Buying coffee to bring home?

[yetta]

OK, I am now converted!!! No more burlap bags of coffee for me...going to check it out pon next reach. Truly excited...love mi some good coffee...as one of the ole Jamaican songs states, "mi bowl of bwoling coffee in da morning" by Diana West!!! Album, Think like a girl"...title, mi coffee. Check it out if you are so inclined. It is a short song on this cd which stole mi heart years ago.

[yetta]

Here is a link to Amazon...scroll down the list on the cd to Mi Coffee. It is only about 30 seconds long , so you can hear it all. Simple and sweet!!!

http://www.amazon.com/Think-Like-Gir...rds=diana+king

[BR Mon]

Last year thunder was charging 20 bucks a pound which is almost a third less than the commercial factory stuff....I am not sure what he must pay for 200 lbs of fresh beans at the farm but if you watch that video it willgive you an idea of the labor that goes into the coffee...We watched him last year and he can only do about two pounds in each batch...It takes him about 15 minutes roasting on each batch...When you factor in his trip to the east side of the island and all the work to get it roasted and bagged it is a bargin....It is also weighed in front of you so you don't get home with 12 onces in a one pound bag...I have read on this board of a couple of coffee walkers on the beach shorting people...

[T&A]

Just watched the video of Thunder roasting the coffee and I swear i could smell the coffee right through my computer screen
I will be hooking up with some of that next reach!

[dave]

is it possible to buy some nice green beans of the blue mtn variety to take back to the states for later roasting? id probally also get some fire roasted but me would like to extend the fresh roasted enjoyment factor.

Thunder will be happy to sell Blu Mtn green beans
FYI- it takes about 1.25lbs of green beans for 1lb of roasted beans

[BCBud]

A wee bit off topic - but here is an article in today's paper about Marley Coffee: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/2...business4.html

I bought some Marley Coffee in Vancouver recently at London Drugs (about $15.00. for 340 grams or 12 oz) ... according to package marked "One Love, gourmet medium roast", contains 100% Ethopian Virgacheffe which was roasted in Canada, certified fairtrade organic Arabica coffee. It's good coffee, but would taste better if I was drinking it in Jamaica!

[M&G Montreal]

I have always been a bit leery of bringing anything through customs that is not properly packaged and sealed. Usually get the Jablum in the burlap bag we have always found it great!
(Also makes an excellent espresso/cappuccino!)

Any coffee pros out there about the caffeine level in Blue Mountain Coffee? Have heard it is less than regular, but anyone know how much less versus your standard Folger or Maxwell house?

I had also heard that there are 4 estates that can call themselves Blue Mountain, and 3 were dedicated to Japanese sales. Is that how it worked, or did the Japanese just pay a big price for a whole lot?

[monk]

The Coffee Industry Regulation Act specifies what coffee may use the Blue Mountain label. Additionally, it restricts the use of the Blue Mountain trademark to those authorized by the Coffee Industry Board. Broadly speaking, coffee harvested from the parishes of Saint Andrew, Saint Thomas, Portland and Saint Mary may be considered Blue Mountain coffee.
Traditionally, only coffee grown at elevations between 3,000 and 5,500 feet (1,700 m) could be called Jamaica Blue Mountain. Coffee grown at elevations between 1,500 and 3,000 feet (910 m) is called Jamaica High Mountain, and coffee grown below 1,500-foot (460 m) elevation is called Jamaica Supreme or Jamaica Low Mountain.

The reason that the coffee sold by Big Roy or Thunder is superior to the commercially available pre-packaged for tourist coffee, besides being fresh roasted, is that it is single estate, whole crop coffee. The commercial stuff is blended from numerous estates and is sorted by bean size. The largest beans, the ones with the least amount of flavor, are the ones that get packaged for commercial sale. The smaller the bean the greater the flavor.

ras hit the nail on the head- where the difference really comes in is that the small purchaser/farmer is dealing with a single source for the bean. there aren't a lot of 'estate' coffees available because of how the CIB structures their deals- so most small farmers will exchange or contract for fertilizer and supplies...meaning that the generally available commercial stuff is a mix of different farms and they all send their boxes. this isn't necessarily a bad thing, and for most people you wouldn't notice it.

I've spent quite a bit of time on coffee farms up in the blue mountains, and if you want a really good coffee experience, it's just like wines or cigars. You have to hunt out the prime spots, like the one Ras mentioned, Hagley's Gap is another great spot. Also, cocoa from the blue mountains is awesome.

There are some excellent JBM coffees available from larger estates, like Old Tavern. I will try and dig up some of my pics if anyone is interested. Lots of people mentioned some great coffee available in Negril.

You want it roasted within about 4 to 5 days of when you plan to drink it- right after roasting the coffee will do what is called degass, I've found that with many of the JBMs mentioned here it's about that time- I like to roast my own, you can get an awesome home roaster called an I-Roast that let's you program roasting curves. If anyone wants those I have a few that are great for JBM and also for African coffees.

that's why a lot of the vacuum bags have the one way valves. You want to have the coffee roasted into what is called second crack, JBM dark roasted like a starbucks roast is a waste, you might like it, but you will be killing all the things that make it distinguishable as JBM so have a care. If you can, you might want to ask to help roast it yourself, it's a great experience.

In Negril, about the best coffee I have had so far hands down is available at Sunrise Club. They have a rare Faema espresso machine that is seriously dialed in.

At home, I wouldn't put it into anything less than a French Press. 2.5 minutes, coarse ground, stir, then another 2.5 min, and plunge. See too if you can find what's called 'wet' sugar.

[Ras Walleye]

I have brought back whole suitcases full of coffee from Big Roy with no problem at all. I can't speak to the caffeine content in comparison to others but I do know that the darker the roast the less caffeine there is because it is a volatile a gets roasted off. That's why I always ask for light roast.

[monk]

and if you REALLY want to get into it, you will want to get the peaberry...