The island of Jamaica is known for a lot of things, sandy beaches, reggae beats, Bob Marley as well as coffees. The high reverence for Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee among devoted coffee lovers has driven its price approximately between $26 and $40 a pound. What is it about this particular brew that warrants such a high price tag?
In keeping with its name, Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is grown from the Blue Mountain region of Jamaica, generally located in between Kingston to the south and Port Maria to the north. Ascending to 7,500 ft., the Blue Mountains would be highest possible point in the Caribbean. The region can be described by cool, moist climate and dark, rich soil with excellent drainage, ideal conditions when it comes to cultivating coffee. Although coffee isn’t native to Jamaica, it’s the chief export of the tropical island.
Not only any old cup of Joe can call itself Jamaican Blue Mountain. The Coffee Industry Board of Jamaica ought to approve every bag of coffee to ensure only the highest quality beans carry the prestigious brand. The Board exclusively recognizes coffee beans harvested in certain parishes of Jamaica: St. Andrew, St. Thomas, Portland as well as St. Mary.
The Coffee Industry Regulation Act organized a system of 3 grades of Jamaican Blue Mountain depending on the screen or size of the coffee bean. The term screen refers to the literal screens of different measurements used to sort out the beans according to their size. The idea right behind this practice is that beans grown in higher altitudes are bigger and make better-tasting coffee compared to those cultivated in lower altitudes.
The rigorous high quality standard for Jamaican Blue Mountain does not include coffee beans that will probably be considered acceptable for other coffees. The screening procedure also helps to eliminate maragogipe (elephant beans). A mutant type considered to have originated in Brazil, elephant beans are big, green, permeable coffee beans which seem to absorb the taste of the terrain they grown in. The jury is still out on their value, but they are considered an insufferable defect for Jamaican Blue Mountain production.
No less than 96 percent of the coffee beans put to use must be of the very same proportions and bluish-green color. No greater than two percent can stray from that requirement in any way. Sour or black coffee beans, or foreign matter of any kind, are considered unforgivable defects and do not fall under the two-percent rule. The most unbending standard is necessary to conserve the traits that coffee lovers have come to expect.
The physical area that cultivates Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee beans is relatively small and can only make so much coffee. The limited amount, the matchless quality resulting from meticulous cultivation, the appealing fragrance as well as the renowned name of Jamaican Blue Mountain have unquestionably led to its reputation as one of the most sought-after coffees in the world. So long as hard-core coffee lovers continue to demand it, it will likewise be one of the most costly.
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