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What are the characteristics of Colombia coffee and how to grade it

Published: 2026-08-06 Author:

Last Updated: 2026/08/06, South America is a continent with many volcanoes in the world, but it also has multiple plateaus, hills and mountains. It is rich in forest resources. Forests account for more than 50% of the total area. It also has many rivers. It can be said that natural resources are very rich. Therefore, the continent has developed agriculture, especially cash crops such as coffee, which are found in many countries on the continent.

South America is a continent with many volcanoes in the world, but it also has many plateaus, hills and mountains. It is rich in forest resources, accounting for more than 50% of the total area, and has many rivers. It can be said that it is very rich in natural resources. As a result, agriculture in the continent is well developed, especially cash crops such as coffee, which are grown in many countries in the continent, of which Brazil ranks first in coffee production in the world, while Colombia produces the third in the world.

Colombia has such a high yield, thanks to Colombia's unique climate. Colombia is located in the tropics, with a tropical rain forest climate on the eastern plain and the Pacific coast, a subtropical climate in the mountains of 1000-2000 meters above sea level, and a savanna climate in the northwest. Due to the diverse climate provided by the mountains, Colombia is harvested all year round, and coffee ripens in different periods.

Of course, Colombia also produces a lot of high-quality coffee beans, which are run north-south by three Codiera mountains in western Colombia, extending to the Andes, with an average elevation of more than 3000 meters, and the mountains are full of volcanoes. Volcanic ash gives fertile soil, and coffee is grown along the highlands of these mountains, with diverse climates, high-altitude mountains, and fertile volcanic soil. Provide an ideal growth environment for coffee growth.

Colombia has as many as 15 coffee producing areas, divided by provinces, of which the main coffee producing areas are Cauca, Santander, Antioquia, Narino, Tolima and Huila.

Of these coffee producing areas, the best known is Huilan province (also known as Uylla, Huila), whose name comes from the nearby Huilan volcano, which is the highest volcano in Colombia. Located in southwestern Colombia, the region is protected from cold winds in the valley between the Eastern and Central Cordillera Mountains, but it also has cool mountain winds that make the climate mild. In addition, it is rich in water resources, Rain Water is abundant, and has the Magdalena River, the largest river in Colombia, where coffee is grown on hillsides above 1500 meters above sea level on both sides of the valley.

Huilan area has a high altitude, a suitable climate, and is surrounded by mountains, which is not easily affected by bad weather. The soil here is rich in volcanic ash, plenty of sunshine and rich in water resources, which makes the coffee produced here good and stable. Therefore, there are many well-known coffee farms in Huilan area, such as El Diviso and El Rorble, etc.

In Colombia, raw coffee beans are graded based on their defect rate and bean size, and raw coffee beans of Colombian export grade are marked with "Excelso" on the package. Excelso grade coffee needs to be more than 14 mesh in size, and no more than 5% of raw beans are between 12 mesh and 14 mesh. Overall, 50% of raw coffee beans must be larger than 15 mesh. No live insects, uniform color, no smell. The moisture content should not exceed 12.5%. In addition, 500 grams of raw coffee bean samples will be used for defect classification, and the cumulative defect shall not exceed the limit of 24 full defects.

The Qianjie coffee rations bean series also includes coffee beans from Huilan, a well-known producing area of Colombia, which is selected in Kaddura and is washed with dark chocolate, nut and caramel flavor.

Qianjie Coffee believes that Colombia is the third largest exporter of coffee, mainly exporting Arabica varieties, overall balance and production ambassador Colombian coffee is common in blending, although it is in South America with Brazil, but not as strong as Brazilian coffee. Colombian coffee has a chocolate flavor, with a little acidity, and has a more refreshing silky taste, can show the unique regional flavor of Colombia.

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