Do you ever walk into a coffee shop and look at the brew they have that morning and wonder why they say that it is a ‘single origin’ coffee? What does that mean and should a coffee lover even care?
Yes, the label ‘single origin’ is very important for the serious coffee drinker. Single origin simply means that the coffee is sourced from a single crop, producer or region. If you see the term ‘single estate,’ this is even better: It means that the coffee has been sourced from one farm or mill.
Experts say that the key thing about single origin or single estate coffees is that it is traceable. You know precisely where your coffee came from and that all of the beans in that amount of coffee came from one place. It is not a blend of coffee beans from various places. Single source and single estate coffees are usually of a much higher quality that blends.
A single estate coffee is the best for the coffee lover because you will know that the coffee is of a particular type and flavor.
Single origin coffees have become more common in recent years because there are more specialty coffee shops offering different types of brewing, such as pour overs and aeropresses. These types of brewing technique benefit from using single origin and single estate coffee beans.
Of course, for people who just want to have the same cup of coffee every day, something that is stable and does not change, a blend coffee is perfectly fine. But for those who want to explore the endless flavors of coffee that are available, you should find a good coffee shop that offers single estate and single origin coffees. Or, find a good online provider of single source and single estate coffee.
If you are looking at single estate and single origin coffees, how do you know they are of good quality? Today there are three main systems used to evaluate coffees:
- Cup of Excellence
- Coffee Quality Institute Q
- Coffee Review
The Cup of Excellence competition is thought to be the highest type of recognition in the coffee specialty industry. The Coffee Quality Institute Q system uses the SCAA’s highest standards and looks at the fine Arabica, fine Robusta and many blends.