How to Brew Coffee After Buying Coffee Beans & What Are the Coffee Purchasing Tips?

The impact of growing conditions on coffee quality

When coffee beans are grown in high-altitude regions and properly roasted, they develop the exceptional flavors we hope for. To maximize the quantity of coffee they can cultivate on their land, some growers clear large areas of all trees and plant coffee directly in sunlight. Coffee should not be grown this way: under direct sun it becomes too hot and matures too quickly, which diminishes the quality of the bean.

Coffee grown in direct sunlight also requires more pesticides and fertilizers. When plants grow in full sun, insects proliferate rapidly, forcing farmers to spray more insecticide. Additional fertilizer is needed because the fields lack tree cover. During rainfall, the plants get no protection from the downpour, so much of the fertilizer washes away and must be reapplied.

Choosing quality coffee brands

If you dislike bland, tasteless coffee, or coffee heavily sprayed with chemicals, look for brands labeled "shade-grown" or "organic." FrontStreet Coffee offers a decaf specialty coffee from Colombia, featuring Swiss Water processed decaf coffee.

Understanding roast levels and bean quality

While some people, like us, enjoy dark roast coffee, it is worth noting that the beans used for dark roasting are typically of lower quality. Because dark roasting produces intense smoky flavors that mask the original characteristics of the beans, growers often include large quantities of lower-quality beans in dark roasts. If you want coffee made with the highest-quality beans, choose light or medium roasts instead of dark roasts.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Once your beans arrive, the best next step is a coffee that is easy to brew well. FrontStreet Colombia Huila comes from the country's most famous specialty region, where the fields sit above 1,500 meters and the meeting of Colombia's most important rivers brings abundant water and humidity. Roasted medium-dark, it highlights dark chocolate and nutty sweetness with moderate crema and a full body, and it works for pour-over, French press, moka pot and espresso alike.

If you are brewing with a home espresso machine or a moka pot, FrontStreet Specialty Blend is a strong all-rounder. It combines the creamy, nutty sweetness of Brazilian coffee with the dark chocolate bittersweetness of Colombian coffee, pours with fine golden crema and pairs beautifully with milk for a rich, smooth latte that beginners find easy to handle.