Single-origin coffee is

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulant, stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. S ...

grown within a single known geographic origin. Single-origins can offer unique characteristics and specific tastes when compared to blended coffees from multiple origins. Coffee shops can market single-origin coffees specifically to add symbolic value to the coffee by highlighting the producer or the coffee's unique origin. Consumers of

specialty coffee Specialty coffee is a term for the highest grade of coffee available, typically relating to the entire supply chain, using single origin or single estate coffee. The term was first used in 1974 by Erna Knutsen in an issue of ''Tea & Coffee Trade Jo ...

are often attracted to single-origin coffee for the transparency it often attempts to convey. There are no universal rules or governing body enforcing the labeling of coffee. However, there are governmental bodies in some countries that regulate the coffee market, for example in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. While it is still difficult to accurately authenticate a given coffee's origin, recent genomic research indicates that it is possible to identify a DNA-fingerprint of coffee trees. This technique may eventually allow buyers of un-roasted, green coffee, to authenticate a single-origin coffee. This would improve the transparency and traceability of coffee.

Terminology

Single-origin coffees may come from a single farm, multiple farms from the same country, or just a blend of the coffees grown from that country. It could also mean an entire country which produces a wide

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

of beans, such as

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

, and

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. Estate coffees are a specific type of single-origin coffee. They are generally grown on one massive farm, which might range in size from a few acres to large plantations occupying many square miles, or a collection of farms which all process their coffee at the same mill. Many countries in South and Central America have estate coffee farms, countries such as

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

, and

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, have many estate farms.

Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain. As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 c ...

owns a large majority of coffee farms in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, combining many small farms together to form one giant cooperative farm. Micro-lot or small-lot coffees are another type of specific single-origin coffee from a single field on a farm, a small range of altitude, and specific day of harvest. Many micro-lots are used for growing specialty coffee, which is some of the highest quality coffee offered on the market, which can range in prices.

References

{{Coffee Specialty coffees Hipster (contemporary subculture)

Terminology

See also

References