Only with transparent information can the "brand value" of specialty coffee beans be improved

I have always believed that the biggest difference between specialty coffee and commercial coffee is that they are professionally driven. Just imagine that the pioneers of specialty coffee promoted Yirgacheffe beans for more than 10 years before consumers believed that coffee could have a floral aroma. But now consumers can buy drip coffee bags from major coffee companies in convenience stores. The professional advantage of specialty coffee companies can easily be overtaken. To maintain their advantage, making product information more transparent is something they should continue to do.

For example, although 90+ boasts of innovative processing technology, the information on its products only focuses on the flavor and brand spokesperson, with almost no detailed explanations. Another company, the "Origin Area Plan", reveals slightly more professional information on processing methods than 90+. Although it can still be seen that it is protecting its core processing technology and does not want to reveal everything, history tells us that the less technical information is disclosed, the more it will lose the right to speak on new trends. Buyers often pursue newer technologies and topics. For example, the "yeast processing method" has become popular recently, and the "Origin Area Plan" has gained more advantages in the right to speak than 90+.

90+ (Ninety plus): An internationally renowned coffee bean production and sales company, famous for providing rare and unique coffee beans.

Project Origin: Launched by World Coffee Master Champion Sasha Sesti in collaboration with 10 coffee producing countries, it is a multinational management team that offers both specialized products and a wide range of bean selection options for buyers.

Low-temperature and constant-humidity storage, coding, warehousing, environmental control, easy access and control of items and quantities at any time are the key points of green bean warehouse management.

Looking for brand name beans? Establish your own cupping value first!

In recent years, coffee industry professionals have generally felt that green beans are becoming more and more expensive! Especially with the promotion of famous estates and competition beans, buyers often have to pay several times higher than the market price, and even hundreds of dollars per pound.

The questions that bean finders have to think about are: Is quality proportional to price? Even if the beans bought at a high price do not make money, can they be used as a form of advertising? In any case, even if you have the money to buy high-priced beans, the most important key is still the operator's cupping and cleanliness identification. Once the price soars, even if you buy 88-point quality green beans at a price of 90 points, the score is high, but considering the purchase price, it will still feel disgusting! The most common problem for general bean finders/roasters is that they lack experience and cannot identify the subtle differences of high-quality beans. They lack vigilance when purchasing, and it is easy to spend a lot of money and become a rip-off.

For example, serving as a judge for the Excellence Cup requires an important professional skill: the ability to identify subtle differences in cleanliness. This evaluation item actually fully reflects the series of details and efforts involved in the process of picking a green bean from the time the fruit is picked to the time it is served and cupped!

For example, if the buyer easily accepts the statement that "clean cup will definitely be slightly worse than washed cup", it is easy to buy low-quality batches at high prices. However, no matter what the processing method is, good clean cup means no negative flavors, can clearly convey the original flavor, and means picking the fruit at the right ripeness and undergoing rigorous post-processing. If you pay a high price, buyers should insist on the requirement of "high price = high quality" to purchase well-known estates, high-priced bidding batches and branded beans, rather than superstitious marketing language or stereotypes.

The three logics of coffee roasters: origin, variety, and processing method

After integrating with other food craft cultures, the current coffee industry is becoming more and more "trendy", with new varieties and new processing methods emerging like dark horses every year. When selecting beans, general roasters usually follow the following logic:

1. Priority is given to well-known production areas: Assuming that we choose production areas that are familiar to consumers as the purchasing targets, such as Antigua in Guatemala, Tarrazú in Costa Rica, and Santa Ana Volcano in El Salvador... Experienced people will select good quality batches from the above-mentioned areas through blind testing. This is a professional purchasing model that takes both production area requirements and quality into consideration.

2. Prioritize well-known varieties: Gesha is popular, and Gesha must be included in the bean list, but where is this Gesha? Is it of good quality? Professionals will not be tempted by the hunting, and will use cupping to help find out the quality and price are appropriate before deciding to purchase Gesha. Other well-known varieties that are often used as purchase targets include Pacamara, Yellow Bourbon, Sudan Rume, and Kenya SL28.

3. Processing methods take priority: Honey processing methods are dominant, and special processing methods are becoming increasingly popular, including the anaerobic processing method learned from the wine industry, Kenya's 72-hour water washing method adopted in Central American production areas, artificial yeast fermentation, adding enzymes or foreign substances for fermentation, low-temperature soaking or processing of the fruit and then slowly drying it in the shade for a long time, etc.

Four cupping indicators of Kenyan beans: acidity, texture, flavor, and negative flavors.

Source = "Bean Hunter 2: International Coffee Judges' African Adventure", published by Xiele Culture

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