Blue Mountain Coffee – Does it Deserve the High Price Tag?
Written by Author on February 3rd, 2009Jamaica is renowned for many things, sandy beaches, Bob Marley, reggae music as well as coffee. The high regard for Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee among keen coffee drinkers has sent its price up to between $46 and $60 a pound. What is it about this particular joe that warrants such a price tag?
Yes – the name is a dead giveaway – Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is grown in the Blue Mountain area of Jamaica, generally located between Kingston to the south and Port Maria to the north. Reaching a height of 7,500 feet, the Blue Mountains are the highest part of the Caribbean. The area is characterized by cool, wet weather and rich, dark earth with excellent drainage, ideal conditions for producing coffee. Though coffee is not native to Jamaica, it’s the chief export of the island.
Not any old cup of coffee can call itself Jamaican Blue Mountain. Jamaica’s Coffee Industry Board must certify every bag of coffe beans to make sure only the highest quality beans carry the prestigious trademark. The Board only certifies beans grown in specific Jamaican parishes: St Mary, Portland, St Andrew and St Thomas.
The geographical area that produces Jamaican blue mountain coffee is fairly small and can only manufacture so much coffee. The limited quantity, the matchless quality resulting from painstaking cultivation methods, the alluring aroma and the renowned name of Jamaican Blue Mountain have undoubtedly contributed to its reputation as one of the most desired coffees in the world – more so than columbian coffee, or French roast coffee, for instance. As long as hardcore coffee lovers continue to covet it, it will be also one of the more costly.
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