Coffee Origins
Coffee originated in Ethiopia but over the last few hundred years it has made it's way across the globe - coffee is typically grown between the Tropic of Cancer & the Tropic of Capricorn as this is where conditions are ideal for it to thrive.
The diverse origins of coffee beans imprint distinctive flavours and traits onto the brew that fills your cup. Exploring the different origins of coffee beans not only offers insight into the complexity of this beloved brew but also highlights the global connections fostered through centuries of cultivation and consumption.
Blends
A coffee blend is a coffee that is made up of coffee beans originating from more than one place - this could be across multiple countries or even disparate regions within the same country. Compared to single-origins, which can be full of unique and complex tasting notes and flavour profiles,…
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Bolivia
The tropical Yungas region alongside the Andes dominates Bolivian coffee production, where it is mostly grown by indigenous Aymara families working tiny farms. While these farms tend to be grouped together in settlements and managed by cooperatives, the size of these farms and their remoteness…
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Brazil
While there’s still great variety within such a large country of varying climate and ecology, in general Brazilian coffee leans chocolatey and rich, often with nutty notes and relatively low in acidity. These flavours have massive appeal and with speciality roasting can become coffees full of…
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Burundi
Having faced many difficulties in the establishment of a coffee market as a result of political and economic unrest and environmental challenges, today, efforts towards ensuring better deals for smallholder farmers and infrastructural development means a better market and higher quality coffees.…
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China
Big name coffee corps have been investing in commercial robusta coffee production in the south of the nation since the 90s, but now growers are turning their attention to quality and hoping to build a reputation with disease-resistant varieties of arabica. The southern province of Yunnan that…
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Colombia
We love a good Colombian coffee, so much so we use one as our house roast. The coffee producing areas of Colombia lie amongst the Andes and the Sierra Nevada where there is a near perfect tropical coffee-growing climate at high altitudes with plenty of rainfall and shelter, which yields two…
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Costa Rica
Coffee is a hugely important crop to the history and culture of Costa Rica. High altitude and fertile volcanic soil made it a valuable export, and the nation was even Britain’s no.1. supplier in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The funds from trade like this allowed for large-scale modernisation…
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DR Congo
Despite the logistical challenges of operating in this war torn nation, with more coffee organisations investing in Congolese coffee infrastructure and cooperatives, there is hope for better economic stability and a more secure market for farmers and with that a growth in quality.
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Ecuador
Coffee was Ecuador’s main export crop until the 1970s, but these quantities were largely made up of poor quality Robusta that has led to a less stellar reputation than other South American origins. The climate and altitude of Ecuador is extremely diverse, yet coffee is grown in 23 of its 24…
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El Salvador
Despite years of civil unrest, the small Central American nation has been able to retain its fantastic heirloom Bourbon trees and continue producing high quality green beans that make for balanced and versatile coffee. El Salvador’s coffee cultivation consists mainly of small farms and micro-lots…
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Ethiopia
First consumed as a fruit, coffee in Ethiopia was initially harvested from wild trees, before a desire for exports in the 1900s introduced plantation coffees and a standardised quality grading system. As a result of their own internal coffee commodity culture, Ethiopian coffee has historically been…
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Guatemala
The rise of coffee cultivation in Guatemala was a result of a government project when its value was realised in the late 19th Century, and its production has been heavily tied to politics ever since. This was an unsustainable foundation of high yield low quality coffee grown at the expense of many…
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Honduras
The soil, climate, and conditions in Honduras are very similar to those of Guatemala, Nicaragua, or Costa Rica, with a great range of flavour profiles available, but it has faced overwhelming difficulties with leaf rust and pre-export degradation. More experimentation in high quality processing,…
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India
The story goes that Indian saint Baba Budan returned from a pilgrimage to Mecca smuggling seven raw Arabica beans from Yemen, at a time when its export was strictly controlled, by hiding them in his beard and planting them on the hills of the Chikkamagaluru district. While this story shows how…
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Indonesia
Across the group of islands that make up Indonesia, there are multiple micro-climates and a staggered harvest season. While Javan robusta coffee is probably the most well known (ever heard of ‘Mocha-Java’?), the minority arabica crop in Sumatra and Sulawesi is now reaching greater popularity…
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Kenya
The majority of Kenyan coffee is grown around the extinct volcano Mount Kenya, in the central highlands. Across both its large former colonial estates and smallholder farms, Kenya has a very highly educated coffee industry, which produces extremely high quality lots. SL-28 and SL-34, two varieties…
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Malawi
While coffee was introduced to Malawi under British rule in the 1890s, it was only after independence that this crop was able to flourish, having been unable to gain prominence alongside more valuable cash crops like lucrative tobacco, nuts, tea and spices until the creation of organised…
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Mexico
Mexico has a complicated history as a coffee producer. A previously fruitful system of smallholder production was destroyed by the collapse of the Mexican Coffee Institute, leading to a predatory market, a massive drop in quality, and a reputation for the production of commercial grade coffee. The…
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Myanmar
A UN funded project aimed at replacing opium production in the Southeast Asian country has meant higher grade specialty coffee and better infrastructure, meaning it is now more easily sourced outside of Asia. The large tropical rainforest and a mountainous landscape that offers ideal climate for…
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Nicaragua
Nicaragua has had a tumultuous status as a coffee producer but its long history, dating back to the 1700s, in Central America’s largest nation means that coffee has shown resilience in the face of challenges such as political turmoil, natural disaster and market volatility. With the formation of…
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Panama
Coffee production in Panama almost exclusively operates out of the western province of Chiriquí, on the Costa Rican border. Within this region, the topography creates unique micro-climates where the phenomenon of bajareque mists results in cool temperatures that provide similar conditions to those…
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Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea’s political turbulence and poor infrastructure is at odds with the fertile volcanic soil and tropical highland climate that make it a natural choice for coffee growing. Though over 2 million people on the Oceanic island nation rely on the coffee industry for their income, violent…
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Peru
With little central funding and no organised coffee industry Peru hasn’t quite exploded as a dominant specialty coffee origin. A focus on organic farming and a move away from commercial plantation growing towards smallholders and co-operatives means that many are looking to Peru for what it can…
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Rwanda
Coffee has played a key and symbolic part in Rwanda’s recovery from genocide, with much foreign aid invested into establishing coffee partnerships and infrastructure and promoting quality. Transport continues to pose a challenge for this landlocked nation, alongside the ‘potato defect’ that…
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Tanzania
While the historical crop in Tanzania was Robusta, German colonial rule ramped up production with the planting of Arabica as a cash crop; a campaign continued by British rule in the country. In its independence era, Tanzania has struggled with low-yield diseased coffee plants and production has…
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Thailand
Thailand’s beginnings as a coffee origin has a similar story to that of neighbouring Myanmar. In the 1970s, the Thai government incentivised farmers in the mountainous northern regions to move away from conflict-ridden opium production towards another high value cash crop: coffee. Arabica thrives…
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Timor Leste
Coffee is one of Timor Leste's primary industries and exports, and has been cultivated on the eastern half of the South Asian island of Timor since its Portuguese occupation. Unique to Timor is the Timor Hybrid variety of coffee that has naturally evolved on the island. This is a unique variety of…
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Uganda
Robusta is a key export for Uganda, and is one of few places where coffee grows indigenously. But with better traceability, and a greater focus on the arabica crops that thrive in the mountains on its Eastern and Western borders, Ugandan coffee is increasing its quality and reputation.…
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Zambia
While infrastructure, disease and climate change have proved challenges for the market at times, following the models of other central African nations has proved fruitful for Zambian coffee. Still, production is small-scale, reliant on disease resistant varieties, and most often from larger estates…
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