READING A COFFEE LABEL - ELEVATION

In the last discussion on Reading a Coffee Label, region was explained and analyzed to deeply understand the importance of the region being listed on a coffee label. Now, we look into elevation to explore why this piece of information is listed and how it impacts the flavor and some of the physical characteristics of the coffee inside the bag!

Elevation is fairly straight forward; it tells us how high on the mountain the coffee was grown. This has a direct impact on the physical characteristics of the coffee bean. The size, the color, and the density of the bean all corresponds to the elevation the bean was grown.

Higher elevations make the beans harder and denser. The higher altitudes allow for the beans to mature slower, because of cooler temperatures, therefore allowing more sugars to form around and in the bean. The natural sugars that form create a sweeter and more desirable bean than a coffee that was grown at a lower altitude.

Elevation is so important to some coffee regions, they have a grading scale based on this factor! These regions will grade their beans as “hard bean”, “strictly hard bean”. However, we can rest assured that a dense, desirable bean will be grown at 4,000 ft above sea level (1,200 meters).

Elevation however, does not only affect physical characteristics of the bean, but also its flavors! There are general rules to different flavor profiles of beans from respective elevations, however, there are a multitude of different things that go into the final flavor of the bean! Typically, coffee grown at or below 2,500 feet will be bland and mild. Coffee grown at 3,000 feet can be found to be smooth and sweet. When coffee is grown around 4,000 feet (desirable!) it can produce flavors of chocolate, vanilla, or fruit.

The next time you stop into the coffee house, take notice to the different elevations our coffees are grown at, compare the taste profiles listed on the labels, and take some home to try out!