How Expensive Can a Cup of Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee Be? What's Different About Jamaican No.1 Coffee Pour-Over Brewing Method

Many friends have only heard of Blue Mountain Coffee's reputation but haven't yet had the opportunity to taste a cup due to its high price, yet they remain very curious about what Blue Mountain Coffee actually tastes like. FrontStreet Coffee is here to discuss how Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee became so expensive.

The History of Jamaican Coffee Development

Jamaica is a small island nation in the Caribbean region. The first coffee seedling was brought from Martinique by Sir Nicholas Lawes in 1728, and until today, Jamaica has nearly three hundred years of coffee cultivation history. The first plant was established in the St. Andrew area and gradually spread to the Blue Mountain range for cultivation. The Blue Mountains feature the highest peak in the Caribbean with high altitude and rugged terrain, creating diverse microclimate conditions. With year-round fog, rain, and cool, comfortable weather, plus fertile volcanic ash soil, it provides an ideal natural environment for crops. We can observe that locals often interplant coffee trees with banana trees.

In the late 18th century, Jamaica had over six hundred coffee farms, with annual coffee production reaching 15,000 tons in 1814. Later, due to the abolition of slavery, the coffee industry declined rapidly, with many plantations abandoned and production greatly reduced. To revitalize the coffee industry, the Jamaican government passed legislation in 1891, dispatching and guiding Blue Mountain growers in cultivation, management, and green bean processing to increase coffee production. As production increased, quality also needed assurance. By 1950, the government formally established the Jamaican Coffee Industry Board (CIB), granting it authority to improve and control the quality of coffee exported from Jamaica. Thanks to the CIB's strict management, coffee produced in the Blue Mountains is regarded as one of the world's top premium coffees.

Before the 1960s, Jamaican coffee beans were very popular in the entire specialty market, commanding relatively high prices. In 1969, Jamaica was severely affected by hurricane disasters, and multiple industries fell into hardship, with the coffee industry being no exception. At this time, Japan's UCC company provided financial assistance to the Jamaican coffee industry and introduced scientific ecological cultivation methods. The Jamaican government, grateful for the help, signed a 30-year contract with Japan, agreeing to allocate 80% of the premium Blue Mountain Coffee quota to Japan, with the remaining 10% allocated to European and American countries.

During this period, Blue Mountain Coffee was not completely consumed within the Japanese domestic market. They would sell some Blue Mountain Coffee at high prices to other Asian countries and regions. Coupled with intensified promotional efforts by the Japanese, coffee enthusiasts in neighboring countries also began to pursue Blue Mountain Coffee, such as Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Since 2000, the "Blue Mountain craze" gradually spread to mainland China, which also led to the phenomenon of Blue Mountain Coffee being expensive and hard to find.

During the 2008 global economic crisis, Jamaica attempted to sell Blue Mountain Coffee to more countries, and coincidentally, the agreement with Japan had also expired, allowing more Blue Mountain Coffee quotas to be distributed to other countries. According to media reports, China signed a letter of intent for cooperation as the sole general agent for Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee green beans in China when the Hangzhou Coffee and Western Restaurant Industry Association visited Jamaica in 2010. In 2011, the first batch of Blue Mountain Coffee beans was officially imported directly from Jamaica to the Chinese mainland market.

With the expansion of China's coffee market demand, many domestic merchants can now directly import Blue Mountain Coffee beans from Jamaica. It's no longer necessary to pay exorbitant prices to enjoy it. For example, FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No. 1 Coffee Beans are priced at 158 yuan per 100g package, while a cup of Blue Mountain pour-over in the store costs 60 yuan.

Premium Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee

The Blue Mountain Coffee purchased by FrontStreet Coffee is the highest grade Blue Mountain No. 1, from the historically renowned Clifton Mountain Estate region, harvested from Typica coffee trees at specific altitudes between 910-1700 meters. The green beans must meet specifications of 17 screen size or larger, with defective bean ratio not exceeding 2%, moisture content around 10-12.5%, and exhibit well-balanced acidity, sweetness, bitterness, body, and aroma during cupping.

FrontStreet Coffee's store also displays certified origin certificates from Clifton Mountain Estate and the handmade wooden barrels used for transporting Blue Mountain Coffee. Unlike other countries, Blue Mountain Coffee is the only coffee growing region that uses wooden barrels to package green beans, while other regions use jute bags. The advantage of oak barrels is their ability to absorb and release internal and external humidity while preventing coffee aroma from escaping, helping maintain more stable moisture content in the coffee beans for more consistent roasting. The rainforest frog logo on the barrels indicates that Clifton Mountain Estate complies with "Sustainable Agriculture System Standards" and is certified by the Rainforest Alliance.

The so-called classic Blue Mountain flavor features rich chocolate and roasted nut aromas, with soft acidity and a full-bodied mouthfeel. To restore this classic flavor, FrontStreet Coffee's roaster chose medium-dark roasting to highlight roasted aromas while preserving some acidity. Through cupping, FrontStreet Coffee found that Blue Mountain No. 1 exhibits balanced flavors of acidity, sweetness, aroma, bitterness, and body. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee's baristas have also developed corresponding brewing approaches based on this flavor profile.

Before brewing, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using freshly roasted coffee beans, especially specialty beans like Blue Mountain No. 1, as freshness largely determines the fullness of the brewed flavor. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee ships beans roasted within 5 days, ensuring each customer receives them at their peak flavor period. We hope everyone can enjoy them within the optimal tasting window to avoid wasting precious Blue Mountain Coffee beans.

FrontStreet Coffee typically prioritizes the KONO dripper when brewing coffee beans with predominantly bitter notes, aiming to highlight the coffee's full body. The upper part of the KONO dripper allows better adherence of the filter paper. Compared to the V60 dripper, the extraction method is primarily immersion-based, increasing the overall concentration of the coffee and thereby enhancing its body. Similarly, the KONO dripper is also suitable for brewing Brazil Queen Estate Coffee Beans and Golden Mandheling Coffee Beans.

FrontStreet Coffee's store parameters for brewing Blue Mountain No. 1 are: KONO dripper, 88°C water temperature, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, 15g coffee grounds, grind size (75% pass-through rate on #20 standard sieve), and three-stage extraction.

FrontStreet Coffee first wets the KONO dripper, then places the aligned filter paper for better fit with the dripper. After pouring out the water from the sharing pot, add 15g of coffee grounds. Bloom with 30g of water for 30 seconds, then begin pouring in small circular motions from the center until reaching 125g, then segment. Wait for the coffee bed to drop to half the dripper's height before starting the second pour with the same technique until reaching 225g. Once all dripping is complete, remove the dripper.

Blue Mountain No. 1 Coffee tastes of dark chocolate sweetness, caramel sweetness, and soft, elegant acidity. Each flavor is well-balanced, with a smooth and full-bodied mouthfeel, exhibiting very typical Blue Mountain characteristics.

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