Mexico Coffee Growing Region Oaxaca Coffee Beans Where Are the Best Mexican Coffee Beans

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Latest News from Central American Coffee Regions

In the first week of November 2020, Category 4 Hurricane Eta (later downgraded to a tropical storm) made landfall in Central America. Eta brought heavy rains with sustained wind speeds exceeding 60 miles per hour (approximately 95 kilometers per hour). According to Wikipedia data, at least 235 people died in the storm as of the report, including about 150 in Guatemala, 41 in Honduras, 22 in Mexico, 17 in Panama, 2 in Nicaragua, 2 in Costa Rica, and 1 in El Salvador, with many more left homeless. In these circumstances, many farms naturally could not escape unscathed. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic had not yet recovered, and the fierce Hurricane Eta undoubtedly made an already difficult situation even worse.

Mexico's Coffee Cultivation History

Coffee arrived in Mexico relatively late. In the latter half of the 18th century, Spanish immigrants brought coffee trees from the Caribbean islands of Cuba and the Dominican Republic. However, commercial coffee cultivation had to wait until the 1790s, when Germans and Italians immigrated to Mexico from Guatemala and Central and South America, and the first coffee plantations appeared in Veracruz. Mexico has maintained a tradition of small-scale farming. After the Mexican Revolution, agricultural reforms allowed indigenous people and farmers to own small plots of land for self-sufficiency.

The 1970s and 1980s were the golden age of Mexican coffee. In 1973, the Mexican National Coffee Institute (INMECAFE) was established, providing small farmers with technical assistance, loans, guaranteed purchase agreements, and even connections to international markets. Coffee production increased, with some regions experiencing growth rates of up to 900%, significantly improving social development in remote areas.

For other Caribbean and Central and South American countries, bananas and coffee might be the most important economic products. However, Mexico's mineral resources are extremely rich—from precious metals like gold and silver during the Spanish colonial era to petroleum in modern times. For Mexico, petroleum, industry, and tourism are far more important than coffee. The coffee farmers in the southern production regions are predominantly indigenous people and are typically placed in the lowest priority. Coffee prices are determined by the world market, specifically futures prices in London and New York. When coffee prices are good, profits are monopolized by large multinational exporters; when prices are poor, the farmers suffer.

Mexican Coffee Regions

The northern latitude and climate are not suitable for coffee cultivation, so coffee-growing areas are all in the south. Ninety percent of Mexico's coffee comes from four southern states: Chiapas (35%), Oaxaca (13%), Puebla (15%), and Veracruz (25%). Nearly half a million people nationwide are engaged in coffee cultivation, with 70% being small farmers. Unlike Brazil, almost all coffee planting and processing relies on manual labor, and much of the coffee is organically grown. Mexico is one of the world's largest exporters of organic coffee, accounting for 60% of global organic coffee production in 2000. The coffee-producing states of Chiapas and Oaxaca are Mexico's poorest regions with the highest indigenous populations. Tall mountains block transportation, and differences in language and ethnicity have not improved the difficult situation in the south since liberation from Spanish colonial rule. Mexico's best coffee-growing regions are in the southern states of Chiapas and Oaxaca.

Oaxaca Coffee Region

In the Oaxaca region, most farmers own less than 2 hectares of land and belong to several large cooperatives. There are also some larger estates, although some have developed diversified tourism. The elevation ranges from 900-1700m, with a harvest season from December to March. Varieties grown include Bourbon, Typica, Caturra, and Maragogipe. The region also produces premium coffee beans, with the naturally grown Pluma Coixtepec coffee beans being among the finest, along with Altura Orizaba and Altura Huatusco coffees.

Chiapas

Chiapas has an elevation of 1100-1400 meters, with a harvest period from December to April. In the early 1990s, the southern state of Chiapas became Mexico's most important coffee-producing region, with an annual output of about 275,000 tons of coffee, accounting for 45% of the country's production. More than two million Mexicans rely on coffee for their livelihood. 75% of Mexican coffee farmers work on land smaller than two hectares, and these small farmers produce approximately 30% of the country's coffee output annually, with the remainder produced by large or more productive farms. FrontStreet Coffee recently acquired a decaf coffee from this region for roasting, cupping, and brewing.

FrontStreet Coffee - Mexico Chiapas Swiss Water Process Decaf Coffee Beans

Origin: Mexico
Region: Chiapas
Elevation: 900-1500 meters
Varieties: Bourbon, Caturra, Typica, Criollo
Processing Method: Swiss Water Process

This coffee bean acquired by FrontStreet Coffee is produced by the GRAPOS cooperative, a coffee production organization located in the southern state of Chiapas, Mexico. The organization was established in 2007 with only 90 coffee farmers. By 2016, the cooperative had grown to 3,253 coffee farmers, covering sub-regions of Chiapas including Soconusco, Siltepec, Porvenir, and Tapachula. GRAPOS's coffee cultivation area covers approximately 5,560 hectares at elevations of 900-1500m, mostly consisting of small-scale intensive farming with an average cultivation area of 3 hectares per farmer.

Coffee Bean Composition

This coffee bean is composed of Bourbon, Caturra, Typica, and Criollo varieties. Typica and Bourbon are both ancient Arabica coffee varieties, beloved for their rich fruit acidity and excellent flavor quality. Caturra is a single-gene variant of Bourbon, discovered in Brazil in 1937. It has stronger production capacity and disease resistance than Bourbon, and the plant is shorter, making harvesting convenient. Unfortunately, like Bourbon, it has the problem of biennial production cycles. Criollo is a natural mutation of Typica, commonly found in countries like Peru, Bolivia, Colombia, and Mexico. Some coffee-growing countries in Latin America also refer to Typica as "Criollo." Criollo can be seen as a localized version of Typica.

What is Swiss Water Decaf Processing?

The Swiss Water decaffeination technology involves soaking green coffee beans in hot water. During this soaking stage, caffeine is partially removed. The soaked solution is then filtered through activated carbon, and finally, the solution is returned to the coffee beans. This series of steps effectively removes 99.9% of caffeine. Besides not requiring chemical solvents, the soaked solution can be reused in different batch processing procedures.

How Does FrontStreet Coffee Roast This Decaf Coffee Bean?

Preheat the roaster to 200°C, then reduce to 165°C before adding the beans. Set the damper to 3 and adjust the heat to 130. The temperature returns to 166°C at 1'32". Maintain the heat setting. At 6'15", the beans turn yellow and the grassy smell disappears, entering the dehydration stage. Reduce the heat to 110 and open the damper to 4. When reaching 176°C, reduce the heat again to 90. Wrinkles appear on the surface, and the toasted bread aroma turns to coffee aroma—this is the prelude to first crack. At this point, maintain the heat setting, open the damper to 5, and listen carefully for the first crack sound. First crack begins at 9'57", with the damper fully open at 5. The development time after first crack is 2'30", and the beans are discharged at 196.4°C.

FrontStreet Coffee Cupping Report

Dry Aroma: Roasted almonds
Wet Aroma: Caramel
Flavor: Dark chocolate, cream, nuts, citrus

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Experience

Dripper: Kono dripper
Water Temperature: 88.8°C
Coffee Amount: 15g
Coffee-to-Water Ratio: 1:15
Grind Size: Medium grind (75% pass-through rate on Chinese standard #20 sieve)

Brewing Method: Three-stage extraction. Bloom with 30g of water for 30 seconds. Using a small water stream, pour in a circular motion to 125g, then segment. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 225g and stop pouring. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed again, remove the dripper. Total brewing time is 3 minutes and 10 seconds.

Brewing Flavor: The entry has distinct dark chocolate aroma, followed by nutty cream in the middle section. After slight cooling, there's citrus acidity. The overall body is rich with a smooth mouthfeel.

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