What Grade is Blue Mountain Coffee? How Does Blue Mountain Coffee Taste and Who is it Suitable For?

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Even before I had any exposure to coffee, I had already heard of Blue Mountain Coffee. Blue Mountain Coffee gives people the impression of being very premium, a high-end product in the coffee world. Obviously, this statement is also correct because Blue Mountain Coffee is truly the cream of the crop among specialty coffees. In the past, it might have been difficult to enjoy a cup of authentic Blue Mountain Coffee, but now it's obviously much easier than before~ It's a fine coffee suitable for all consumers to taste.

At FrontStreet Coffee, the Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1 Coffee at 158 yuan/100g is very popular because the flavor of Blue Mountain Coffee is the most mellow in the world, with a perfect balance of sweet, sour, and bitter flavors, making it a "founding father" that defines good coffee.

The Origin of Blue Mountain Coffee

The excellent flavor of Blue Mountain Coffee is closely related to its growing environment and variety. Let's first understand why Blue Mountain Coffee is the finest among specialty coffees.

There are many Blue Mountain Coffees on the market today, so which ones are truly authentic? And why are they considered high-end? FrontStreet Coffee is here to explain: The Blue Mountains are located in the eastern part of Jamaica. When the weather is clear, the sun shines directly on the azure Caribbean Sea, and the mountain peaks reflect the brilliant blue light of the seawater, hence the name. The highest peak of Blue Mountain reaches 2,256 meters, making it the highest peak in the Caribbean region and a famous tourist destination.

This area is located in the coffee belt, with fertile volcanic soil, fresh air, no pollution, humid climate, and year-round fog and rain (average precipitation of 1,980 mm, temperature around 27°C). Such climate conditions have created the world-renowned Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee beans, as well as the world's highest-priced coffee. This coffee possesses all the characteristics of good coffee - not only is it rich and mellow in taste, but due to the perfect combination of sweet, sour, and bitter flavors, it has no bitterness at all, only moderate and perfect acidity. It's typically consumed as a single-origin coffee, but due to its extremely limited production and incredibly high price, it's generally blended with coffees of similar taste on the market.

Why is Blue Mountain Coffee So Pure?

FrontStreet Coffee has learned that Blue Mountain coffee trees all grow on rugged mountain slopes, making the harvesting process extremely difficult. Only skilled local female workers can accomplish this task. It's crucial to select appropriately ripe coffee beans during harvesting, as underripe or overripe beans will affect the coffee quality. After harvesting, the coffee beans must be hulled on the same day, then fermented for 12-18 hours. Following this, the coffee beans undergo washing and screening. The next step is drying, which must be done on concrete floors or thick blankets until the moisture content of the coffee beans drops to 12%-14%. They are then stored in special warehouses. When needed, they are taken out for roasting and then ground into powder. These procedures must be strictly controlled, otherwise, the coffee quality will be affected.

The History of Blue Mountain Coffee

In 1717, King Louis XV of France ordered coffee to be planted in Jamaica. In the mid-1720s, Jamaica's Governor Sir Nicholas Lawes imported Arabica seeds from Martinique and began promoting cultivation in the St. Andrew area. To this day, St. Andrew remains one of the three major producing regions of Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee, with the other two being the Portland region and the St. Thomas region. Within 8 years, Jamaica exported over 375 tons of pure coffee. In 1932, coffee production reached its peak, with more than 15,000 tons of coffee harvested.

In 1950, the Jamaican government established the Jamaica Coffee Industry Board, which sets quality standards for Jamaican coffee and supervises their implementation to ensure the quality of Jamaican coffee. The Board grants special official seals to both raw and roasted coffee exported from Jamaica, making it the world's highest-level national coffee institution. Currently, there are 6 trademarks that can represent the origin of Blue Mountain Coffee: Mavis Bank Coffee Factory (M.B.C.F), Blue Mountain Coffee Cooperative Factory (M.H.C.C.T.), Portland Blue Mountain Coffee Cooperative Factory (P.X.X.S.H.), Coffee Industry Association (Wallenford), Coffee Industry Association (St. John's Peak), and J.A.S.

By 1969, the situation had improved because Japanese loans were used to enhance production quality, thereby securing the market. Today, this coffee has reached a level of fanatic popularity. By 1981, Jamaica had opened about 1,500 hectares of land for coffee cultivation, followed by an additional 6,000 hectares of coffee land. In fact, today's Blue Mountain region is a small area with only 6,000 hectares of planting area, making it impossible for all coffees labeled "Blue Mountain" to be grown there. Another 12,000 hectares of land are used to grow two other types of coffee: High Mountain Supreme Coffee and Jamaica Prime Washed Coffee.

Due to Japan's continuous investment in Jamaica's coffee industry, most Blue Mountain Coffee is now controlled by the Japanese, who also have priority purchasing rights for Blue Mountain Coffee. In 1992, Jamaica sold 688 tons of Blue Mountain Coffee to Japan, 75 tons to the United States, and 59 tons to the United Kingdom. Today, 90% of Blue Mountain Coffee is purchased by the Japanese. Since the rest of the world can only obtain 10% of Blue Mountain, Blue Mountain Coffee is always in short supply regardless of price.

Blue Mountain Coffee Varieties

Blue Mountain Coffee belongs to the ancient coffee bloodline variety - Typica. Among today's coffee varieties, ancient varieties are actually quite rare. However, even Blue Mountain Coffee with Typica bloodline is not necessarily true Blue Mountain; only those grown at specific high altitudes can be called true Blue Mountain Coffee and qualify for the crown.

Typica is a variety with distinct characteristics and may be the most easily recognizable among coffee varieties. Typica has a conical shape with vertical trunks that can reach up to 5 meters in height. This height means that, compared to other varieties, the distance between branches and between nodes on the same branch is longer in Typica.

The lateral branches form a 50 to 80-degree angle with the vertical trunk. The trunk and branches are relatively slender, and the leaves, fruits, and green beans usually appear elongated. The young leaf buds have a distinctive bronze color. Compared to other Arabica varieties, Typica leaves have smoother surfaces and fewer wavy edges. Typical Typica fruits appear bright red when ripe.

One of the unique markers of Typica is its bronze-colored top leaves, larger beans that are pointed oval or slender pointed, which is why it's also called "red-topped coffee." The Typica variety is characterized by its unique quiet and clean flavor, as well as balanced taste characteristics, with high mouthfeel cleanliness. However, the downside is low yield, requirements for growing altitude, and susceptibility to leaf rust disease and weak resistance to pests and diseases.

The Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1 Coffee offered by FrontStreet Coffee comes from Clifton Manor, the only coffee estate with Rainforest Alliance certification, and has a certificate issued by the Jamaica Coffee Board. Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee is the only coffee that uses wooden barrels for raw beans, and the barrels feature a green frog logo.

Brewing Recommendations from FrontStreet Coffee

To allow Blue Mountain Coffee to express its full richness, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using a Kono dripper for brewing. The characteristic of this dripper is its shorter ribs. When the filter paper fits snugly with the dripper, it creates a semi-sealed state that slows down the flow rate of water, achieving a short-term immersion effect. The brewing parameters and techniques used by FrontStreet Coffee for daily Blue Mountain Coffee service are as follows: 88°C water temperature, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, 15g coffee weight, and grind size (75% pass-through rate with No. 20 standard sieve).

Washed Blue Mountain Coffee Flavor: Enters with flavors of dark chocolate and nuts, high cleanliness, very bright, excellent body, with a perfect balance of sweet, sour, and bitter.

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Recommendations

For coffee brewing, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using freshly roasted coffee beans to maximize the experience of coffee's rich flavors. The coffee beans shipped by FrontStreet Coffee are all roasted within 5 days because FrontStreet Coffee deeply understands that the freshness of coffee beans greatly affects the flavor. FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy is "Freshly Roasted Good Coffee," ensuring that every customer who places an order receives the freshest coffee when it arrives. The coffee resting period is about 4-7 days, so when customers receive it, it's at the peak of its flavor.

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