If you are one of those who wake up every morning and the first thing you think about is a delicious cup of coffee to finish waking up, maybe you should ask yourself these questions: is your coffee of good quality? It tastes good to you, but is it good for your health? Where is it from? It is medium or dark roasted and why? Well, there is a lot you need to know if you would like to drink a good quality coffee.  At Montaneros coffee, we focus on quality and that is why our coffee will offer you an experience that you will surely not forget.

The first thing you should know is that, we are a Colombian coffee company, our beans are selected and processed with high standards to comply with the quality regulations required by the national federation of Colombian coffee growers for exporters. In addition, our Colombian coffee growers strive to give us the best of their crops so that you, our final consumer, can enjoy the best. On the other hand, our coffees are high altitude coffees, which means greater quality and flavor!

But what does specialty coffee mean?

In order for a coffee to be considered a specialty coffee, it must meet several requirements. Here are some of them:

1. Single origin coffee: this means that the coffee is from a single batch, no mixtures of batches or coffees from other regions are made.
2. Bean size: for the coffee to be suitable for being special, it must meet a minimum size, this is 17 and 18.
3. Number of defective beans: must not be greater than 5 defects.
4. Score on the SCAA: the coffee must have a minimum score above 80 points.
5. 
   Preparation methods: There are different techniques to prepare specialty coffee, some of the most popular are the French Press, V 60 or Italian moka pot. But logically there are other more special methods such as the Japanese syphon or the Chemex. It all depends on the coffee enthusiast.
6. Roasting: in order to appreciate the natural notes that each variety offers, it is necessary to roast the coffee as a medium roast.
7. Grinding: depending on the method of preparation you have (French press, v60, Chemex, etc) it should be the grinding of the coffee. This in order that the extraction of the coffee is carried out successfully and the natural oils and flavors that the coffee has can be felt.

But, where to start if I have no experience in specialty coffees?

Do not worry, at Montaneros coffee we will be by your side guiding you throughout the process so that your learning and experience are successful.

The first thing you should identify is which varietal best suits your style. For example, the Caturra varietal is generally a little sweeter than the castle varietal, since in Caturra we have caramel notes.

After you decide the varietal you want to try, the next step will be to choose the preparation method that is most convenient for you. From personal experience we recommend the French press as it is easy to use and does not require much technique when preparing the drink. However, whatever your decision, we will be attentive to support you and give you tips so that your experience is successful.

It's time to start practicing!

 After you've decided which technique you want to use to prepare your coffee, it's time to start practicing!

We all have different tastes and when it comes to drinking coffee much more. Some of us prefer to add sugar, others cream or milk and there are even people who add cinnamon. It is important that you understand that it is very likely that on your first try the coffee will not turn out as you expected, don't worry, it has happened to all of us! The important thing is to understand what could have happened and for this, here are some tips:

• Never put boiling or lukewarm water. the ideal temperature is between 195°F and 205°F (90 ℃ – 95 ℃).

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It is very important that the water is at the correct temperature, otherwise the coffee could burn (very hot water) or it could be watered down because there was no extraction (warm water). Here we leave you a trick: if the water boiled, let it rest for two minutes before preparing the coffee. If the water has not yet boiled, look at the little bubbles that are made at the bottom, when you see that those bubbles are about to rise, that will be the correct temperature of the water. Also, try to use filtered water to give your drink better flavor.

2. Leave the coffee in contact with the water long enough, but not more than that time. If you are using the French press, the time the coffee should be in contact with the water should not exceed 4 minutes. This is so that the coffee is not over-extracted and there is excess caffeine that will ruin the flavor.

All set, start enjoying your drink!

We are very happy that you have taken the first step and want to transform the way you drink coffee.

We hope that this experience will be very exciting for you, as it is for us! If you have questions, we are at your disposal to help you.