small to medium-sized independent farms. Compared to Brazil's large-scale cultivation, small farms typically produce higher quality coffee. However, you might notice that Colombian coffee beans now feature many other special processing methods, such as barrel fermentation and anaerobic fermentation. These special processing methods continuously bring innovation and progress to Colombian coffee in the specialty coffee world.

Washed Processing Method:

After coffee cherries are harvested, they are first poured into large water tanks. Underdeveloped, inferior beans will float to the surface, while mature, full fruits sink to the bottom. At this point, the defective beans (cherries) floating on the surface are removed.

Then, a pulping machine removes the outer skin and pulp from the coffee fruit. At this point, the coffee beans still have a slippery layer of mucilage attached. The mucilage-covered coffee beans are placed in fermentation tanks for 16-36 hours, during which microorganisms break down the mucilage.

After fermentation completes, large amounts of clean water are used to wash away residual mucilage from the coffee beans. Finally, the clean coffee beans are dried in the sun.

FrontStreet Coffee believes that Colombian premium coffee achieves a perfect balance of acidity, bitterness, and sweetness. Its unique aroma fills the entire mouth after drinking. When you exhale the aroma from your nose, the fragrance is incredibly full. Regardless of the special processing method used, all are improvements upon the basic washed processing method. At the same time, FrontStreet Coffee believes that washed processed coffee beans better express the essential flavors of the coffee beans. Therefore, almost all of FrontStreet Coffee's regular stock beans are washed processed, and washed Huilan coffee serves as the representative of Colombian coffee.

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Recommendations

Of course, to brew a good cup of coffee, besides the coffee variety, freshness is crucial. FrontStreet Coffee believes that coffee bean freshness is a vital part of brewing. Coffee beans shipped by FrontStreet Coffee are roasted within 5 days because FrontStreet Coffee deeply understands how significantly freshness affects flavor. FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy is "Freshly Roasted Good Coffee," ensuring every customer receives the freshest coffee possible. The coffee's resting period is about 4-7 days, so when customers receive their coffee, it's at peak flavor.

Of course, some customers need FrontStreet Coffee to grind their beans, which is perfectly fine. However, FrontStreet Coffee must remind you: when coffee beans are pre-ground, there's no need for a resting period because during transportation, the pressure from carbon dioxide buildup in the packaging can help mellow the coffee flavor. Therefore, you can brew a cup immediately upon receiving the ground coffee. However, ground coffee needs to be brewed promptly because it oxidizes quickly when exposed to air, meaning the coffee flavor will dissipate relatively quickly, and the coffee won't taste as good. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee recommends purchasing whole beans and grinding fresh for each brew to better experience the coffee's flavors.

FrontStreet Coffee's Colombian Huilan Coffee Brewing Parameters:

Colombian Huilan coffee beans use medium-dark roasting, so FrontStreet Coffee chose: Dripper: Kono dripper, Water temperature: 88°C, Dose: 15g, Ratio: 1:15, Grind size: Medium grind (Chinese standard 75% pass-through on #20 sieve)

For Colombia's Rose Valley and Flower Moon Night coffees, which use medium-light roasting, FrontStreet Coffee chose: Dripper: Hario V60, Water temperature: 90°C, Dose: 15g, Ratio: 1:15, Grind size: Medium-fine grind (Chinese standard 80% pass-through on #20 sieve)

Using segmented extraction, bloom with twice the coffee weight in water—i.e., 30g water for 30 seconds. Starting from 31 seconds, continue pouring in a small circular motion until reaching 125g, then continue pouring to 225g and stop. Remove the dripper once all water has dripped through. Start timing from the beginning of pouring; extraction time is 2'00". Next, take the entire cup of coffee and swirl it gently before pouring into cups for tasting.

Flavor Profiles:

Colombian Huilan Coffee: Rich acidity, caramel, sweet nuts, chocolate, and pleasantly soft fruity acidity.

Colombian Flower Moon Night Coffee: Beyond floral and strawberry jam notes, it has a liquor-filled chocolate aftertaste, with creamy and fermented characteristics.

Colombian Rose Valley Coffee: Floral, bright acidity, prominent sweetness and sourness, juice-like body, with notes of grapes, strawberries, and green plums.

Different coffee roast levels require different brewing equipment. Kono drippers are generally suitable for medium-dark roasted coffee beans, which have a fuller body. Medium-light roasted coffee beans pair well with Hario V60 drippers for more complex flavors. Whether it's coffee bean selection or brewing methods, you're welcome to visit FrontStreet Coffee to explore together.

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style).

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee's private WeChat account: qjcoffeex

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473