WALLENFORD - Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Development Era

FrontStreet Coffee · WALLENFORD - The Development History of Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee

In 1728, coffee was first introduced to Jamaica for cultivation. Jamaica's suitable soil, climate, and sunlight produced exceptional coffee quality, and cultivation gradually expanded from St. Andrews to other regions.

In 1737, Jamaica's coffee production reached 83,000 pounds per year. Over the next 40 years, numerous private plantation owners emerged, and by 1800 there were 686 coffee plantations in Jamaica.

Because of the slave trade, labor costs rose dramatically, and plantation owners could not bear the mounting burden. By 1850, the number of coffee plantations had fallen to 186.

By 1900, the Jamaican government established its first coffee quality standards, but these met resistance from many private plantation owners and were ultimately never implemented.

With no quality standards to constrain it, the export quality of Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee became inconsistent, greatly damaging its international reputation. By 1943, Canada, then a major importer of Blue Mountain Coffee, refused to import it.

In 1944, the Jamaican government recognized the need to regulate the Blue Mountain Coffee industry and set out three regulatory recommendations: 1) centralize the processing of Blue Mountain Coffee beans, 2) establish Blue Mountain Coffee quality standards, and 3) establish the CIB to handle market organization and management and to serve as export supervisor.

In 1948, the world-renowned Jamaican Coffee Industry Board (CIB) was officially established, and the Jamaican government enacted the "Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Industry Management Regulations." The CIB's primary responsibility was to improve Blue Mountain Coffee quality through management and supervision and restore its global reputation. At this point the definition of Blue Mountain Coffee was strictly stipulated in the regulations: 1) four designated coffee plantations, including Wallenford, were granted the authority to centrally process Blue Mountain Coffee beans to ensure quality; 2) coffee must be grown in the Blue Mountain region at 3,000-5,000 feet altitude; and 3) Blue Mountain Coffee exports are graded No.1, No.2, No.3, and Peaberry.

Beginning in 1960, the Jamaican Blue Mountain region suffered hurricane damage that destroyed most plantation facilities and coffee trees. Foreign capital, including from Japan, provided assistance and obtained shares in most plantations along with preferential import rights. During this time, to protect the reputation of the national-treasure Blue Mountain Coffee, the Jamaican government kept the Wallenford plantation state-owned and transferred some CIB regulatory functions to Wallenford. The Wallenford plantation became synonymous with the CIB, shouldering the mission of managing and innovating the coffee industry, with plantation managers appointed by government departments.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

After all that history of regulation and rebuilding, the reward for drinkers today is coffee like FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1, the highest grade in Jamaica's classification. It comes from the historic Clifton Mount Estate, which began growing and processing coffee around 1750, with its growing and processing area at an average of 4,300 feet (1,310.64 meters) — enough altitude, combined with mild afternoon cloud cover, ample sunshine, and mineral-rich soil, to give the trees excellent conditions and to lengthen the cherries' ripening.

Medium-deep roasted in the traditional Blue Mountain style, it delivers the classic balance that made this coffee legendary: rich aromas of nuts, dark chocolate, and cream caramel, a soft sweetness, and a full body in which acidity, sweetness, bitterness, and aroma all sit in harmony. FrontStreet Coffee ships Blue Mountain beans freshly roasted within 5 days, so they arrive at full flavor — ready to brew and enjoy as a daily specialty coffee or an elegant gift.