Recommended Coffee Beans for Beginners: Costa Rica Black Honey with More Pectin, Longer Fermentation, and Higher Sweetness

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FrontStreet Coffee - Beginner's Coffee Bean Recommendation: Costa Rica Black Honey

The coffee market is currently booming, with more and more people developing a love for coffee. Beyond enjoying aromatic and exquisite varieties of coffee in cafes scattered throughout streets and alleys during busy work breaks or while shopping and exploring, there's also a desire to savor that ineffable romantic sentiment at home.

Additionally, with the rise of the new coffee wave, specialty coffee has begun to capture the interest of coffee enthusiasts. Brewing a cup of "specialty coffee" at home that's "master-like" and rich with distinctive regional flavor characteristics has become the dream of many coffee lovers.

Central and South America, as the birthplace of "specialty coffee," is also the main production region for these premium beans. As a "New World" coffee region, the coffee beans produced here may not possess the wild and untamed character of African coffee origins with their intense volcanic rock and fruit flavors, but they have yielded globally renowned premium coffees such as Colombian, Blue Mountain, and Santos. Currently, as the top choice for "specialty coffee," Panama Geisha has left many coffee aficionados utterly captivated.

Coffee from Central and South America is primarily characterized by balanced flavors that maintain their distinctive qualities. Renowned coffee-producing regions are found throughout nearly every corner of Central and South America, and after over a century of accumulation and improvement in coffee varieties, cultivation, and processing methods, they have developed considerable unique characteristics. In recent years, besides Brazil dominating as the world's largest production region, distinctive coffee flavor-producing areas such as Panama, Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Bolivia have emerged continuously, consistently achieving remarkable results in international coffee evaluation rankings. The flavors encompass almost the entire coffee flavor spectrum, mainly focusing on nutty aromas, rich smoky flavors, creamy chocolate, caramel cocoa, as well as unique tropical rainforest fruit flavors, among others.

What is Honey Processing?

Coffee beans are actually the seeds of coffee cherries. The coffee beverage you love is made from the seeds of these red or yellow fruits. However, before coffee beans can be roasted, the outer layers of fruit pulp and skin must be removed, and then the beans must be dried to a moisture content of around 11%. Two commonly used coffee processing methods are the washed method and the natural method. The washed method involves soaking coffee cherries in water and using water to wash away the fruit pulp and skin. The natural method involves drying coffee cherries in the sun and then using machines to remove the fruit pulp and skin.

The honey processing method combines these two approaches. First, the fruit skin is removed while retaining some of the mucilage surrounding the coffee bean for drying. Mucilage is a viscous substance in coffee cherries rich in sugars, much like honey. Honey-processed coffee beans, like their name suggests, are famous for their rich sweetness. Black honey processing requires higher environmental humidity and longer fermentation time.

The honey processing process is influenced by various factors including temperature and humidity, and the processing method is not precisely regulated. Black honey requires drying in cooler areas with longer timeframes. Black honey processed coffee has better body, richer flavors, and commands higher prices.

The deeper the honey processing degree, the more complex the processing becomes. Black honey processing requires stricter monitoring to avoid over-fermentation. The shelf life of green beans is also somewhat shorter. If you want to better experience the sweet honey flavor, you should roast the green beans as soon as possible. Because the deeper the honey processing, the more suitable it is for espresso, tasting as if someone has added a spoonful of honey to your coffee. However, if using drip brewing, white honey or yellow honey coffee will taste cleaner.

Knowledge Point:

Growers and green bean traders make more detailed distinctions: White Honey, Yellow Honey, Golden Honey, Red Honey, and Black Honey.

FrontStreet Coffee's Philosophy

In short: FrontStreet Coffee is a dedicated coffee research establishment that enjoys sharing coffee knowledge with everyone. We share without reservation, simply hoping to help more friends fall in love with coffee. Additionally, we hold three discount coffee events monthly because FrontStreet Coffee wants to enable more friends to enjoy the best coffee at the lowest possible prices. This has been FrontStreet Coffee's mission for the past six years!

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473