Colombia

Colombia is known for producing some of the best coffee in the world. Why is Colombian coffee such an outlier in a world of coffee? It all comes down to real estate. The tropical climate and high altitude in Colombia make for perfect growing conditions—it’s some of the best land for coffee-growing in the world. No wonder the Colombian coffee industry consists of more than 600,000 Colombian coffee growers, which produce an average of 11.5 million bags annually—the third highest in the world after Brazil and Vietnam.

The wide variety of Colombian coffee makes relationships with Colombian producers especially valuable for specialty coffee roasters. Colombian coffee beans range from nutty and chocolatey to incredibly fruity. The high quality coffee available throughout the country’s growing region can be found everywhere from the most comforting blends to the wildest, rarest microlots.

The majority of the Colombian coffee crop is made up of Arabica beans, the more flavorful species of coffee that the specialty coffee industry relies on. The country still grows traditional varieties like Bourbon and Typica, alongside specifically Colombian coffee beans like Castillo and Colombia, which were developed by the Colombian coffee industry. And if there’s a highly sought after variety out there, from the famous Gesha to the low-caffeine Laurina, somebody in Colombia is experimenting with it.

The many different flavors and varieties of Colombian Arabica coffee beans, allow them to shine in everything fromwhen tried as a light roast to dark roast. Also, compared to a lot of beans, they’re great partners to milk and sugar—the flavor shines through, but also is smoothed a bit, making for a truly heavenly sip. But there’s just nothing like a big cup of Colombian coffee served black, so you can appreciate every flavorful note.

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