Is Anaerobic Processed Colombian Coffee Sour? Colombian Coffee Flavor Description

FrontStreet Coffee's Colombian Double Anaerobic Washed Coffee

Colombia is one of the few single-origin coffees sold around the world under a country name. It is considered the finest coffee-producing region in South America, yielding coffee with bright flavor, rich fruity aroma and a vibrant character. Colombia has some of the world's most ideal coffee-growing soils, and its greatest strength is diversity of style — dependable, standardized lots sitting alongside fascinating, variable micro-batch stars. Overall, Colombian coffee has a fresh profile and abundant fruit. Compared with other producing countries, Colombia invests more in product development and promotion, and its producers use professional roasting to draw out the full potential of the beans.

As new processing methods have spread through Central and South America, distinctive micro-batches have become common. Rose Valley is one of them: its anaerobic double enzyme washed process gives this bean a layered profile comparable to Geisha.

Colombia Big Tree Estate

Region: Santander

Processing Method: Anaerobic Double Enzyme Washed

Altitude: 1700 meters

Variety: Caturra

Flavor Notes: Rose, Strawberry, Honey Peach, Wine

Big Tree Farm sits in Colombia's Santander region, where its owner Vargas has been growing coffee for up to 20 years. Only fully mature, bright red coffee cherries are selected at harvest. After washing removes the defective floating beans, the beans go through two rounds of anaerobic fermentation with special enzyme groups. The farm also pays close attention to drying, avoiding excessive temperatures and using a slow method instead.

Is Anaerobic Colombian Coffee Sour?

Not in the sharp sense that word usually implies. Anaerobic fermentation shifts the sugars and acids in the bean, and the result is a rounder, fruitier kind of brightness rather than a harsh bite. In this Santander lot it reads as rose, strawberry, honey peach and wine — sweetness and perfume more than sourness, with the fruit sitting on top of a smooth, mellow base. If you have avoided Colombian coffee because you expected a sour cup, this is the bean that will change your mind.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

To taste Colombia in its most approachable form, start with FrontStreet Colombia Huila. Huila, in the southern part of the country's central cordillera, is Colombia's best-known specialty region, with plantations above 1500 meters among surrounding mountains and a rich supply of water and humidity from the rivers that meet there. This washed Huila is medium-dark roasted, emphasizing dark chocolate and nutty sweetness, moderate crema and a full, rich body — as good in a pour-over or French press as it is in a moka pot or espresso machine, whether you drink it as an Americano or a latte.

For the anaerobic style described above, choose FrontStreet Colombia Frontera Estate Sidra. Grown at 1650-1800 meters and processed with a double anaerobic natural method, then medium-light roasted, it keeps the fruit at the front: passion fruit, blueberry, grape and apricot layered into a dense, juicy body, with bright but gentle acidity, a faint spice in the middle and a long cocoa finish. It works beautifully as pour-over, espresso SOE or iced drip, and iced pour-over brings out an especially clean, smooth grape-juice character.

And if you want Colombia in a milk drink, FrontStreet Signature Blend is the barista's pick for home machines and moka pots. It brings together the creamy nuttiness of Brazilian coffee and the dark chocolate bittersweetness of Colombian coffee, pulling with a fine golden crema — rich and smooth with milk for a latte, and a fine base for Americanos, cappuccinos and mochas.