Differences, Distinctions, and Award Status of Colombian Santa Rita Estate Single-Origin Coffee Beans

Differences, Distinctions, and Awards of Colombia Santa Rita Estate Single-Origin Coffee

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Basic Information

Varieties: Catuai, Caturra

Estate: Santa Rita

Colombia's Rich Coffee History

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

One theory suggests that coffee was introduced by sea from the Caribbean island of Haiti through El Salvador in Central America.

Another account states that in 1808, a priest brought coffee beans to Colombia for the first time from the French Antilles via Venezuela. One version suggests that Colombia's first coffee seeds entered through the Santander province from Venezuela.

A third theory points to the earliest record of coffee cultivation in Colombia appearing in the book "The Illustrated Orinoca" by Spanish missionary Jose Gumilla. He described his experiences from 1730 while missionarying along the Meta River, mentioning local coffee plantations. By 1787, other missionaries had spread coffee to other parts of Colombia.

Brewing Method

Hand-brewed Colombia Santa Rita: 15g coffee, medium grind (small Fuji ghost tooth blade #4), V60 dripper, water temperature 88-89°C. First pour 30g water, 27-second bloom, pour to 105g and stop, wait until the water level drops halfway, then slowly pour until reaching 225g. Avoid the tail section. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Flavor: Sugarcane, clean, medium body

Colombia: The Land of Coffee Excellence

Located in northwestern South America, Colombia is a beautiful country with a rich history. Indigenous peoples have thrived on this land since ancient times. It became a Spanish colony in 1531 and gained independence in 1819. In 1886, it was renamed to honor Christopher Columbus, the discoverer of the American continent.

Colombia boasts magnificent mountains, beautiful scenery, pleasant weather, spring-like seasons 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-producing country 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 mouthfeel. Among all coffees, it has the best balance, with a soft, smooth texture that makes it enjoyable to drink anytime. It has received praise unmatched by other coffees: it's known as "green gold."

Coffee Varieties

Caturra

Caturra is a natural mutation of the Arabica Bourbon variety, discovered in Brazil in 1937. Its plant is smaller and more compact than Bourbon. Due to its Bourbon heritage, it has relatively weak disease resistance but higher yields than Bourbon. Although discovered in Brazil, Caturra is not well-suited for growing there and was not 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 lower the yield. When lightly roasted, Caturra has prominent acidic aromas and overall brightness. With proper processing, it can exhibit excellent sweetness, but the coffee body is relatively low compared to Bourbon, and the cleanliness of the cup 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 hybrid coffee variety created by人工 crossbreeding Caturra and Mundo Novo. Catuai has good resistance to natural disasters, particularly wind and rain.

The Catuai plant is relatively small. Compared to other coffee trees, Catuai's fruit grows more firmly and is harder to pick. The fruit comes in both red and yellow varieties. To date, no superior flavor has been found in yellow fruit compared to red fruit. In fact, some cuppers have found that although coffee processed from some yellow fruits has good acidity, the cleanliness of the cup is inferior to that of red fruit.

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 Front Street, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou City

Contact: 020-38364473

Ingredients: House-roasted

Shelf Life: 90 days

Net Weight: 227g

Packaging: Bulk

Taste: Mellow and aromatic

Bean State: Roasted coffee beans

Sugar Content: Sugar-free

Origin: Colombia

Coffee Type: Colombia coffee

Roast Level: 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-region adjacent to the Andes Mountains. This premium coffee is produced through collaboration with 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 coffee beans laid out on racks to sun-dry. The environment around the Andes Mountains provides this coffee-growing region with fertile volcanic soil and unique water resources.

Colombian Coffee Botanical Characteristics

The main variety of Colombian coffee is Coffea arabica. The plant is a small tree or large shrub, 5-8 meters tall, usually with multiple branches at the base; old branches are grayish-white with swollen nodes, young branches are hairless and flattened. Leaves are thinly leathery, ovate-lanceolate or lanceolate, 6-14 cm long, 3.5-5 cm wide, with a long gradual apex 10-15 mm long, wedge-shaped or slightly obtuse base, rarely rounded, entire or shallowly wavy margins, hairless on both surfaces, with or without small pits in the vein axils on the underside. The midrib is prominent on both leaf surfaces, with 7-13 lateral veins per side. Petioles are 8-15 mm long. Stipules are broadly triangular, with conical long tips or awn tips at the apex of upper young branches, often acuminate at the apex on old branches, 3-6 mm long. Several cymes are clustered in leaf axils, each with 2-5 flowers, without or with very short peduncles. Flowers are fragrant, with pedicels 0.5-1 mm long. Bracts are basally more or less connate, of two types: 2 broadly triangular, nearly equal in length and width, and 2 lanceolate, twice as long as wide, leaf-like. Calyx tube is cylindrical, 2.5-3 mm long, limb truncate or with 5 small teeth. Corolla is white, length varies by variety, generally 10-18 mm long, usually 5-lobed at the apex, rarely 4 or 6-lobed, lobes often longer than the corolla tube, apex often obtuse. Anthers extend beyond the corolla tube, 6-8 mm long. Style is 12-14 mm long, stigma 2-lobed, 3-4 mm long. Berries are broadly elliptical when ripe, red, 12-16 mm long, 10-12 mm in diameter, with hard membranous exocarp, fleshy mesocarp, sweet taste. Seeds are convex on the dorsal surface, flat on the ventral surface, with longitudinal grooves, 8-10 mm long, 5-7 mm in diameter. Flowering period is March-April.

Colombia Santa Rita (Washed, Medium-Dark Roast)

Flavor: Sugarcane, clean, medium body. Santa Rita Estate is located in the Antioquia Department of Colombia, using traditional methods to process coffee: hand-picking coffee cherries, then applying traditional washed processing, with the processed coffee beans laid out on racks to sun-dry. The environment around the Andes Mountains provides this coffee-growing region with fertile volcanic soil and unique water resources.

Ideal Coffee Growing Conditions

Coffee cultivation also requires sunlight and appropriate shade, with most suitable planting in fertile land or volcanic ash soil. Therefore, coffee-producing regions are widely distributed in South America, Central America, the West Indies, Asia, Africa, Arabia, the South Pacific, and Oceania. Countries like Ethiopia and Tanzania in Africa; Brazil, Colombia, Jamaica, Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, and Costa Rica in Central and South America; and Vietnam and Indonesia in Southeast Asia are all major coffee-producing regions. In South America, Brazil's production accounts for 30-50% of world total production, while Colombia accounts for 10-20%.

Colombia: Coffee Growing Regions

Population: 47,073,000

Colombia has well-defined growing regions and the diverse, impressive coffees they produce. Whether you prefer round, heavy coffee flavors or refreshing, fruit-forward coffees (or something in between), Colombian beans are likely to deliver. Colombia is divided geographically, and it's not surprising that coffees from this region share many common characteristics. If you like coffee from one region, you'll likely enjoy coffees from other regions as well. Coffee trees in Colombia have two harvests annually: the main harvest and the second harvest, locally called "mitaca."

CAUCA

CAUCA is particularly famous for its coffee cultivation around Inza and the city of Popayán in the Meseta de Popayán. The high altitude of this plateau provides favorable growing conditions, and its proximity to the equator and surrounding mountains protects coffee from Pacific humidity and southern trade winds. This creates a very stable climate year-round. Additionally, the region's coffee has significant volcanic soil. Historically, there is a single rainy season from October to December each year.

Altitude: 1,700-2,100m

Harvest: March-June (main crop), November-December (mitaca crop)

TOLIMA

TOLIMA was one of the strongholds of the notorious rebel organization FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) until recently. Tolima has suffered from conflict in recent years, making access difficult. High-quality coffee from this region comes from small farmers cultivating in very small micro-lots, exported through cooperatives.

Altitude: 1,200-1,900m

Harvest: March-June (main crop), October-December (mitaca crop)

Varieties: 9% Typica, 74% Caturra, 17% Castillo

NARINO

Some of Colombia's highest quality coffees grow in Narino, considered the most stunning and flavor-complex. Growing coffee in many of these high-altitude areas is challenging, with coffee trees potentially susceptible to leaf rust disease. However, Narino is close enough to the equator that the climate is suitable for coffee tree cultivation. Among Narino's forty thousand producers, the vast majority are small farmers, each cultivating less than 2 hectares (4.4 acres). Many form associations and organizations to support each other and interact with the FNC. In fact, the average farm size is less than 1 hectare (2.2 acres), with only 37 producers in the region owning more than 5 hectares (11 acres) of land.

Altitude: 1,500-2,300m (4,900-7,500ft)

Harvest: April-June

Varieties: 54% Typica, 29% Caturra, 17% Castillo

HUILA

Huila has an excellent combination of soil and geographical advantages for coffee cultivation. Some of the most complex, fruit-forward Colombian coffees come from this region. The area has over seventy thousand coffee growers occupying more than 16,000 hectares (39,500 acres).

Altitude: 1,250-2,000m

Harvest: September-December (main crop), April-May (mitaca crop)

Main Varieties: 11% Typica, 75% Caturra, 14% Castillo

Colombia's Ideal Coffee Growing Environment

Due to a special combination of various factors - latitude, altitude, soil, botanical origins of species, and coffee varieties in Colombia's coffee-growing regions; rain patterns generated by the dual paths of the Intertropical Convergence Zone and climate in coffee-growing areas; topography and light intensity that constantly change throughout the day; favorable temperature ranges year-round; moderate and well-distributed rainfall; and common cultural practices including selective harvesting and processing methods including washing and drying - Colombia provides ideal conditions for coffee growth with mild climate, humid air, and harvests possible year-round. This is why Colombian coffee quality is superior.

Colombia has three Cordillera mountain ranges running north-south, extending into the Andes. Coffee is planted along the highlands of these mountain ranges. The mountain steps provide diverse climates, making it harvest season year-round, with different coffee varieties maturing at different times. Fortunately, unlike Brazil, Colombia doesn't have to worry about frost damage. Colombia has approximately 2.7 billion documented coffee trees, of which 66% are planted in modern cultivation methods in plantations, with the rest planted in traditionally managed small farms.

Currently, Vietnam's coffee production in Asia has surpassed Colombia. Additionally, Indonesia has also developed into the world's fourth-largest coffee-producing country. In 1721, French naval officer Gabriel Mathieu de Clieu overcame numerous difficulties to bring the first coffee seedling from Africa to Martinique in Latin America - this marks the origin of coffee cultivation in Latin America. Because France was under Bourbon dynasty rule at that time, the Arabica coffee planted in Latin America acquired another name that remains famous in the coffee industry today: "Bourbon." Today, Bourbon has become an important branch of Arabica coffee.

The overall flavor profile of Latin American coffee is characterized by balance - all coffee flavors can be found in Latin American coffees. The common use of wet processing is also one of the characteristics of Latin American coffee. The good processing process also results in bean sizes that are larger and more uniform compared to African coffees, with lower defect rates.

Colombia is one of the world's largest producers of quality coffee, a shining pearl on the world coffee map, a coffee land favored by God. Arabica coffee is planted on steep slopes at altitudes of 800-1900 meters on mountain foothills, all hand-picked and washed.

Colombia's suitable climate provides a true "natural pasture" for coffee. Colombia's coffee trees are mainly cultivated in the Andes mountain region on steep slopes around 1300 meters altitude, where the annual temperature is approximately 18°C, annual rainfall is 2000-3000 mm, at latitude 1°-11° 15' N, longitude 72°-78° W, with specific altitude ranges that can exceed 2,000 meters.

Important Notice :

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Tel:020 38364473