Bolivian Coffee Estate Introduction: Flavor Profiles and Processing Methods of Bolivian Coffee Beans

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FrontStreet Coffee has sourced coffee beans from many countries, including many highly representative coffee beans from major coffee-producing nations like Brazil, Colombia, and Indonesia. However, today FrontStreet Coffee would like to share with you coffee beans from a relatively lesser-known country—Bolivian coffee beans.

The Scarcity of Bolivian Coffee

Bolivian coffee beans are rarely seen in the domestic market due to Bolivia's low coffee production. Because Bolivia's coffee production scale is small, it naturally cannot compare with major coffee exporting countries like Brazil and Vietnam. Most Bolivian coffee is produced by small farmers, and Bolivian coffee is primarily consumed domestically.

Valiki Estate: A Premium Bolivian Coffee

However, the Bolivian Java coffee that FrontStreet Coffee has sourced comes from Valiki Estate. Valiki Estate is very small, covering only six hectares, and is located in Caranavi, Bolivia's main coffee-producing region. The elevation is quite high, above 1,660 meters. The region's climate is cold, resulting in a longer coffee cultivation cycle. The extended cultivation period is very beneficial for the accumulation of coffee compounds—the sugar content in coffee beans gradually increases over time, making the brewed coffee noticeably sweeter.

Flavor Profiles by Altitude

Coffee produced in Bolivia's high-altitude regions not only exhibits sweetness but also has soft citrus acidity and berry flavors. Coffee from relatively lower altitudes shows balanced flavor profiles with chocolate sweetness and mild acidity.

Roasting Levels and Processing Methods

After sourcing this Bolivian coffee, FrontStreet Coffee uses light roasting to highlight its unique flavors. FrontStreet Coffee's customers often ask about the differences between light roast and dark roast coffee beans. Light roast coffee beans have very different flavor profiles. Generally, light roast coffee beans have more pronounced acidity, while medium-dark or dark roast beans have deeper bitterness. However, coffee flavor isn't solely determined by roast level—processing methods also affect flavor. For example, washed processed beans have cleaner taste profiles, while natural processed beans have more pronounced aroma and sweetness. FrontStreet Coffee recommends that coffee beginners start with washed processed beans, then try natural processed beans, and gradually move toward single-origin estate beans.

The Unique Java Variety

Of course, coffee flavor is closely related to coffee varieties in addition to altitude and terrain. Because coffee tree genetics largely determine the general flavor profile of coffee beans from the moment they are planted. Most coffee varieties grown in Bolivia are Typica, with some Catimor, but the most special variety is Java—the Bolivian coffee beans that FrontStreet Coffee carries are of the Java variety. If you regularly follow FrontStreet Coffee's WeChat account, FrontStreet Coffee previously introduced a coffee bean from West Java, Indonesia, but this Indonesian coffee bean is different from the Bolivian Java coffee bean, so please don't confuse them.

Distinguishing Indonesian and Bolivian Java

The Indonesian coffee bean previously introduced by FrontStreet Coffee comes from Ammani Estate and uses honey processing. Its sweetness is quite pronounced, with flavors reminiscent of mango, red wine, and jackfruit. It was named after the traditional Indonesian snack "Ammani" because its flavor resembles this local delicacy.

Moreover, the variety is not the same as Bolivia's Java variety. The Indonesian coffee trees are grown on West Java Island in Indonesia and are of the S-795 variety. Another point is that the Java variety of Bolivian coffee beans carried by FrontStreet Coffee is not grown on Indonesia's West Java Island—don't confuse these two coffee beans just because of their names.

Java Variety Origins and Characteristics

According to FrontStreet Coffee's knowledge, Java is actually a coffee variety from Ethiopia, locally called "long bean" in Bolivia because the coffee beans are quite elongated. Its official name is Java (JAVA). Don't underestimate the Java variety—it has strong resistance to leaf rust disease, making it suitable for small farmers to grow. Its flavor is also very outstanding, not inferior to Geisha.

Challenges in Bolivian Coffee Production

Bolivia's economic level remains quite underdeveloped. Compared to Ethiopia, which has relatively better economic conditions, Bolivia's economy cannot compare with major coffee-producing countries like Brazil and Colombia. This leads to transportation challenges for Bolivian coffee beans. Bolivia's main coffee-producing region is the Yungas area, where infrastructure is very underdeveloped, lacking large-scale washing stations. Additionally, transportation in the Yungas is extremely inconvenient, earning it the nickname "Death Road." Such roads can easily cause coffee cherries to ferment and spoil during transport, producing pungent odors. FrontStreet Coffee believes this situation is very detrimental to Bolivia's coffee exports.

Coffee Processing Methods in Bolivia

Bolivian farmers primarily use the washed method to process green beans. After sorting, coffee cherries are placed in a depulper to initially remove the skin and pulp. Coffee beans with residual pulp and mucilage are placed in water to ferment for about 24 hours. After fermentation, the parchment coffee beans are placed in flowing water channels to wash away the pulp and mucilage. After washing, the coffee beans are dried in the sun or using drying machines until the moisture content reaches about 12%. Finally, the parchment is removed from the green beans, and they are stored in warehouses.

However, other producing regions in Bolivia occasionally use natural processing. FrontStreet Coffee believes that regions using natural processing may be considering Bolivia's cold climate, so many farmers use machine drying instead of sun drying. This processing method is called cocoa natural processing. FrontStreet Coffee believes many people may not have heard of using cocoa dryers for coffee beans. This processing method was first used by Pedro Rodriguez of the Rodriguez family, who utilized this latest technology to dry coffee beans slowly and continuously at low temperatures using cocoa dryers, thus reducing the impact of weather.

The cocoa natural processing typically involves: harvesting the ripest coffee cherries during optimal maturity. After selection and weighing, coffee cherries are carefully washed and placed on African drying beds, then turned every hour. After a week, the coffee cherries are placed in cocoa dryers. The processed green beans are then stored in warehouses.

Cupping Bolivian Coffee

FrontStreet Coffee has cupped natural processed Bolivian coffee beans. FrontStreet Coffee's barista used a 200ml standard cupping bowl, with a grind size of 70%-75% retention on a #20 sieve, using 11.3g of coffee at 94°C water temperature. First, the grounds were smelled for dry fragrance. The natural processed Bolivian coffee beans' dry fragrance emitted hazelnut aroma. Then water was added to fill the bowl for wet fragrance confirmation. After 4 minutes, the crust was broken and removed for flavor evaluation. The wet fragrance emitted mature fruit's fermented wine aroma. FrontStreet Coffee cupped this Bolivian coffee bean's overall flavor as: first entering with cream and hazelnut sweetness, and after cooling, more citrus and tropical fruit sweet-tart notes, with some fermented wine aroma.

Pour-over Brewing

FrontStreet Coffee then used pour-over brewing to verify this Bolivian coffee's flavors, as pour-over is a relatively simple method that can perfectly showcase origin characteristics. FrontStreet Coffee used a V60 dripper to brew this coffee. The V60 conical dripper has a large hole, and combined with its unique spiral ribs, allows air to be more easily discharged, improving extraction quality. The body might not be as rich, but its high concentration所带来的酸甜与明显香气是它的一大特色. FrontStreet Coffee's brewing parameters were: water temperature: 90-91°C, grind size: BG#6m (fine sugar size), powder-to-water ratio: 1:15, coffee amount: 15 grams.

FrontStreet Coffee's pour-over technique uses FrontStreet Coffee's simplest three-stage method. In the first stage, 30g of water is used to fully saturate the coffee bed into a "hamburger" shape for a 30-second bloom. Then the second stage begins—at 54 seconds on the timer, water is injected to 125g, then wait for the water level to drop to 2/3 of the coffee bed before starting the third stage (this stage extracts the sour and sweet flavor compounds from the coffee grounds). In the third stage, at 1'40" on the timer, water is injected to 225g, with a total extraction time of 2'10". After coffee extraction is complete, gently shake to ensure the coffee liquid is fully uniform before tasting.

Brewing Flavor Notes

Bolivian coffee's brewing flavor: slight fermentation, grape, mild nutty, floral notes, medium acidity, juicy mouthfeel.

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