What Are Coffee Blends and the Difference Between Espresso and Single-Origin Blends, and How to Blend Yunnan Coffee

Blend and single-origin coffee have always been topics of discussion. So what exactly are the respective advantages of blended coffee and single-origin coffee? FrontStreet Coffee is here to answer this question for everyone today.

What is Single-Origin Coffee?

Single-origin refers to coffee beans from a single variety and a single producing region. Single-origin coffee is made by grinding coffee beans from a single origin, typically consumed as pure coffee without adding milk or sugar. It possesses strong characteristics and distinctive flavors—either fresh and mellow, or fragrant and smooth; the cost is relatively high, making it more expensive. For example, the famous Mandheling coffee, Brazilian coffee, Colombian coffee… are all single-origin coffees named after their coffee bean origins.

Actually, there's an interesting question about single-origin. Generally, the definition of single-origin refers to coffee varieties from a single producing region, but the naming of single-origin can be based on the producing region, the variety, the processing plant, the estate, or various fancy names that are dazzling. However, we know that it's generally impossible for an entire region to have only one variety, and processing plants also handle coffee collected from nearby coffee farmers, so raw blending has already been completed during raw bean trading. Yet these coffee beans are still considered single-origin coffee in perception. For example, the currently popular "Flower Butterfly" is a coffee mixed with part Geisha and other coffee varieties, which is quite interesting—although it's "raw blended," it's still considered "single-origin."

What is Espresso Blend?

Blended coffee beans are made by mixing multiple types of coffee beans in different proportions, combining coffee beans with similar or different tastes to create distinctive characteristics that differ from the original single-origin coffee, particularly in terms of unique flavor. Coffee bean blending is also an art form—it requires repeated attempts and inspiration to create a good blend. Typically, these well-balanced blended coffee beans are used to make espresso, extracting rich and mellow espresso liquid through high temperature and high pressure.

Mixing coffee beans into blends mainly serves the following purposes:

1. Stable Flavor

Since coffee beans are an agricultural product, even the same type of coffee bean will have different flavors each year. Therefore, mixing several types of coffee beans together solves this problem well, allowing the taste to remain basically consistent each year.

2. Balanced Taste

Since espresso machines have a characteristic of amplifying the most prominent flavor characteristic of coffee beans, we almost never use a single variety of coffee to make Espresso. Otherwise, if that coffee bean is quite bitter, the resulting Espresso will be exceptionally bitter; if it's acidic, it will be very sour. Therefore, we need to balance various flavors through blending.

Mixing coffee is by no means simple addition; rather, it hopes that through the blender's unique understanding of coffee flavors, different coffee beans can complement each other's strengths and weaknesses, creating a blended coffee bean with excellent flavor. SOE (Single Origin Espresso) is not necessarily better tasting than blends. Unlike the habit of generally naming single-origin coffee by their origin, blended coffee beans are usually named after the brand.

Four Major Principles of Blended Coffee Beans:

1. Original Bean Selection

For blending, original beans with distinct characteristics should be used, avoiding coffee beans with similar flavors such as the same coffee processing method, same raw bean origin, or same coffee flavor.

2. Blending Ratios

Each coffee shop will also blend different proportions of coffee beans according to their own characteristics. Generally, a 1:1 blending ratio is not adopted, as equal proportions will mutually inhibit each other's unique flavors. Therefore, blending should have primary and secondary distinctions to create flavors more wonderful than single-origin coffee.

3. Blending Roasting Methods

For coffee blending, there is raw blending—mixing raw beans in proportion; and roasted blending—mixing after roasting is complete, depending on specific flavor requirements.

4. Flavor Balance Principles

For blending, generally 2-6 types of coffee beans are used. Regardless of what beans or roasting degree, too many varieties will make it impossible to express the unique flavors of coffee.

5. Continuous Experimentation

Blended coffee requires constant experimentation. The purpose of blended coffee is generally to achieve stable flavor. Before blending, a combination plan should be drafted using mathematical combinations, and then the best solution should be determined through cupping.

FrontStreet Coffee has launched 4 distinctive blended coffee beans according to different requirements:

【Sunflower Warm Sun Espresso Coffee Beans】 Honduras Sherry : Yirgacheffe Natural Red Cherry, ratio 7:3, roasted blend;

Flavor characteristics: Obvious fruit acidity, with faint berry fragrance lingering, rich wine and chocolate flavors, comfortable sweet aftertaste and lingering finish. Sherry coffee beans bring rich whiskey aroma and chocolate liqueur-like aftertaste to this coffee, with intense fragrance. Natural Red Cherry brings fermentation sensation and berry aroma to this coffee, with smooth entry. This Warm Sun blended coffee bean comes in half-pound packages, suitable for coffee shops requiring special espresso flavors and high bean quality, or espresso enthusiasts with small usage.

【FrontStreet Coffee Premium Blend】 Colombia : Brazil, ratio 3:7, roasted blend;

Flavor characteristics: Comfortable bittersweet taste, extremely smooth entry, with faint grass fragrance, fresh aroma with slight bitterness, sweet, smooth and palatable, aftertaste is pleasant. Coffee beans from Colombia's Huila region have delightful acidity, mellow aroma, moderate acidity, and rich sweetness that is intriguing. Coffee beans from Brazil's Cerrado region have comfortable bittersweet taste and extremely smooth entry. This premium blended coffee is suitable for various specialty coffee shops.

【FrontStreet Coffee Commercial Blend】 Colombia : Brazil : Robusta, ratio 3:6:1, raw blend;

Flavor characteristics: Classic taste, with caramel sweetness, nuts and cocoa, dark chocolate flavors, sweet and sour balance, slightly bittersweet, persistent aftertaste. Coffee beans from Colombia's Huila region have delightful acidity, mellow aroma, moderate acidity, and rich sweetness that is intriguing. Coffee beans from Brazil's Cerrado region have comfortable bittersweet taste and extremely smooth entry. Robusta provides rich oils. This commercial blended coffee is suitable for coffee shops and beverage shops of various sizes.

【FrontStreet Coffee Basic Blend】 Yunnan AA : Brazil, ratio 3:7, roasted blend;

Flavor characteristics: With soft fruit acidity, caramel sweetness, nut and dark chocolate flavors, smooth and thick-bodied, but taste is relatively light. Yunnan's natural conditions are very similar to Colombia's, with high altitude and large temperature differences between day and night. The flavor is mellow and aromatic type, with moderate acidity, rich and mellow taste, uniform particles, high oil content, and with fruit fragrance. Its quality and taste are similar to Colombian coffee. Coffee beans from Brazil's Cerrado region have comfortable bittersweet taste and extremely smooth entry. This basic blended coffee bean is suitable for small coffee shops or bakeries and beverage shops.

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473