Introduction to Brazilian Coffee Regions: Red Bourbon Coffee Bean Flavor Profile and Brewing Parameters for Brazilian Coffee

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Brazil is the world's leading coffee producer. Although coffee production in Brazil was affected by frost and drought in 2020, the country's coffee cultivation still accounts for approximately one-third of global production. As the world's largest coffee-growing region, Brazil has extremely diverse coffee distribution areas and varieties. Some customers have mentioned to FrontStreet Coffee that the Brazilian coffee beans from FrontStreet Coffee taste different from those found in other coffee shops. Excluding factors such as roasting and brewing methods, FrontStreet Coffee believes that the coffee growing region is most closely related to coffee flavor. Understanding which region your Brazilian coffee beans come from allows you to gain deeper insight into their flavor characteristics, aroma, and even coffee quality. With this in mind, FrontStreet Coffee will now guide you through understanding Brazil's main Arabica coffee growing regions.

Brazil's 13 Coffee Growing Regions

After reviewing numerous sources, FrontStreet Coffee found that the most detailed classification divides Brazil into 13 coffee growing regions: Bahia, Chapada Diamantina, Cerrado Bahia | West Bahia, Planalto de Bahia, Minas Gerais, Cerrado, Sul de Minas, Chapada de Minas, Matas de Minas, São Paulo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Espírito Santo, and Paraná. Each region's coffee beans reflect the characteristics of their respective growing areas. Next, FrontStreet Coffee will introduce you to the coffee beans from each of Brazil's regions.

Bahia

If you carefully observe the map, you'll notice that this is Brazil's easternmost coffee growing region. This area is vast and expansive. In recent years, an increasing number of excellent coffees have come from here. In the 2009 Cup of Excellence competition, five of the top ten lots of coffee came from this region, and since then, coffee from this region has garnered increasing attention.

Chapada Diamantina

Diamantina actually refers to a diamond rush period here in the 19th century, and traces of gold and diamond exploration can still be found in the park today. Currently, many coffees in this region are grown using biodynamic methods, an organic farming approach. Furthermore, near this coffee growing region is a national park located in the Serra do Espinhaço, a quartzite mountain range in the Jequitinhonha River basin. The altitude ranges from 720 meters (2,360 feet) in the north to 1,480 meters (4,860 feet) in the south, and such high altitudes are excellent for coffee cultivation.

Cerrado Bahia | West Bahia

This coffee growing region is famous for its large-scale, industrial, and artificially irrigated coffee cultivation. In the late 1970s, the government provided small loans and incentive measures to encourage agricultural projects, attracting many coffee farmers to relocate here. Although the altitude in this region is not particularly high, the stable, warm, and sunny climate helps increase coffee yields, leading to rapid development in coffee cultivation.

Planalto de Bahia

This region can be described as currently Brazil's most technologically advanced coffee growing region. From cultivation to harvesting, fully mechanized production is common. Due to advanced irrigation systems, coffee cherries ripen uniformly, making this region nearly Brazil's most productive coffee growing area. However, what's remarkable is not just this region's productivity level. Antônio Rigo de Oliveira from Chaçará São Judas Tadeu farm in Piatã city won the 2015 Cup of Excellence Brazil Pulped Naturals with a score of 91.22 (out of 100). Antônio was also awarded the Presidential Coffee Seal for scoring above 90 points. In terms of the region's climate, this area has high altitudes, warm weather, dry summers, and rainy winters. This results in sweet coffee, typically Catuaí, with low acidity and full body.

Minas Gerais

As Brazil's largest coffee-growing state, this region's coffee production accounts for nearly half of Brazil's entire national coffee output. It is also the main source of Brazil's specialty coffees. Minas Gerais has some of the country's highest mountains, providing the necessary altitude for coffee cultivation. Minas Gerais is located on a plateau at elevations ranging from 100 to 1,500 meters, with the highest point being 2,891.9 meters at Pico da Bandeira, meaning "Flag Peak."

Cerrado

Speaking of Cerrado, loyal fans of FrontStreet Coffee might recall that FrontStreet Coffee previously had a Brazil Cerrado Fazenda Baicuí coffee. Cerrado is definitely a famous high-quality coffee growing region in Brazil. Produced on savanna plains at altitudes of 850-1,200 meters, with an average annual temperature of around 20°C, distinct dry and wet seasons combined with comfortable low temperatures create this bean's unique flavor. Its processing method is relatively refined. Cerrado Brazilian coffee beans use the traditional Brazilian pulped natural drying method; because the coffee beans are dried with their skin, pulp, and mucilage together, they retain higher levels of organic matter, minerals, and soluble solids. Therefore, Brazilian Cerrado coffee beans are characterized by rich aroma, with a slightly sweet flavor carrying chocolate notes, as well as a lemon acidity that most people might not notice, with moderate body and a long aftertaste.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brazil Cerrado Fazenda Baicuí

Region: Cerrado
Variety: Yellow Catuaí, Catuaí
Processing Method: Natural
Altitude: 1000m
Aroma: The aroma is gentle and elegant, giving an overall refined impression.
Flavor: Similar to its aroma, the flavor is relatively mild and elegant among Brazilian coffees, with low acidity, smooth mouthfeel, and balanced body.

Brewing Parameters

Dripper: KONO
Water Temperature: 88°C
Coffee Dose: 15g
Water Ratio: 1:15
Grind Size: 20# sieve with 75% pass-through rate
Brewing Method: Three-stage extraction

Use twice the amount of water as the coffee dose (30g) for blooming, with blooming time around 30 seconds. Use a small water stream to pour in circular motions from the center outward to 125g. When the water level drops to half of the original liquid surface, continue pouring to 225g to finish. Extraction time is approximately 2 minutes.

Sul de Minas

Sul de Minas (also known as South Minas) has higher altitudes, with an average altitude of 950m and an average annual temperature of around 22°C. It also produces about 30% of the country's coffee, mainly from small farms ranging from 10 to 100 hectares—though this can vary greatly. There are many generational small farmers here, so public cooperatives have flourished.

Main varieties include Catuaí, Mundo Novo, Icatu, Obatã, and Catuaí Rubi. As for flavor profile, you'll typically find coffees here with rich body, slight lemon acidity, and fruity notes.

Chapada de Minas

Cerrado de Minas happens to be Brazil's first coffee growing region to receive Designation of Origin (Cerrado Mineiro) status, giving it a similar standing to famous wine regions. This is a large area composed of 55 municipalities located between Alto Paranaíba, Triângulo Mineiro, and Northwest Minas Gerais. Its farms range from medium-sized (2-300 hectares) to large estates.

The region has an altitude of 800-1,300m, with distinct seasons (humid summers, mild dry winters), making it very suitable for specialty coffee production. You'll find Mundo Novo and Catuaí here, while Cerrado de Minas coffees tend to have higher acidity, moderate body, and balanced sweetness. The plateau areas of Chapada de Minas are dotted with valleys, suitable for mechanized production. Catuaí and Mundo Novo are cultivated here.

Matas de Minas

Matas de Minas is located in the Atlantic Forest, with undulating terrain and warm, humid climate. About 80% of its production farms are smaller than 20 hectares. It is known for an increasing output of specialty coffee, which often carries sweet notes with caramel or chocolate flavors that commentators appreciate. Catuaí and Mundo Novo are cultivated here.

São Paulo

São Paulo is one of Brazil's historic coffee-growing states. It is also home to Brazil's main coffee export port, the Port of Santos.

Its main famous growing regions include:

Mogiana

Mogiana's favorable altitude (900-1,100m), mild temperatures (average 20°C), and uneven terrain create high-quality coffee with a very sweet and balanced cup profile. You'll find Mundo Novo and Catuaí here.

Centro-Oeste de São Paulo

This hilly region consists of Marília, Garça, Urupês, and Avaré. Like Mogiana, the terrain is also quite uneven. Most farms are small to medium-sized. FrontStreet Coffee was attracted to the excellent quality of this coffee growing region, which is why FrontStreet Coffee selected the Yellow Bourbon coffee from São Paulo's Queen Estate, located in the Mogiana region. Since this estate's coffee beans use a semi-natural processing method, FrontStreet Coffee believes this coffee processing method is close to honey processing, which makes the originally low-acidity Brazilian coffee have brighter acidity, combined with Brazil's characteristic dryness, and may even have tropical fruit aromas within. Of course, the main notes of the coffee remain nutty and chocolatey.

Paraná

This might be Brazil's southernmost coffee growing region. Although its area is not large, it produces 25% of Brazil's entire agricultural output and has even changed where Brazilians live. Initially, Brazilians generally lived in coastal areas, but due to coffee crop cultivation, more and more Brazilians now choose to move inland. Although the altitude here is lower, the coastal climate environment provides favorable factors for coffee cultivation.

The above is information about Brazilian coffee growing regions compiled by FrontStreet Coffee. Additionally, the grading of Brazilian coffee has always been a point of public interest. Green coffee is graded and classified for export, with the ultimate goal of producing the best cup quality, thereby ensuring the highest price. However, there is no universal grading and classification system—each producing country has its own grading and classification system, which can also be used to set (minimum) export standards.

Brazilian coffee grading also has many standards, varying according to flavor grade, cup quality, defect rate, and bean size. FrontStreet Coffee would like to introduce everyone to the classification table provided by the Brazilian official:

In Brazil, coffee quality is graded according to two different categories: type and cup.

The main evaluation criterion for type is the overall appearance and number of defects found in a 300-gram sample of processed beans. According to the Brazilian official classification table, Brazil's type grading follows a descending scale from 2 to 8. Each type implies a different number of defects detected in the sample—imperfect beans or foreign matter. Black beans, considered the worst defect, are at the bottom of this grading scale.

Other defects, such as sourness, pest damage, shell-shaped or stick-shaped beans, are considered secondary. To determine beverage quality, sensory analysis evaluates coffee flavor and aroma through cupping. This classification method is almost as old as Brazilian coffee history itself. It emerged in the early 20th century and was adopted in 1917 by the Santos Official Coffee and Commodity Exchange. Although considered the most important criterion for evaluating coffee quality, sensory analysis sometimes considers "hard coffee" better. The popularity of this method has hindered scientific research and studies that could ensure more precise coffee grading through chemical analysis. Sensory analysis is typically conducted by trained cuppers or tasters who use their senses to distinguish different types of coffee.

According to the Brazilian official classification table, coffees are classified in descending order as strictly soft, soft, softish, hard, "riada," "rio," and "rio zona."

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