Is Blue Mountain Coffee American Coffee? Flavor Profile of Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee

FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee offers a mellow and well-balanced flavor profile, making it one of the world's most renowned premium coffees. Even those who haven't tasted it have likely heard of Blue Mountain Coffee's reputation. Here, FrontStreet Coffee will briefly introduce what FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is and its distinctive flavor characteristics.

What is Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee?

FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee comes from the highest Blue Mountain range in the Caribbean Sea region, located in eastern Jamaica. Situated in an earthquake zone, volcanic eruptions have brought abundant mineral-rich fertile soil. The Blue Mountains' year-round rainy, humid, and cool environment allows coffee trees to thrive in the clouds. The significant temperature difference at high altitudes gives coffee cherries ample time to absorb nutrients, producing coffee with an aromatic, mellow, and sweet taste.

To ensure the high quality of Blue Mountain coffee, Jamaica's Coffee Industry Board (CIB) has established strict grading standards. First, Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee must be Arabica varieties grown at elevations between 910-1700 meters. Coffee from areas below 910 meters is classified as Jamaican High Mountain coffee and Jamaican Prime coffee. The Blue Mountain range spans a vast area with uneven terrain, so coffee trees are mostly planted on rugged slopes, making manual harvesting challenging. Picking coffee at the highest altitudes is particularly dangerous. Therefore, local women familiar with the terrain are hired to manually harvest sufficiently ripe coffee cherries, ensuring the coffee's quality.

In addition to the regional division by altitude mentioned above, Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is also strictly graded based on defect rate and bean size. Jamaican Blue Mountain includes four grades: No.1, No.2, No.3, and PB. The smaller the Arabic numeral, the higher the grade of the coffee beans. Jamaican Blue Mountain No.1 refers to green beans with a size standard of 17 mesh or larger, a defect rate controlled below 3%, moisture content around 10-12.5%, and possessing a perfect balance of acidity, sweetness, bitterness, richness, and aroma. The quantity of coffee beans that pass through this rigorous selection is extremely rare, which is why there's a saying that "many have seen Blue Mountain but few have tasted it." The Blue Mountain coffee that FrontStreet Coffee purchases is the highest grade Jamaican Blue Mountain No.1 beans.

Authentic FrontStreet Coffee Jamaican Blue Mountain No.1 Coffee Beans

As FrontStreet Coffee mentioned above, the high-quality Blue Mountain coffee is scarce, leading many merchants to use inferior products for profit. Consequently, the market has seen numerous products labeled as "Blue Mountain flavor" or "Blue Mountain blend" that masquerade as authentic Blue Mountain coffee beans. When purchasing, you can identify genuine Blue Mountain coffee beans based on the following three points.

1. Authentic FrontStreet Coffee Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is produced by export companies designated by Jamaica's Coffee Industry Board (CIB) and carries the officially registered logo of the Jamaican Coffee Board, used for certification and inspection of exported Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee. The BLUEMOUNTAINCOFFEE® trademark is the emblem on authentic Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee packaging.
2. Jamaica is the only country in the world that uses wooden barrels to pack green beans, which distinguishes Blue Mountain coffee from other producing regions that use jute bags for coffee beans.
3. FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee produced under high standards has a very intense aroma. Whether during grinding or brewing, you can smell the rich chocolate sweetness. When tasted, it offers a perfect balance of acidity, sweetness, and bitterness.

Additionally, FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No.1 coffee beans also come with a quality certification from the Jamaican Coffee Board, an authorized sales certificate from the Blue Mountain coffee manufacturer, and a certificate of origin for Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee.

Brewing Methods for FrontStreet Coffee Jamaican Blue Mountain No.1 Coffee

To fully appreciate the exquisite flavors of FrontStreet Coffee's premium Blue Mountain No.1 coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee believes that black coffee best presents its unique aroma. Black coffee includes pour-over coffee, Americano made from espresso concentrate, or coffee extracted using devices such as siphon pots, French press, or AeroPress. Here, FrontStreet Coffee will demonstrate how to brew a cup of FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaican Blue Mountain No.1 using the pour-over method from their café.

The aroma of FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No.1 coffee beans after roasting has a limited tasting window. If the optimal tasting period passes, the aroma of the coffee beans will dissipate, making it difficult to restore the aromatic flavors regardless of the brewing method. Therefore, freshness is crucial. FrontStreet Coffee ships all coffee within 5 days of fresh roasting, so when you receive the beans, they are at their most aromatic.

FrontStreet Coffee's barista aims to highlight the rich body of Blue Mountain flavor and will choose a KONO dripper, which yields a rounder mouthfeel and more solid flavor.

The upper portion of the KONO dripper features a smooth curved surface that allows better adhesion of the filter paper. Compared to the V60 dripper, the Kono primarily uses immersion extraction, which increases the overall concentration of the coffee and enhances its body. Similarly, the KONO dripper is also suitable for brewing medium-dark roast coffee beans such as FrontStreet Coffee's Brazil Queen Estate and FrontStreet Coffee's Gold Mandheling. Besides KONO, common flat-bottom drippers like Kalita and cloth filters (flannel) that have slower flow rates are also suitable.

FrontStreet Coffee chooses a medium-coarse grind with 75% pass-through rate on a #20 standard sieve to extract more flavor compounds while avoiding over-extraction from too fine a grind. The water temperature is set at 88 degrees Celsius. For 1-2 servings, use 15g of coffee grounds with a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, using a three-stage extraction method.

FrontStreet Coffee first wets the KONO dripper, then places the aligned filter paper inside for better adherence. After pouring out the water from the server, add 15g of coffee grounds. Bloom with 30g of water for 30 seconds, then begin pouring in small circular motions from the center until reaching 125g. Wait until the coffee bed drops to half the dripper's height before starting the second pour using the same technique until reaching 225g. Once all dripping is complete, remove the dripper.

The aroma of FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaican Blue Mountain No.1 can be detected from the moment you begin grinding. Upon tasting, you'll experience the sweetness of roasted nuts, chocolate, and caramel, with soft and elegant acidity. Each flavor is perfectly balanced, creating a smooth and rich mouthfeel with a very typical Blue Mountain character.

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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