Where Does One Find Speciality Coffee?
Specialty
coffee does not come from just anywhere. This is the term given to the top 20 per cent in quality of Arabica
coffee grown and harvested from select regions worldwide. Sometimes it is used interchangeably with "gourmet" or "premium" coffee. The hallmark of the
specialty coffee industry is to identify with great precision the source of coffee imported, roasted and brewed. What distinguishes
specialty coffee from other coffee? It is made from exceptional beans grown only in ideal coffee-producing climates. These beans feature distinctive flavors derived from the soils that produced them. Even when blended, the origins are identified and consumers associate meaning and expectations with the names of lands, regions, farms and even plants. Specialty Coffees have stories worth telling that begin where they were born and can become great cultural and geographical lessons. The coffee birthplaces and the quality associated with them have unique value that should be protected.
For example, the use of the word "Java" became so generic for coffee in everyday vocabulary that it no longer represented a unique and distinctly rich coffee from the Indonesian island of Java. Dutch colonists cultivated Arabica coffee in large quantity for export in Java. The result has been the creation of Geographic Indications which identify a product as originating in a specific territory, region or locality. Very specific quality, features, characteristics and reputation become identified with the specific Geographic Indications. For example, Blue Mountain Coffee is identified with Jamaica, and Kona coffee is identified with Hawaii. In addition, many specialty coffee growing countries have associations of growers, companies, and agencies who deal with enhancements for cultivating, exporting, and marketing the best possible coffee. Specialty coffee growers tend to promote rural community development such as infrastructure, medical, and education which helps them ensure working in harmony with the environment.
An example of such community development is the independent coffee grower members of the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia (FNC). Nearly all, if not all, specialty coffee is made from Arabica coffee beans grown at higher altitudes. Are you now ready to enjoy a cup of specialty coffee? Timothy ("Tim") S. Collins, the author, is called by those who know him "Gourmet Coffee Guy." He is an expert in article writing who has done extensive research online and offline in his area of expertise, coffee marketing, as well as in other areas of personal and professional interest.
