Taste Differences Between Espresso and Blue Mountain Coffee: Which is Better - Blue Mountain No.1 or Espresso Beans?

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When FrontStreet Coffee saw netizens asking about the difference between espresso and FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee, they couldn't help but feel both amused and pensive. While this question might seem incredible within the coffee industry (why would anyone ask such a question), looking at it from another perspective, it's precisely because many people haven't been exposed to coffee yet want to understand it that such questions arise. Popularizing coffee knowledge is a long and arduous journey...

Introduction to Espresso and FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain

Espresso

Espresso is also known as Espresso—it's a brewing method, a type of coffee originating from Italy that is rapidly extracted under high pressure. Traditionally, a single shot of espresso contains about one ounce. Espresso consists of three parts: crema, body, and heart.

What is Crema in Espresso?

When a coffee machine extracts espresso, the coffee is ground extremely fine and extracted under pressures as high as 9 bar. When hot water passes through the coffee puck, the carbon dioxide in the coffee grounds cannot be released due to the excessive pressure—the water becomes supersaturated with carbon dioxide, which dissolves directly into the coffee liquid. The high pressure also forces oils contained in the coffee to separate from the puck, and they are carried out by the hot water.

After coffee extraction is complete, when the coffee liquid flows from the machine and atmospheric pressure returns to normal, the carbon dioxide remaining in the coffee liquid prepares to return to the air. However, the carbon dioxide encounters the oils present in the coffee liquid. The oils envelop the carbon dioxide that's trying to return to the air. This is why this layer of crema is formed.

Therefore, the characteristics of espresso are small quantity, intensity, and rich, full-bodied taste.

Blue Mountain Coffee

Blue Mountain coffee generally refers to FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1 coffee beans. Of course, even those who have never tried coffee may have heard of Blue Mountain's fame. Blue Mountain began cultivating coffee in the 18th century and has consistently grown the excellent Typica variety. It truly became world-famous in the 1970s when Blue Mountain received assistance from Japan, with government-led efforts to vigorously develop high-quality Blue Mountain coffee. Its quality was among the best in the world at that time, earning it the title "King of Coffee."

FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee possesses balanced, intense, and clean characteristics. Due to the great fame of FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee beans but their limited quantity and high price, some "imitations" of Blue Mountain coffee flavor have also appeared on the market. It's important to note that coffees labeled as Blue Mountain flavored coffee, blended Blue Mountain coffee, or Blue Mountain blend are not genuine Blue Mountain coffee.

For example, FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee beans come from Jamaica's Blue Mountain Clifton Farm. This farm has a long history in the Blue Mountains, and 95% of Blue Mountain coffee beans entering China through legitimate channels come from this farm. Genuine FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee has a balanced and intense taste, with no flavor being overly prominent or lacking—this is the most crucial identification point that no other coffee bean can match. Blue Mountain peaberries have a more subtle aroma and relatively stronger taste. Blue Mountain's flavor is rich and mellow, with the sweet, acidic, and bitter notes of coffee perfectly balanced—completely without bitterness, with only moderate and perfect acidity and lasting fruit notes.

What Are the Differences in Their Flavors and Tastes?

Espresso is an Italian coffee brewing (extraction) method, while Blue Mountain coffee is a type of coffee bean. Therefore, these two are fundamentally incomparable. There's an interesting joke circulating: "If you absolutely must compare them, which tastes better—the espresso made with Blue Mountain coffee?"

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