Reference Index of Coffee Bean grading Coffee Bean selection Kit

In fact, at present, there is no unified classification in the coffee industry, and each producing country is divided into its own levels. For example, Brazil sets No. 2 as the highest level and Jamaica sets No. 1 as the highest level.

Personally, because people have different preferences and tastes, grading does not fully represent the flavor of coffee, it is more about the quality of coffee, so coffee grade is not very important to me. I don't think you know good coffee until you taste it. Moreover, domestic coffee shops usually do not mark the grade, can only see Colombia coffee, mantenin coffee, Kenya coffee, etc., but do not see the grade. Therefore, taste was the absolute truth.

In general, however, the following three indicators can be used for grading:

(1)The size of coffee beans

Some people say that the size of the beans does not affect the flavor of coffee, like the Mattari of Yemen, although the particles of the beans are large and small, it is still the top of the coffee. However, in many production areas, the size of coffee beans is indeed a valuable indicator.

This classification is commonly used in Kenya, New Guinea, Puerto Rico, Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Uganda. In addition, many Brazilian coffees also use this classification method.

(2)Number of defective beans

This is the earliest classification method and is still used in many parts of Brazil. The method of identification is to randomly select 300 g samples, identify defective beans in the samples, and accumulate different scores according to the types of defects. After the evaluation, the grade is Gr2 to Gr8 according to the accumulated defect score, but there is no Gr1. If you want to buy first-class Brazilian beans, it will be a joke.

Image: defective coffee beans

Indonesian and Ethiopian coffee beans are graded in this way. The main classification of Indonesian beans is 6 grades: Gr1 ~ Gr6. In Ethiopia, there are 5 grades, among which Gr1 ~ Gr2 are reserved for washed beans, Gr1 represents 0~3 defective beans per 300g of raw beans, Gr2 represents 4~12 defective beans per 300g of raw beans, and the quality of sun-dried beans is Gr3, Gr4 or Gr5 in sequence.

(3)The origin of coffee beans

Coffee beans are processed from the fruit of the coffee tree, which grows between 25 degrees north and south of the equator (as shown in the figure below), that is, tropical and subtropical regions.

At present, there are more than 60 coffee producing countries, which are distributed in South America, Central America, West Indies, Asia, Africa, Arabia, South Pacific and Oceania.

Photo: Coffee producing countries worldwide

The best quality coffee beans in the world are produced in Indonesia and Colombia. In terms of output, Brazil ranks first in the world, accounting for about 30%, followed by Central and South America centered on Colombia, Africa and Arabia, and the remaining 10% distributed in Asia and islands.

In addition, Guatemala, Costa Rica and El Salvador, Central American countries, are located in the rolling mountains. The farms in the territory are located in mountainous areas with different heights, so it is also possible to distinguish the quality of coffee by the height of origin.

(4)Coffee beans old and new

New coffee is called "new beans", referring to the green beans harvested that year. Green coffee beans produced the previous year are called "old beans." The beans harvested a few years earlier are called "old beans". Only the new beans produced in that year are high-grade products, because the taste and aroma of the new beans are relatively strong.

Comparison of Old and New Coffee Beans