Differences Between Blue Mountain Coffee Beans and Espresso Beans - Flavor Profile of Espresso Made with Blue Mountain No.1 Coffee Beans

Some friends have asked FrontStreet Coffee about the differences between FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No. 1 coffee and FrontStreet Coffee's espresso coffee? The biggest difference is that FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No. 1 coffee is a single-origin coffee bean, using the Typica (Geisha was introduced in 2020) coffee variety, generally extracted using pour-over methods. Espresso, on the other hand, is made using blended espresso beans (single-origin beans can also be used) extracted under pressure through a coffee machine to produce concentrated espresso liquid.

What is FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No. 1 Coffee?

Not all coffee grown in the Blue Mountains can become Blue Mountain coffee. The Blue Mountains are located in eastern Jamaica, and only coffee grown in the region between 1000-1700m altitude can be considered authentic FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee.

FrontStreet Coffee's currently listed three Blue Mountain coffee varieties come from the Clifton Farm, which began planting and producing coffee as early as the mid-18th century (around 1750). The coffee cultivation and processing areas here are situated at an average altitude of 4300 feet (1310.64 meters), with sufficient altitude, gentle afternoon clouds and mist surrounding the mountain forests for shade, abundant sunlight, and mineral-rich planting soil, providing excellent growing conditions for coffee trees and extending the maturation time of coffee cherries.

FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No. 1 Coffee Varieties

The most traditional FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee uses the Typica coffee variety. Blue Mountain's Typica was transplanted from Martinique Island to Jamaica's Blue Mountains in the 1820s. After more than 200 years, Blue Mountain Typica has evolved to have better disease resistance, particularly superior resistance to coffee berry disease compared to regular Typica. However, when Blue Mountain Typica is grown outside the 1000-1700 meter cultivation zone, it cannot replicate its characteristic clean, sweet fragrance.

In 2020, Clifton Farm introduced FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain Geisha coffee. Regarding Geisha coffee, everyone probably focuses on its characteristic rich floral aroma, but this characteristic only forms when grown above 1500m altitude. For Geisha coffee grown at Clifton Estate's 1310m altitude, FrontStreet Coffee's cupping tests suggest that the floral aroma produced here is not as obvious as everyone imagines - there's only a subtle white floral aroma, with more emphasis on the balanced flavor characteristics of Blue Mountain coffee, where the floral aroma doesn't take center stage.

FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No. 1 Coffee Bean Processing Methods

Before 2019, FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee processing only included washed processing. The biggest characteristic of washed processing is that the coffee overall is very clean, and whether a bean is good or bad can be best demonstrated through washed processing. Starting from 2019, Clifton Farm began "innovating and reforming," introducing natural processing for FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee. FrontStreet Coffee's washed-processed Blue Mountain coffee exhibits a very balanced acidity, sweetness, and bitterness, while natural processing brings out more juice-like qualities and acidity. Both processing methods have their advantages, and there's no saying which is better or worse.

How to Brew FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain Coffee?

FrontStreet Coffee uses the most traditional washed-processed Blue Mountain Typica coffee for brewing demonstration. Parameters: 15 grams of coffee powder, powder-to-water ratio of 1:13 (powder-to-liquid ratio approximately 1:11), water temperature 88°C, grind size: 60% pass-through rate on a #20 standard sieve.

Brewing technique: 30 grams of water for bloom for 30 seconds, then slowly pour 100 grams of water in small circular motions from center outward, so the electronic scale shows 130 grams. Then wait until the coffee bed drops to 1/2 level and pour 65 grams of water with a large flow, reaching a total water amount of 195 grams. Remove the filter cup after all the coffee liquid has flowed into the lower pot, ending extraction. Total brewing time is 1 minute and 52 seconds.

Washed-processed FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain Typica coffee brewing flavor: Clean mouthfeel, with chocolate and nut flavors, where acidity, sweetness, and bitterness reach a balanced point.

What is Espresso?

Espresso is a coffee originating from Italy, extracted quickly under high pressure. Traditionally, a single shot of espresso has a capacity of about one ounce. Espresso is divided into three parts: crema, body, and heart.

What Coffee Beans Does FrontStreet Coffee Use for Espresso?

FrontStreet Coffee uses FrontStreet Coffee's Warm Sun Blend coffee beans when making espresso. Blended coffee beans are made by mixing and blending multiple types of coffee beans, combining different proportions and similar or different taste profiles of coffee beans to create unique characteristics different from single-origin coffees, with unique flavors alone. FrontStreet Coffee's currently used espresso blend consists of 30% FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopian natural red cherry coffee beans blended with 70% FrontStreet Coffee's Honduras whiskey barrel-fermented processed sherry coffee beans. The biggest characteristic of this coffee bean is that the extracted espresso has a soft fruit acidity and whiskey aroma.

How Does FrontStreet Coffee Extract Espresso?

Coffee machine: Flying Horse E98 espresso machine
Pressure: 9 bar ±2
Temperature: 90.5~96°C
Time: 20~30 sec
Powder-to-water ratio: 1:1.7~1:2
Powder amount: 12g (single shot espresso) 20g (double shot espresso)
Extraction amount: 20ml (single shot) 40ml (double shot)

FrontStreet Coffee's Warm Sun Blend coffee bean extraction flavor: Distinctive fruit acidity, with a faint berry aroma lingering, rich wine and chocolate flavors, and a comfortable sweet aftertaste.

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style)

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Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473