Bolivia Coffee Overview

Bolivian Coffee Attributes

Great Bolivia coffees are delicate, bright and aromatically sweet, the classic “clean cup.” They have subtle fruit notes, like pear, appleApple-like flavors in coffee can take on many different forms. The more common ones we use relate to malic acid brightness, which can recall different apple types: green…, apricot, tangerine and lemon. They can develop roast flavors that are malty, chocolatey, nutty (almond and hazelnut, not the off notes of peanut shells), with caramel or honey sweetness. 

The best flavors really emerge as the cup cools and do not diminish but grow in intensityWe have a simple scale to rate intensity in our coffee reviews, from Mild to Bold. Low intensity does not mean low quality!: We have a simple scale…. Bolivia does indeed have all the ingredients to produce great coffee, especially in terms of altitude (plenty of that!) and seedstock: the plants are almost all traditional TypicaA coffee cultivar; a cross between Typica and Bourbon, originally grown in Brazil: Mundo Novo is a commercial coffee cultivar; a natural hybrid between “Sumatra” and Red Bourbon,… varietal, with some CaturraCatimor is a broad group of cultivars derived from a Hibrido de Timor (HdT) and Caturra cross, highly productive, sometimes with inferior cup flavor. The main issue is…. 

Much of the production is from traditional organicGrown without the use of artificial fertilizers, herbicides, etc.: Organic coffee has been grown according to organic farming techniques, typically without the use of artificial fertilizers. Some farms… farming practices, with a lot of the co-ops certified Organic and Fair TradeFair trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach to empowering developing country producers and promoting sustainability.: Fair trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach… as well.

Quality Issues

There are some quality issues that are being addressed with assistance from USAID, inspired largely by the attempt to limit coca production in the Andes This is expressed through direct farmer assistance. 

One problem is that the coffee was formerly sent from the main growing regions, the Yungas (a vast fertile region on the east-facing slopes of the Cordillera Occidental – the Western range) including the Caranavi region, to La Paz for processingThe removal of the cherry and parchment from the coffee seed.: Coffee is either wet-processed (also called washed or wet-milled) or dry-processed (also called wild, natural or natural…. La Paz is the highest national capital on Earth, at a whopping 12,500 feet. 

The coffee was sent up the treacherous road when it was pulped, fermented and washed, but not fully dried. The combination of coffee that was moist enough to keep fermenting, plus frigid and dry atmosphere at a high altitude, dealt a “one-two punch” to the coffee chemistry, and weird flavors resulted. 

But now the co-ops are starting to process their coffee themselves, gaining more control over quality, providing more jobs in the community, and sending the coffee over the mountains only when it is in a physically stable condition. These are the nuts and bolts of how a coffee is transformed from an underpriced, underachiever to a recognized name in the market, a distinct originIn coffee talk, it refers to a coffee-producing region or country; such as, “I was just at origin.” Of course “Origin” for most product we use is not…, a unique cup character at full bloom.