Does 90+ [Ninety Plus] Really Only Produce Coffee Beans Scoring 90 Points or Above?

Because every coffee bean in the 90+ series carries a rather "unique" flavor profile, they are widely loved by coffee enthusiasts! For example, the champagne-toned Juliet, or the spice and longan-flavored Eleta! These special flavors are inseparable from the exquisite processing by the 90+ company~ So today, FrontStreet Coffee will share the story of the legendary company that produces these premium coffees—Ninety Plus!

That's right, Ninety Plus is the name of an American company, which translates to 90+. In the coffee industry, "90+" refers to beans with cupping scores of 90 points or above, so people often mistakenly think the trademark means: only selling beans above 90 points! (What a great name!) In 2004, Hacienda La Esmeralda made a thunderous impact with Geisha, crushing all other beans to win the Panama BOP competition. After the competition ended, the "Geisha fever" quickly spread around the world, making people everywhere aware of the delicious existence of the Geisha variety. Many became deeply fascinated, even reaching a state of "no Geisha, no happiness"! And Joseph Brodsky, the founder of 90+, was one of them~

So, Joseph Brodsky, obsessed with Geisha, immediately set off for Panama, hoping to find coffee varieties there that could rival Geisha. Unfortunately, this journey ended in failure. But he didn't give up, directly changing his approach: why not go to Ethiopia instead? With thousands of undiscovered varieties there, he would surely find beans that could compare to Geisha! And so, in 2005, Joseph Brodsky arrived in Ethiopia for the first time. Unexpectedly, he was deeply moved by the local terroir and culture. He fell in love with the people, food, language, culture, and coffee there. So he decided to spend the next few years living in Ethiopia, treating it as his home and focusing his energy there!

Then came 2006, when Joseph Brodsky founded the Ninety Plus trading company. With the system he established, Ninety Plus completely distinguished itself from other green bean merchants of the time! Normally, green bean merchants typically engage in bean sourcing and cupping, purchasing beans that taste good during cupping—essentially finding high-quality fruits produced by others, which comes with some uncertainty. What made Ninety Plus different was that they掌握着控制风味表现的技术. Therefore, they could plan and extend their management scope upstream—not finding high-quality green beans produced by others, but taking matters into their own hands to manage coffee beans! From cultivation to processing, they would produce their own high-quality green beans for sale!

Initially, Ninety Plus company wasn't large enough to involve itself in coffee cultivation, so it could only start with coffee bean processing. Therefore, they would first purchase high-quality coffee fruits harvested by others, then process them exquisitely. It was against this backdrop that Aricha and Biloa were introduced! Their extremely rich fruit flavors and excellent quality swept through the entire specialty coffee scene at the time, and 90+ became famous overnight! Only afterward did they begin to select potential coffee farmers, provide ideal flavor feedback based on currently produced coffee beans, and engage in process reengineering. Through scientific management, they would gradually adjust samples to the "90+" originally intended flavor profile, while also carefully selecting only those that best matched the settings for production. So it's clear that the exceptional quality of 90+ company's beans is no coincidence but an average standard—this is also the core value that "90+" company has always upheld.

During his time in Ethiopia, Joseph Brodsky still couldn't find a variety that surpassed Geisha. Since he couldn't find one that exceeded Geisha, he decided to use Geisha as a foundation for improvement, creating top-tier Geisha! He wasted no time. In 2009, Joseph Brodsky returned to Panama with his "ambition" and years of accumulated technical experience in Ethiopia, establishing the "90+ Geisha Estate" (Ninety Plus Gesha Estate), which officially produced coffee beans in 2014! Unlike other coffee beans, each coffee in the 90+ series has its own name because each coffee bean sold is a "work" they have meticulously designed. Therefore, Ninety Plus baristas would name them based on their first impression when encountering these beans!

In 2019, Ninety Plus also acquired a plot near Barú Volcano, naming it "90+ Barú Estates" (Ninety Plus Barú Estates). The rich substances in volcanic soil can better support coffee growth, so FrontStreet Coffee greatly anticipates what kind of delicious 90+ coffee from this region will taste like~

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FrontStreet Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee)
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