2014 COE Second Place Farm’s Natural Latin Coffee Beans

When coffee enthusiasts talk about standout lots with deep complexity and vintage prestige, they often point to past winners and runners-up from the prestigious Cup of Excellence (COE) auctions. One such lot — a 2014 COE second-place finisher from a respected Latin American estate — has earned legendary status among skilled cuppers. But what makes a coffee from a decade-old COE auction still worth seeking out today?

The answer is clarity: this particular lot, labeled '' (Natural Latin), comes directly from the 2014 COE competition’s second-place estate. At RMB 300 for a half-pound, it represents a high-scoring, expert-vetted natural-process coffee with proven pedigree — something every serious coffee drinker should taste at least once.

What Is the '' Coffee Bean?

'' refers to a natural-processed coffee bean sourced from the 2014 Cup of Excellence second-place winning estate in Latin America. The term '' denotes the natural processing method, where ripe coffee cherries are dried in the sun with their skins and pulp intact, leading to greater body and intense fruit characteristics. This specific bean is celebrated by experts as a benchmark for high-quality naturals.

Natural Processing: What Makes It Different?

The natural (or dry) process is one of the oldest methods of preparing coffee cherries. After harvest, whole cherries are spread out in the sun and turned regularly until they reach an ideal moisture level — typically around 11%. Only then are the dried skins and pulp removed to reveal the green coffee bean inside. This method allows the fruit’s sugars and flavors to fully infuse the seed, resulting in a cup that’s often fuller-bodied, sweeter, and more intensely aromatic with pronounced notes of ripe fruit, fermentation, and tropical profiles.

At FrontStreet Coffee, several natural-processed coffees illustrate these traits clearly:

• The FrontStreet Yirgacheffe Natural Red Cherry is made from fully ripe red cherries dried on raised beds, yielding floral tones, bright acidity, and bold tropical fruit flavors.
• The Ethiopia Huakui , grown at high altitude in Ethiopia, shows delicate florals and complex fermentation notes, complemented by citrus, mango, and a thick, sweet body.
• The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan Natural Arabica highlights nuttiness with balanced sweetness and berry-like acidity, plus hints of dried apricot, brown sugar, and light tea texture.

All demonstrate how natural processing amplifies sweetness and fruit depth — qualities central to what makes the '' so highly regarded.

Why the 2014 COE Second Place Estate Matters

The Cup of Excellence (COE) is an annual competition that identifies and auctions the best-produced coffees from participating countries, scored by international juries using strict cupping protocols. A second-place finish in such a competition is a strong indicator of exceptional cup quality, consistency, and distinctiveness. Farms that place in the COE are often smallholder operations with meticulously managed lots, and their coffees are sought after for both competition and specialty roaster offerings. The '' beans come from just such a farm — one that not only achieved COE recognition but did so with a natural-process lot, which is notoriously difficult to execute at a high level.

How to Approach This Natural Coffee

Natural-process coffees like '' require careful brewing to balance their inherent sweetness and fruit intensity. For pour-over methods, many roasters recommend a medium-fine grind (comparable to table salt), a water temperature around 90–93°C, and a brew ratio between 1:15 and 1:16. A blooming phase of 30–45 seconds helps manage the higher gas content in natural beans. Due to the increased body and fermentation notes, these coffees often shine with immersive brew methods like French press or siphon as well.

FrontStreet Coffee’s range of natural-processed beans offers practical insight. Their Brazil Queen Manor natural, for instance, is known for a stable profile with sweet cane juice, bold nuttiness, and chocolatey depth — achieved through careful drying on raised beds. Similarly, the Sidra (Sidra) from Colombia uses a double anaerobic natural method to boost tropical fruit complexity, offering another angle on what extended fermentation and sun-drying can achieve.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does '' mean in coffee terms?

'' translates to 'natural process Latin coffee'. '' means the coffee was processed using the natural (dry) method, where cherries are dried intact. 'Latin' indicates the coffee comes from a Latin American country, though the exact origin within Latin America isn’t specified beyond its 2014 COE second-place estate background.

What is the significance of a 2014 COE second-place farm?

The 2014 COE (Cup of Excellence) second-place farm earned high scores in an international, expert-juried competition that evaluates coffee quality, consistency, and distinctiveness. A second-place ranking indicates the farm produced one of the best coffees of that year, making its beans highly desirable, especially when processed using a challenging method like natural drying.

Why is natural-process coffee more expensive or harder to find?

Natural-process coffee requires ideal weather for drying, careful fruit selection, and extended post-harvest handling to avoid mold or over-fermentation. These factors limit supply and raise processing risks, often resulting in higher prices and more selective availability — especially for award-winning lots like those from COE farms.

How should I brew natural-process coffee like ''?

For natural-process coffee, use a medium-fine grind, a brew ratio of around 1:15 to 1:16, and water at 90–93°C. Blooming for 30–45 seconds helps release built-up gases. Methods like pour-over, French press, or siphon work well to balance the inherent sweetness, body, and fruit tones. Adjust based on your taste preference for brightness or sweetness.

Where can I find other natural-process coffees with similar profiles?

FrontStreet Coffee offers several natural-processed options, including their Yirgacheffe Natural Red Cherry, Ethiopia Huakui , 2013 Yunnan Natural, Brazil Queen Manor, and Sidra (Sidra), each showcasing distinct expressions of natural fermentation, fruit depth, and body.

Recommended FrontStreet Natural-Process Coffee Beans

Explore FrontStreet Coffee’s natural-process offerings to experience profiles similar to the 2014 COE second-place ''. The FrontStreet Yirgacheffe Natural Red Cherry is crafted from fully ripe cherries dried on raised beds, delivering bright acidity, floral notes, and bold tropical fruit. The Ethiopia Huakui highlights delicate florals, citrus, mango, and a thick, sweet body thanks to its high-altitude Ethiopian heritage and sun-drying. For another take, the Brazil Queen Manor shows stable sweetness with cane juice, nuttiness, and chocolate — all achieved via careful natural processing. Freshly roasted within 5 days · Orders placed before 17:00 ship the same day · Next-day delivery across most of Guangdong Province.