You can filter your search in Farmers Origin along many different metrics to find the perfect cup of coffee for you. We have included information on the all the different search metrics on this page.
Preparation
- Whole bean: The coffee bean will be shipped roasted but whole. You will need to grind it yourself. Whole bean roasted coffee stays fresher than ground coffee.
- Ground: Coffee that will be shipped ground.
Growing method
- Certified organic: Coffee that is certified by a third party to ensure that it is free of synthetic additives like pesticides and chemical fertilizers, and that it is not processed using industrial solvents.
- Non-certified organic: Coffee that is grown and processed without synthetic additives such as pesticides and chemical fertilizers, but that has not been certified by a third party. Many small coffee farmers are unable to pay the high cost of an organic certification, but may still grow and process their coffee organically.
- Sustainably grown: Coffee that is grown without synthetic pesticides, but which may have been grown using inorganic fertilizer.
- Traditional: Coffee grown using inorganic fertilizer and pesticides.
Varietal
The cup characteristics of coffee are not only determined by the origin of the bean. Its varietal plays a crucial role in this as well. Filter the listings on Farmers Origin by any of the following varietals: Bourbon, Catuai, Catimor, Caturra, Geisha, Maragogipe, Mundo Novo, Pacamara, Pacas, Pache Coli, Pache Comum, Sarchimor, Typica, Villalobos, and Villa Sarchi. For more information on coffee varietals, please see Cafeculture and List of Coffee Varietals.
Roast Profile
- Green: Raw, unroasted coffee. Perfect if you want to roast coffee yourself. Keeps well in storage.
- Light roast: Light roasts are light brown in color, with a light body and no oil on the surface of the beans. Light roasts have a toasted grain taste and pronounced acidity. The origin flavors of the bean are retained to a greater extent than in darker roasted coffees. Light roasts also retain most of the caffeine from the coffee bean.
- Light roasted beans generally reach an internal temperature of 180°C – 205°C (356°F – 401°F). At or around 205°C, the beans pop or crack and expand in size. This is known as the “first crack” (for the “second crack,” see below). So a light roast generally means a coffee that has not been roasted beyond the first crack.
- Some common roast names within the Light Roast category are Light City, Half City, Cinnamon Roast (roasted to just before first crack), and New England Roast (a popular roast in the northeastern United States, roasted to first crack).
- Medium roast: Medium roasted coffees are medium brown in color with more body than light roasts. Like the lighter roasts, they have no oil on the bean surfaces. However, medium roasts lack the grainy taste of the light roasts, exhibiting more balanced flavor, aroma, and acidity. Caffeine is somewhat decreased, but there is more caffeine than in darker roasts.
- Medium roasts reach internal temperatures between 210°C (410°F) and 220°C (428°F) — between the end of the first crack and just before the beginning of the second crack.
- Common roast names within the Medium Roast level include Regular Roast, American Roast (the traditional roast in the eastern United States, roasted to the end of the first crack), City Roast (medium brown, a typical roast throughout the United States), and Breakfast Roast.
- Dark roast: Dark roasted coffees are dark brown in color, like chocolate, or sometimes almost black. They have a sheen of oil on the surface, which is usually evident in the cup when the dark roast coffee is brewed. The coffee’s origin flavors are eclipsed by the flavors of the roasting process. The coffee will generally have a bitter and smoky or even burnt taste. The amount of caffeine is substantially decreased.
- To reach the level of a dark roast, coffee beans are roasted to an internal temperature of 240°C (464°F) — about the end of the second crack — or beyond. They are seldom roasted to a temperature exceeding 250°C (482°F), at which point the body of the beans is thin and the taste is characterized by flavors of tar and charcoal.
- Dark roasts go by many names. As a result, buying a dark roast can be confusing. Some of the more popular designations for a dark roast include French Roast, Italian Roast, Espresso Roast, Continental Roast, New Orleans Roast, and Spanish Roast. Many dark roasts are used for espresso blends.
source: coffeecrossroads.com
Elevation (meters)
Geography has a major impact on the way coffee tastes. Higher elevations produce hard, dense beans that are more sought-after than beans grown at lower elevations. Hard beans, as they are sometimes called, are of a higher quality than soft beans, because they have a higher concentration of sugars, which produce more desired and nuanced flavors.
Higher is, of course, a relative term. The highest-grown coffees in Costa Rica might come from farms that are 4,500 feet above sea level, while Ethiopia has farms that sit at 6,000 feet. Generally speaking, though, an altitude above 4,000 feet is considered high enough to produce the growing conditions that create dense, desirable beans. There are exceptions to what’s been said thus far on high elevations and coffee. Coffee grown at lower elevations can still develop slowly, if it faces some other type of adverse growing conditions.
source: driftaway.coffee
Process
Washed and dried on patios
Water process decaffeniation
Honeyed (Pulp Natural)