Coffee Bean Beginner Knowledge Sharing_Can Coffee Beans Be Eaten Directly_What Grade is illy Coffee

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The Coffee Belt

Looking at the global distribution, there is a "Coffee Belt" between 25 degrees north and south latitude. The world's major coffee-producing regions are all located within this belt.

The main producing areas of Arabica beans include South America (except for parts of Argentina and Brazil), Central American countries, Africa (Kenya, Ethiopia, and other regions), and Asia (including parts of Yemen, India, and Papua New Guinea). Small quantities of Arabica beans are also grown in China's Yunnan, Hainan, and Taiwan regions.

When grown in subtropical climate regions, the latitude is generally between 16-24 degrees, with altitudes ranging from 550-1100 meters. The rainy and dry seasons in these producing regions must be clearly defined to ensure an annual coffee harvest period. Mexico, Jamaica, and Zimbabwe are representatives of such producing regions. In regions near the equator, the latitude is generally below 10 degrees, and coffee must be grown at higher elevations, around 1100-2000 meters. The continuous abundant rainfall here makes flowering more frequent, typically allowing for two harvests per year. Kenya, Colombia, and Ethiopia all belong to this type of producing region.

Beginner Coffee Bean Varieties

When it comes to coffee beans, you only need to recognize two names: Arabica and Robusta. Arabica is "small fruit coffee," accounting for 75%-80% of global coffee production. Arabica beans originate from East Africa and are the most traditional Arabic coffee variety. They have lower resistance to drought, frost damage, and pests, so various producing countries are enthusiastic about cultivating improved varieties. Robusta is "medium fruit coffee," accounting for 20% of global production. The beans are larger than Arabica, have stronger disease resistance, and higher caffeine content, but they have sour and astringent tastes with slightly inferior flavor, mainly used for instant coffee.

Roasting

Roasting determines the color, aroma, and taste of coffee and is the crucial process that transforms coffee beans from raw to roasted (roasted beans). The intensity of heat and duration of time can both affect the flavor of coffee. Roasting is divided into light, medium, and dark levels, with each stage further divided into different degrees.

Light-roasted coffee beans generally still have some cinnamon color residue on the surface. In terms of taste, they not only have strong acidity but also mix with grassy flavors. Medium-roasted coffee beans allow the oils to surface, presenting an oily brown color. They can preserve the original flavor of coffee beans while appropriately releasing aromas, achieving a balance of sour, sweet, and bitter tastes with distinct mouthfeel. The famous Blue Mountain coffee is medium roasted. Dark-roasted coffee beans have an oily surface that may even turn jet black. At this point, the taste is sweeter and more mellow, suitable for strong Espresso.

Recommended Beginner Coffee Bean Brands

FrontStreet Coffee's roasted beginner coffee beans: Yirgacheffe coffee, Panama Geisha coffee, and Indonesian Mandheling coffee all have excellent guarantees in terms of brand and quality. More importantly, they offer extremely high cost performance. A half-pound (227 grams) package costs only around 80-90 RMB. Calculating based on 15 grams of coffee powder per cup of pour-over coffee, one package can make 15 cups of coffee, with each single-origin coffee costing only about 6 RMB. Compared to coffee shops that often sell for dozens of RMB per cup, this offers extremely high value for money.

FrontStreet Coffee: A roastery in Guangzhou with a small shop but diverse bean varieties, where you can find various famous and lesser-known beans. They also provide online store services at https://shop104210103.taobao.com

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473