We often get asked, “Hey bro, how’d you decided on Colombian Arabica beans?” The short answer is, they have a robust, almost chocolatey flavor that’s familiar and inviting like Sunday morning. That bold flavor lends itself to ice drip as cold water brewing techniques tend to mellow out aroma and smooth out acidity. Bottom line, Colombian coffee beans make great ice drip coffee. But why are they so great and how do they get that perfect coffee flavor we all love?
Coffee berries, like all fruits and veggies, are directly affected by climate and growing factors known as terroir. These include: soil composition, temperature, humidity/moisture levels, elevation and topography. Other key influencers are farming techniques, roasting and the specific variety of bean.
Arabica vs Robusta
The most common types of coffee are Arabica and Robusta, but there are several lesser known varieties largely localized to the regions they come from. At Brojo we exclusively use organic Colombian Arabica beans from trusted farmers and suppliers that support fair trade and sustainable farming practices. Arabica beans generally have a sweeter and milder profile than Robusta but a much higher acid content. Using ice drip we can isolate that delicious flavor and freeze out the acid. This makes Colombian Arabica beans a perfect candidate for cold water brewing techniques. So what is it about Colombia that gives their coffee such a fantastic profile? It’s all about terroir.
Terriers. Wait, no. Terroir.
As we touched on, terroir refers to all the environmental factors that influence the coffee berry. Coffee thrives in volcanic soil at elevations above 4,000 feet. For the most part, the higher the better. It also needs a region that receives little to no frost and about eighty or so inches of rain annually.
This leaves us with a pretty specific set of factors to hunt for when trying to find great coffee berries. Fortunately, that place is pretty easy to find. Referred to as the Coffee Belt, it wraps the globe from 30ºS to 30ºN.
Farming, Roasting and the Love of the Bean
The last elements that influence flavor are farming practices, roasting and love. Farming is pretty straight forward. Plants need love and attention. That’s why it’s critical to work with growers and suppliers that care about their product and love the land. As for roasting, well those are kind of trade secrets but we can give you a hint. We roast our beans to a perfect golden brown summertime tan; making sure we can get that smokey flavor without burning off too much caffeine.
That’s pretty much it, anything else that changes the flavor of your brew is going to be added in afterward and probably terrible for you. All that junk tends to be sugar, calories or just straight up artificial flavoring garbage. Part of our mission is to make a coffee so good that it doesn’t need anything else. A truly healthier alternative to coffee milkshakes and energy drinks.
We are always looking for ways to get better and/or answer questions. Hit us up whenever on Twitter or Instagram or our Contact Page. 🤙
The Works of Peter C. Knochel 