Taiwan Coffee Introduction to Taiwan Yagu Coffee Estate and Pour-Over Recommendations

Ya-Gu Coffee Estate

Ya-Gu Coffee Estate is in Guoxing Township, Nantou County, Taiwan, dedicated to producing specialty coffee, and it has consistently achieved outstanding results in domestic and international specialty coffee evaluations.

Natural Environment

Guoxing is home to the famous Dahengping Mountain, at an elevation of 1,050 meters, with pristine forest vegetation. After summer rains, mountain waterfalls reach dozens of meters high and create breathtaking scenery, and the flowing streams support diverse wildlife and numerous plant species.

As morning mist wraps the mountains and lush green forest stretches for kilometers with few people around, the area has exceptional natural beauty and offers a tranquil environment.

Farming and Processing

The estate sits in this pristine setting at an altitude of 850 meters, which counts as high-mountain coffee for high-latitude coffee-growing regions. Through manual weed removal, organic fertilizer application and careful management, the team produces excellent-quality green beans, which are then expertly roasted to supply consumers.

Awards and Recognition

2015: Coffee Evaluation Second Prize (Natural Process)

2014: Coffee Evaluation Special Award (Honey Process)

2013: Coffee Review (USA) 90 Points

2012: Taiwan Coffee Evaluation National Third Prize

2011: Taiwan Coffee Evaluation Central Region Third Prize

Brewing Recommendations

FrontStreet Coffee suggests the following brewing parameters:

Pour-over: V60 dripper, Fuji R440 grinder setting 3.5, water temperature around 90°C

French Press: Recommended grinder setting 4, water temperature 90°C

Siphon: Recommended grinder setting 4, water temperature 90°C-91°C

AeroPress: Recommended grinder setting 3.5, water temperature 90°C

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Since the pour-over recipe above calls for a V60, it helps to know what that dripper is good at. Hario, the company behind the V60, was founded in Tokyo in 1921 and started out making heat-resistant glass instruments for research labs. In 2004 it redesigned the early V60 into the form we know, named for its 60-degree cone and "V" shape and released a year later. The cone and 60-degree angle force water to the centre before it drips through, lengthening contact with the coffee so aroma and flavour extract fully, while the single large hole lets the flow run freely, so speed depends almost entirely on the brewer's control and shows up directly in the cup.

That fast, controllable extraction suits bright, aromatic coffee, which is why FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe Gutingding is a fitting companion. Often the first specialty coffee people try, it brings vivid citrus, berry and floral notes with a green-tea sweetness, and its acidity is soft and bright rather than sharp, making it very easy to accept for anyone new to pour-over. If you want a more striking cup, FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopia Huakui has an intensely tropical aroma, with strawberry, passion fruit, jackfruit and even lychee, clear sweetness and almost no bitterness, smooth and full of juice; many drinkers call it "the coffee that tastes least like coffee." For those who prefer the clarity of a washed Ethiopian single origin, FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe house coffee is a classic starting point, known for white jasmine, bright citrus and lemon acidity and a tea-like body.