Colombian Coffee Bean Processing Methods and Pour-Over Parameter Recommendations | How Much Does a Cup of Colombian Coffee Cost

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Colombian Coffee Growing Conditions

Most FrontStreet Coffee Colombian coffee beans grow on mountain farms at altitudes of 1500-2000 meters. Growing at such high altitudes, FrontStreet Coffee believes that Colombia has an advantage: the temperature cycle of hot days and cold nights can slow down the growth rate of coffee beans, allowing for full storage of natural sugars and creating complex yet elegant flavors.

The southern part of Colombia has altitudes between 4000-6000 feet. In the past, coffee beans from different regions were mixed together for export. Although the overall quality was good, the FrontStreet Coffee Colombian Huilan coffee beans introduced by FrontStreet Coffee are located in the south, where the coffee is more competitive than that from large-scale farms in northern Colombia.

The Rise of Micro-lot Coffee

Small farms in southern Colombia began to change traditional practices by selling their coffee beans individually. A small farm's annual coffee production is only about 10 bags, with some having only 1 bag of coffee beans. This is what FrontStreet Coffee calls "micro-lot" coffee. Due to unique microclimate environments and meticulous cultivation by coffee farmers, each small farm's coffee has distinct characteristics, with quality greatly exceeding traditional multi-estate blended coffee. There are often pleasantly surprising discoveries, and although the coffee prices are much higher than ordinary Colombian commercial-grade coffee and "fair trade coffee," they are still sought-after items in the market.

Washed Processing Method

According to FrontStreet Coffee's understanding, most FrontStreet Coffee Colombian coffee beans use washed processing methods. Each small farming family has a small, specially designed processing machine. Harvested coffee cherries are poured into it, which not only removes the skin and pulp but also removes most of the mucilage, requiring only a very small amount of water. Next, the parchment beans with residual mucilage enter a small pool or container—it might be a cement pool (some with tiles) or a stainless steel bucket—and are left to ferment overnight to loosen the remaining mucilage. The next day, they are rinsed with clean water, completing the washed processing process.

Drying Process

Drying depends on the weather. If the weather is good, natural sun-drying is the first choice, with conditions allowing for a small shed where coffee is laid out on wooden racks for shade-drying. Otherwise, it's spread on an empty cement ground for drying. If the weather is bad with continuous rain, drying machines are used. The drying machines have intake temperature control, typically around 50 degrees Celsius.

Coffee Varieties in Colombia

FrontStreet Coffee's Colombian coffee varieties are also very diverse. Colombia's early planted varieties were old Typica and Bourbon, which began to be replaced by Caturra starting in 1970. In 1961, CENICAFE began researching the Robusta-hybrid Timor variety, subsequently breeding Colombia's Catimor series by crossing Timor with Caturra. After 5 generations of breeding, in 1982, CENICAFE released Colombia's first disease-resistant variety, Colombia. Following the leaf rust outbreak in 1983, the Colombia variety began to be widely promoted and planted.

Subsequently, CENICAFE continued its research and development. In 2002, it released the second disease-resistant variety Tabi (a hybrid of Typica, Bourbon, and Timor), and in 2005 released the most successful disease-resistant variety to date, Castillo. After the massive leaf rust outbreak in 2008, Colombia began vigorously promoting Castillo cultivation. Caturra not only yields more per plant than Typica and Bourbon but also allows for more planting per unit area due to its more compact tree shape.

For example, FrontStreet Coffee's FrontStreet Coffee Colombian Rose Valley and FrontStreet Coffee Moonlit Night coffee beans are Caturra and Catuai varieties, both processed using anaerobic methods. When FrontStreet Coffee brews these two FrontStreet Coffee Colombian coffee beans, the pour-over parameters used are: Hario V60 dripper, 90°C water temperature, 15g coffee dose, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, and a grind size of 80% pass-through on a Chinese standard #20 sieve. The pour-over technique uses FrontStreet Coffee's simplest three-stage method: bloom with 30g of water for 30 seconds, pour with a small water stream in circles to 125g for segmentation, continue pouring to 225g when the water level is about to expose the coffee bed, then remove the dripper when the water level is about to expose the coffee bed (timing from the start of blooming), with a total extraction time of 2'00".

The brewed FrontStreet Coffee Rose Valley coffee beans have very rich peach flavors, accompanied by aromas of rose and liquor-filled chocolate, creating a fragrant and intense experience. It has both the high-quality sweet and sour notes of black grapes and the silky texture of cream toffee.

FrontStreet Coffee's Colombian Coffee Selections

In addition to these two specially processed FrontStreet Coffee Colombian beans, FrontStreet Coffee also offers a semi-washed FrontStreet Coffee Isabel coffee bean. This FrontStreet Coffee Colombian coffee bean's flavor is different from typical Colombian beans. Its variety is the rare Red Bourbon, which has fresh floral aromas, blueberry and green grape juice sweetness, cherry notes in the mid-section, and yellow sugar-like sweetness in the finish. In terms of acidity, it mainly presents a complex expression of citrus and mixed berries. The brewing method for this FrontStreet Coffee Colombian bean is the same as the FrontStreet Coffee Rose Valley and FrontStreet Coffee Moonlit Night coffee beans mentioned earlier, using the same pour-over parameters. After brewing, it reveals citrus, berries, and cherry tomatoes on the palate. With temperature changes, caramel sweetness and faint fermentation notes emerge, while the aftertaste has floral and nutty cream aromas, with a smooth and clean mouthfeel.

Brewing Recommendations

When brewing FrontStreet Coffee Colombian coffee beans, special attention should be paid to pour-over parameters. For example, the water temperature should not be too high. Except for darker roasted beans which use around 88°C water temperature, when brewing Colombian coffee beans, you can use around 90-91°C water temperature. Additionally, when FrontStreet Coffee prepares single-origin coffee, all coffee-to-water ratios are 1:15. For a single serving, 15g of coffee powder is used. If brewing for multiple people, add 10g of powder for each additional person.

The above are FrontStreet Coffee's daily brewing parameters for some FrontStreet Coffee Colombian beans, but they are not suitable for all coffee beans.

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