What is Blue Mountain Flavor Coffee? Is Blue Mountain Flavor Coffee Delicious and How Different is it from the Real Thing?

FrontStreet Coffee's Introduction to Blue Mountain Coffee

Jamaica is the only country in the world with a government coffee management agency - the Jamaica Coffee Industry Board (the CIB), which operates under the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. The CIB's functions include cultivation guidance, processing training, fair trade, quality supervision, and everything else related to Jamaican Blue Mountain quality and branding. Its board members are all owners of Jamaican plantations of a certain scale (thanks to industry shifts, newly certified Jamaican Blue Mountain plantations now need an area of more than 50 hectares).

Under CIB rules, only Blue Mountain beans grown above 2200 feet in Jamaica may be called Jamaican Blue Mountain. Grades are classified by bean size into No.1, No.2, No.3, and hand-selected PB. The basic standards for No.1 Blue Mountain green beans are beans larger than 17 mesh, a defect rate below 3%, and moisture content of around 13%.

Another company worth knowing is Coffee Trades, whose plantation name is CLYDESDALE. Its coffee factory sits in the backyard of the CIB office building, with the plantation at around 1200 meters on the Blue Mountains' mid-slopes. Jamaica's two other most prominent Blue Mountain producers are Wallenford and Mavis Bank, both originally state-owned enterprises. Wallenford's production exceeds 60% of Jamaica's total Blue Mountain output, and Mavis Bank's exceeds 20%. Mavis Bank is also one of the few Jamaican Blue Mountain companies offering all three grades: Jamaican Blue Mountain, Jamaican High Mountain, and Jamaican Prime Coffee.

What Is Blue Mountain Blend Flavor?

"Blue Mountain blend" actually has nothing to do with Blue Mountain. The category arose because early Blue Mountain coffee was so rare and expensive that operators created a similar-tasting coffee by mixing other beans and roasting dark to imitate the Blue Mountain profile. Conscientious merchants, domestic and international, will tell you plainly that what they sell is blended Blue Mountain, Blue Mountain blend, Blue Mountain flavor, or Blue Mountain-style beans - not genuine Blue Mountain coffee.

Real Blue Mountain and Blue Mountain flavor are two entirely different things. Generally, other coffee varieties are roasted to imitate Blue Mountain's taste. "Blue Mountain blend" beans are mixed and differ noticeably in shape, which makes them relatively easy to identify. Don't believe in "premium Blue Mountain" that costs only tens of yuan per jin, or a cup of "Blue Mountain coffee" priced in the low tens of yuan.

Knowledge Point:

Blue Mountain coffee green beans have only one processing method - washed. There are no natural or other processing methods.

In Summary:

FrontStreet Coffee is a dedicated coffee research establishment that enjoys sharing coffee knowledge with everyone. We share without reservation because we want more friends to fall in love with coffee. Every month we hold three coffee promotion events with significant discounts because FrontStreet Coffee wants to let more friends enjoy the best coffee at the lowest possible price. That has been our mission for the past 6 years!

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FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

For the genuine article, FrontStreet Jamaica Blue Mountain No.1 is the top grade, from the historic Clifton Estate, which has grown coffee since around 1750 at an average altitude of 4300 feet (1310.64 meters), where ample elevation, mild afternoon mists, forest shade, sunshine, and mineral-rich soil lengthen the cherry-ripening period. Genuine Blue Mountain carries government certification and origin documents, ships in traditional wooden barrels stamped with batch details, and shows regular, plump green beans with slightly upturned ends and a greenish hue; in the cup it is intensely aromatic yet clean and quiet, with no off-flavors. FrontStreet roasts it medium-dark to highlight the mellow, traditional character - sweetness after the bitterness - and ships it freshly roasted within 5 days.

To brew it, FrontStreet suggests a Kono dripper with 15g of coffee rested 4-7 days from the roast date, a grind slightly coarser than light-roast beans (about white-sugar texture), 87-88°C water, and a 1:15 ratio in three pours: 30g to bloom for 30 seconds, then to 120g with a vertical, slow circular pour, then to 225g with a slightly faster pour to keep the bed from clogging and over-extracting. The flavor is remarkably clean, complex, and gentle, with chocolate sweetness and a strong, full body - a perfect balance of sweetness, acidity, and bitterness with no harshness, only moderate acidity and a long fruity finish. And since Blue Mountain's balance shines in any method, it also works beautifully in a moka pot or as espresso, with milk drinks like lattes showing off its chocolate, caramel, and nut character.