Jan 8, 2011

A History of Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee 2

High Altitude Origins of Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee
The three great secrets to virtually all of the world’s great coffees are credited to a combination of altitude, volcanic soil and austere care for the beans. The Jamaican Blue Mountains are a majestic range of mountains forming the virtual backbone of Jamaica rising over 7,000 feet above sea level. The densely wooded north slopes are maintained largely as forest reserves. This region is the center of Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee cultivation. Annual rainfall is a mere 200 inches and average temperature hovers near 5°C, due to a dense cloud cover. These environmental factors slow down the maturation rate of the of the Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee fruit to about 10 months from bloom to harvest, as compared to five or six elsewhere. This produces a larger more complex bean, with a concentration of sublime flavor.


Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee from volcanic Roots
The Jamaica Blue Mountains are like all mountains in the Caribbean, the ocean above the top of the old extinct volcanoes. Through the centuries the production floor, the nutrients deposited on the surface of these volcanoes are essentially a botanical super food. Centuries of accumulation of biomass formed by the decomposition of different plant species has an upper floor of exceptional quality. This fact is the case in the vicinity of the equatorial Arabica-producing countries. In Jamaica, the heirloom quality of this 18th Century Arabica plants, combine with the environment, truly exceptional Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee to produce, but that's no guarantee for a good cup.