Just as in real estate, evaluating coffee is all about understanding its unique characteristics—body, aroma, flavor, and taste. Much like a home’s architecture, neighborhood, and natural light shape its appeal, a coffee’s terroir, bean variety, and roasting profile define its personality. As a real estate agent, I appreciate the nuances that make a home special, just as I savor the bright, citrusy notes of a well-crafted Ethiopian light-medium roast. My favorite coffee shops in Santa Monica are: Caffe Luxxe, LA LA Land Kind Cafe, Primo Passo Coffee and Sogno Toscano Cafe.
Acidity plays a crucial role in coffee, just as location does in real estate. Too little, and the experience falls flat—whether it's a lackluster cup or a property that lacks charm. Ethiopian coffee, with its lively acidity and blueberry-toned aroma, is my go-to choice, offering the perfect balance of brightness and complexity—much like the perfect home that effortlessly blends character and modern comfort.
The coffee industry mirrors the wine world in many ways. Tasting coffee, or "cupping," is an art much like assessing a property. Just as buyers evaluate curb appeal, natural flow, and design details, coffee professionals swirl, sniff, and slurp to uncover the depth of a coffee’s profile. Some even use sterling silver spoons—reminiscent of a sommelier’s tastevin—to gauge temperature and taste nuances.
Blind tasting ensures objectivity, allowing coffee to be judged on its own merits, much like an experienced real estate agent views a property beyond surface impressions. Whether I’m helping clients find their dream home or sipping my morning Ethiopian roast, it’s all about recognizing and appreciating quality in every detail.
The Taste of Coffee and Countries of Origin
When evaluating coffee, one should judge body, aroma, flavor, and taste. Just as in wine, acidity is a key ingredient in coffee: low acid levels tend to make coffee taste flat and uninteresting. In fact, the coffee trade imitates many of the wine trade’s more successful conventions; coffee enthusiasts now speak about terroir, the origin of beans, varieties of coffee, and the impact that all of the above have on the cup. Coffee professionals engage in “cupping,” in which the aroma, taste and flavor profiles of many different coffees are evaluated at once—like wine professionals, the great coffee tasters swirl, sniff, slurp, and, yes, even spit the coffee as they progress. Old-fashioned coffee men may even wield a sterling silver spoon (silver absorbs heat) as a cupping instrument—a tool not dissimilar from the old sommelier’s tastevin. Tasters often cup coffees blind, and the widespread use of blind tasting as a means of objective criticism by coffee professionals stands in stark contrast to the arguments of certain wine professionals, who believe that the technique robs wines of context. In fact, it assures it, as the coffee industry is well aware.
Following is a brief profile of each of the major countries of origin one might encounter in a specialty coffee shop.
- Brazil: Brazil has been the world’s largest producer of coffee beans since the late 19th century. Fazendas (coffee plantations) cover approximately 10,000 sq. miles, and are grouped primarily in the states of Minas Gerais, Espírito Santo, São Paulo and Paraná. Whereas São Paulo and Paraná led production in the past, Minas Gerais now accounts for nearly 50% of the country’s production, and is exclusively dedicated to Arabica. North of Rio de Janeiro, Espírito Santo is the second largest producing state, but coffee farmers in the region typically grow Robusta for domestic consumption. Brazil wields enormous influence in the global trade of coffee, and the ebb and flow of its annual production has a great impact on the boom and bust cycle endemic to the coffee trade. Brazil is one of the few coffee producing countries that encounters frosts, which are deadly for the coffee tree. The 1975 Black Frost entirely wiped out Paraná’s coffee farms, triggering spikes in worldwide coffee prices that lasted for nearly two years. Traditionally, plantation workers in Brazil—first slaves, then poor European immigrants known as colonos—farm coffee without the benefit of shade trees. Dry processing is commonplace, although estates in Paraná today enjoy success with pulped natural processing. Despite the preponderance of Arabica, much of the coffee produced in Brazil is low-grade, grown at low altitudes, and characterized by low acidity. However, the natural sweetness and nuttiness of Brazilian coffee makes it a suitable candidate for espresso, and its body and richness complement the higher acidities of Central American coffees in a blend. The regions to watch for good Brazilian coffee are Sul de Minas, Cerrado de Minas, and Matas de Minas in the state of Minas Gerais; and Mogiana in the state of São Paulo.
- Colombia: Colombia is the world’s third largest coffee-producing country, and the nation has been synonymous with quality coffee in America since the debut of the famous Juan Valdez advertisements in 1960. Due to its equatorial location, Colombia experiences two harvests each year. Colombian coffee enjoys PDO status within EU member states. Unlike Brazil, smaller mountainside fincas produce the bulk of Colombian coffee, and the coffees are typically washed, rather than dry processed. Colombian coffees have a reputation for mildness, balance, and clean flavors; however, they can be neutral, overly uniform, and unexciting. All Colombian coffee is Arabica. Colombian coffee beans are often graded and labeled by size; thus, Excelso and Supremo indicate smaller and larger beans, respectively, and do not necessarily indicate a level of quality. High-altitude coffees grown in the southern regions of Nariño and Huila can be of exemplary quality.
- Costa Rica: Costa Rica, for many tasters, embodies the notion of balance. The coffees are sweet, fruity, and bright without being too acidic; and the country’s coffee generally retains even flavors as it cools. Some criticize Costa Rica’s balance as a lack of articulation, suggesting that its mildness may be uninteresting. Most growers plant Caturra, a cultivar developed from Bourbon cuttings in Brazil, and subject their beans to wet processing. Historically, Costa Rican coffee farms have been small and family-owned; however, many growers could not afford the machinery to process their own beans in such small-scale operations. Instead, they sent their beans to large beneficios, or coffee processors, who washed and dried the beans, shipping them under the umbrella of large brands. Today, the best sources for quality coffee are micro-mills: small farms that grow, process, and sell their own coffees. Tarrazu is Costa Rica’s most famous growing region.
- Guatemala: Coffee gradually replaced cochineal dye as Guatemala’s chief export in the latter 19th century. Just as farmers relegated the vine to the riverside slopes in Germany, so did the coffee tree migrate to Guatemala’s steeper mountainsides, areas locals considered worthless for other types of agriculture. The story of Guatemala is one of violent politics, and both coffee farmer and plantation owner have been swept up in the bloodshed of years past. Large fincas produce the majority of Guatemalan coffee, but the Guatemalan government does impose a minimum wage for coffee pickers, who are notoriously underpaid worldwide. At their best, Guatemalan coffees represent some of the most celebrated and complex single origin coffees available to US consumers. Smoky, creamy, chocolaty notes and bright acidity characterize the Guatemalan product. Bourbon is the standard variety, and beans are usually washed. Volcanic soils and hillside terraces are prevalent in Antigua and Cobán, Guatemala’s best regions for coffee. Workers must harvest the crop by hand.
- Other Countries of Central America: Honduran coffees are a relatively recent entry into the specialty coffee world, offering tropical, fruity flavors. El Salvador produces robust and full-bodied coffees, and Nicaraguan coffees can be extraordinarily versatile. It is difficult to generalize about Central American coffees as each country, as well as each individual growing region, offers a range of styles. One exceptional producer is Hacienda La Esmeralda in Panama. The farm produces Gesha, a variety of Arabica, and sells the beans for nearly $40/pound at auction. Tim Wendelboe, 2004 World Barista Champion and 2005 World Cup Tasting Champion, is a frequent purchaser at auction, describing the coffee as “one of the best I have ever tasted (with)…structured and elegant acidity, aromas of jasmine, bergamot, and citrus, and sweetness reminiscent of acacia honey.” In form, his description recalls Vouvray.
- Mexico: Mexico has recently emerged as a seller of specialty coffees, yet the country as a whole still struggles to produce a great crop. Good Mexican coffees are nutty and light-bodied. The states of Oaxaca and Chiapas, near the Guatemalan border, contain traditional coffee growing areas. In Mexico, Altura indicates mountain-grown coffees and suggests—but does not promise—superior quality.
- Caribbean: One can broadly characterize Caribbean coffees as soft, sweet, light and mild. One of the most famous coffees of the Caribbean is the rare and expensive Jamaican Blue Mountain, which can be stellar but is more frequently disappointing. Caribbean coffees are usually washed and grown at low altitudes. Hawaiian coffee is similar in style to Caribbean coffee.
- Kenya: Kenya is an outstanding source for washed Arabica, grown at elevations in excess of 4000 ft. near Mt. Kenya. The Kenyan coffee industry is thoroughly modern, and it enjoys substantial support for the Kenyan government. Kenyan coffee beans receive a grade according to size: from largest to smallest, they are lettered E, AA, AB, PB, C, E, TT, and T. PB indicates peaberries, and MB and ML indicate unwashed, low quality Mbuni coffees. Kenyan AA usually fetches the highest prices, and tasters complement the resulting coffees for their electric acidity, fruit and floral character.
- Ethiopia: As the birthplace of coffee, Ethiopia offers a wide variety of high quality Arabica coffees. From full-bodied, spicy and vinous dry-processed coffees to elegant, clean and citrusy washed examples, Ethiopian Arabica varies greatly from one farm to the next, and it can frustrate consumers with its inconsistency. Expertise is essential in selecting Ethiopian coffees. The major states of production are Sidamo and Harar. Roasters pay a premium for good washed coffees from the highlands of Yirga Cheffe, a subregion within Sidamo; and for the gamy, blueberry-toned, dry-processed Harar Mocha, a prized variety of Arabica.
- Indonesia: Indonesia includes the coffee producing islands of Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi (Celebes), Bali, and Timor, as well as the neighboring Papua New Guinea. Production is split between Robusta and Arabica. Coffees from the Indonesian islands are typically robust, full-bodied, earthy, and spicy; but they often lack acidity. Sumatra has eclipsed Java as the current source of Indonesia’s best coffees, but Sulawesi coffees may be more consistent. Indonesian coffees are usually semi-washed, and roasters have a tendency to veer toward the darker end of the spectrum with beans from the islands. One Indonesian coffee that should probably undergo a good amount of washing is the famed and incredibly expensive kopi luwak, a bean that is roasted for coffee only after it emerges from the other end of a civet cat’s digestive tract.
- India: Indian coffee is broadly similar to Indonesian coffees, displaying full body, lower acidity and spiced, rustic aromas; like Indonesia, there is a large amount of Robusta on India’s coffee farms. Traditional coffee growing areas include the state of Karnataka, formerly called Mysore. Source: GuildSomm.
Contact Alena Lehrer, Compass Luxury Real Estate Specialist to learn more.
