A roaster's guide to Colombian Coffee

Single-origin coffee is one of the trends deeply shaping the specialty coffee industry. Single-origin coffee means a specific coffee sourced from a specific geographical location, it could be a country, a region, or a single coffee farm and can offer unique characteristics and specific flavor notes and tastes.

When it comes to single-origin coffees, coffee from Colombia is one of the most known in the specialty industry, not only because it has a specific mild and sweet profile. Also, the importance of Colombian coffee in global trade has been significant, and one of the main coffee hubs in the coffee industry.

Colombian coffee is one of the single origins that coffee roasters and stores should know about and have in their product portfolio. Knowing about their characteristics and main attributes is essential to give a satisfactory experience to their customers.

Colombian Coffee’s History

The story of coffee in Colombia is from about 300 years ago in the 18th century by a Jesuit priest. It is said that the coffee beans arrived first in a region called Santander in the northeast of Colombia, in a small town called “Salazar de las Palmas”. When parishioners in the region confessed, the Jesuit priest imposed on them sowing coffee as a penance.

Coffee expanded to other regions such as Cundinamarca, Caldas, and Antioquia, where the products were made in big farms called “Haciendas Cafeteras”. By the 19th century the Colombian coffee industry increased its production from 60,000 bags to 600,000 bags.

Nevertheless, a series of civil wars in the 19th  destroyed the economy and the infrastructure. Additionally, the fall in the international process of coffee due to the “big depression” in the United States and the World War created a crisis in the coffee sector and the landlords changed the coffee production model.

Big coffee plantations were split among workers and small farmers, which gave them ownership over small pieces of land. Coffee production in Colombia changed from big coffee plantations owned by landlords to small farm production owned by families that harvest coffee among other crops, mainly bananas.

Additionally, the coffee industry in Colombia was powered and grew by a massive mobilization of farmers who were looking for new land and opportunities in remote areas of the country. Many settlements were founded in remote and mountainous areas of Colombia by families that were looking for a new future and opportunities, coffee was the main source of income for those families.

In 1927 the National Federation of Coffee Growers was created. It was created to protect the rights of coffee growers and strengthen the coffee sector. The institution still exists right now and has reached many achievements for coffee farmers and the overall coffee sector in Colombia.

The coffee sector grew constantly over the 20th century, coffee production was the main income for the Colombian economy, and many regions where coffee growth were prosperous. Many families have economic stability, and a Coffee culture was expanding across the country.

Nowadays, Colombian coffee production is still growing, and the specialty coffee trends have roots in the coffee sector of the country. In many regions, many coffee farmers are learning new processes and there is a huge expansion of specialty roasters and coffee traders around the country.

Colombian Coffee Production

Colombia is one of the most diverse countries in the world, it has many regions across the country that are far different with unique characteristics from each other. Also, the country has three chain mountains with a high elevation and multiple hills and valleys in between the mountains.

Due to these geographical features, Colombia has many micro-climes with specific conditions which help to develop a variety of coffee profiles around the country. Additionally, the tropical climate and nutrient-dense hills and mountains allow the coffee to grow easily and have two harvests over the year.

One of the main facts in Colombian coffee production is the existence of the National Federation of Coffee Growers. This institution has provided specific education to coffee farmers, and technical and financial support to small farmers to strengthen the coffee sector over time. Colombian coffee farmers have specific skills and a support network to be able to overcome the challenges of the coffee industry.

These production conditions allow the country to be one of the big players in the coffee market. Colombian is the 3rd largest coffee producer in the World and the 1st producer of mild-washed arabica coffee in the world. Over the last years, Colombia has been one of the main hubs of the international trade of coffee around the world. 

It is estimated that there are over 600.000 families that are producing coffee in Colombia. All of them are distributed across the country. Most of them own small coffee plantations that are harvested with other crops.

The wet process is the most used across the country, every farm has a small structure called “beneficiadero” where the coffee is pulped, fermented, and dried. It allows coffee farmers to have the required infrastructure to develop alternative methods to find different types of coffee profiles.

Colombia Coffee Profile

The main characteristic of Colombian coffee is its sweetness, lightness, and protagonist acidity. Nevertheless, due to the diversity and multiple microclimates, there is no specific profile for Colombian coffee.

The wet processing method makes the coffee profile much cleaner and more pleasant; mildness and flavor clarity is one of the main characteristics of Colombian coffee with a silky body, tropical notes, and intense spicy aroma.

In the northern region of the country in the Departments of Santa Marta and Santander, the high temperatures and lower altitudes, the characteristics of the coffee result in deeper flavor notes and a full-bodied profile.

In the central region, where the famous “coffee axis” of Colombia is located, the coffee profile tends to be nuttier with a protagonist of chocolate-tasting notes, and a mild sweetness is present with mellow acidity.

Finally, in the south of Colombia, higher elevations and volcanic soils tend to develop a higher acidity, higher density, and complex flavor profiles.

Recommended Roast Profile for Colombian Coffee

No matter the roast level, it is important to know about the different factors and elements that can define the coffee profile in the roasting process. Roasters can play with different profiles and create different roasting curves that fit the preferences of their customer base.

Light roast highlights the acidity of the coffee and develops more citrus and fruit overtones. While dark roasts tend to develop more of a nutty and chocolate profile that can fit more of a specific type of customer.

Due to the mild profile, the sweetness of Colombian, and the crispy acidity of Colombian coffee there is not a specific roast profile that roasters should follow. It is possible to be creative and innovative. The main recommendation is to know the characteristics of the coffee beans and the main variables that define the roasting process.

MTPak offers packing solutions that will help to maintain the freshness and quality of all the roasted coffees. MTpak Coffee provides different alternatives focusing on taking care of the environment and guaranteeing the freshness of the product.