Where Does Bustelo Coffee Beans Come From: Its Origin & Process of Beans
Do you want to know Where Does Bustelo Coffee Beans Come From? Bustelo coffee beans were introduced to the Cuban market in 2009. The company has been exporting its beans to other markets outside of Cuba.
In April of 2013, Bustelo entered into a partnership with Nectar Coffee to distribute their coffee.
Bustelo is made from Arabica and Robusta, considered near-transparent and bright-yellow as it grows on its branches.
Arabica is the highest quality coffee, classified as the best and most prosperous in flavour, aroma and taste.
Robusta is considered a lower-quality coffee that lacks many of Arabica’s fine qualities. The low-quality Robusta beans are used to make a more potent brew. The Robusta helps create a bolder cup of coffee with more caffeine content.
Bustelo coffee beans were first imported from Cuba to New Orleans in 1878. The owner of the business, Mr Edouard Laboulaye, was born in France but moved to Cuba with his wife after she died.
He was most likely seeking refuge from his homeland with the communistic unrest that followed the Franco-Prussian War.
He brought Cuban seeds to New Orleans and produced coffee there for many years before passing away in 1910.
After his death, the coffee beans from which Bustelo coffee beans originated were lost as the coffee business was moved out of New Orleans due to flooding.
In 2011, Nectar Coffee entered into a partnership with Bustelo to distribute and sell their coffee. Nectar is located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and has been around since the early 1900s.
Their most well-known brand is Blue Mountain Coffee because it comes from Kona, Hawaii. It is also one of the most expensive coffees available in the country. They also import and distribute coffee from other countries as well.
Where Does Bustelo Coffee Beans Come From: First know Bustelo Coffee Beans Origin
As is stated above, Bustelo coffee beans were first imported to New Orleans from Cuba in 1878. The locals enjoyed them and created a buzz throughout the area.
In 1885 Laboulaye’s son-in-law began to market their beans for sale in stores around New Orleans under Bustelo Coffee Company.
Around that time, Laboulaye’s son-in-law began selling his beans outside of the city, including to hotels and restaurants.
Around 1900 his father-in-law died, and the company passed onto the next generation. By 1915 Nectar Coffee was born as local grocery stores distributed it in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and through mail order.
Selling outside of Louisiana is another story for Nectar as it is not allowed without a license from the state. It is important to note that 10% of the beans produced go towards premium coffee shops, many in New Orleans.
What Makes Bustelo Coffee Beans Special?
What makes Bustelo coffee beans so special is that 80% of their beans come from Kona, Hawaii. From this place in the Hawaiian Islands, Captain James Cook first introduced coffee plants in 1773.
Nowadays, Hawaii produces approximately 40% of all world coffee production. They make Arabica beans, considered the best kind of coffee globally.
Arabica has a smooth, soft, and sweet taste instead of Robusta beans, which are known for being bitter when brewed.
Bustelo roasts their coffee at a temperature of 500-550 degrees Fahrenheit, which seems to be very high compared to other roasting companies that roast at much lower temperatures.
They roast their beans using the process of conching which breaks down the bean’s outer shell and releases more flavours into the final product.
Where Does Bustelo Coffee Beans Come From?
Bustelo coffee beans are created by more than 35 million small growers worldwide. The company currently buys produce from over 12,000 growers across the globe.
They buy their Arabica Saudi beans from Colombia, Costa Rica, Ethiopia, and Peru, and their Robusta Cafe San Jose beans from Nicaragua.
Arabica beans come from mountainous regions with rich soil and adequate rainfall. These regions are located between 2500 and 1800 meters above sea level. As for Robusta, beans grow in lower areas at around 800 to 2100 meters above sea level.
How Are Bustelo Coffee Beans Processed?
The first step in the Bustelo Coffee Beans Process is to harvest and remove any blemished or unripened fruit from the tree.
The harvest season is November through March, but it all depends on the location of the plantations. They are then processed during the dry season into cherry form, after which they are taken to processing facilities.
After being harvested, the coffee fruit is sorted by hand into pulp beans and skin beans. First, the pulp is removed, they are dried in the sun for between 15 – 20 days before transporting to a milling facility.
Next, the skin beans are taken to the milling facility, ground into powder for further processing.
What makes Bustelo coffee beans special is their colouring. The beans are processed at different times, depending on their region.
It can mean that the beans’ colour may vary, so Cape Cod coffee doesn’t ultimately have the same taste as Hawaii coffee.
When beans are finished harvesting, they can be seen green, but this changes into yellow when it reaches maturity and fermentation begins.
The beans are blended during the grinding process to remove any remaining moisture before being ground.
Bustelo makes sure that their beans are processed and cleaned because they don't accept damaged products.
Then the beans are dried further after being ground. Once ready for sale, its quality is determined, packaged in boxes that vary depending on the region of origin, and shipped out for distribution.
The Takeaway on Where Does Bustelo Coffee Beans Come From
Now that you know more about Bustelo Coffee Beans Origin and Bustelo Coffee Beans Process, we hope you’ll want to give them a try. You can order them online or available at various grocery stores.
There is nothing like enjoying a great cup of coffee, and the flavour of Bustelo coffee beans makes it that much better!
