Coffee Basics 101

Millions of people worldwide drink coffee every day, but very few would be able to identify a coffee plant in the wild. Coffee beans are cultivated in over 80 countries, primarily within Central and South America, the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia. Unless you live within one of these countries, you have likely never seen a coffee plant up close. Coffee beans picked directly from a coffee plant completely differ from what is found in the stores. Although coffee beans are grown in various locations, only the best quality coffee beans survive the selection process at Lavie Coffee.

The Infamous Coffee Plant

When people refer to a coffee “plant,” they are talking about a 5 – 8 ft tall evergreen. Coffee beans do not lose their leaves during the year, and they can grow as either a tree or a bush, depending on how they are cultivated. Coffee beans grow as the seeds within a coffee “cherry”. This cherry-like fruit usually has 2 – 3 coffee beans within it. When the coffee beans are extracted from the pod, they are green and have a different flavor than when fully roasted.

Green coffee beans can be used to brew coffee, but the flavor will be grassy and taste like weak coffee. The flavor in a coffee bean is determined by how long they are allowed to ripen on the tree. Each coffee tree and bean type has its ideal maturity and harvesting time. Lavie Coffee only partners with coffee bean cultivators who are sure to pick the highest quality beans. Some cultivators pick coffee beans that are either not ripe enough or past their prime. Lavie Coffee would never allow these beans within our roasts.

Coffee growers must be very patient because the overall process from when a coffee plant flowers to when beans are harvested is approximately 9 months. During this harvest process, not all the coffee beans ripen simultaneously. Coffee beans must be harvested as they each individually ripen. A quality coffee farmer will be harvesting 100 – 200 pounds of coffee beans daily.

LaVie Coffee only uses the highest quality coffee beans in our roasts. We partner with coffee farmers who go the extra mile to ensure that their coffee beans are picked at the pinnacle of ripeness. Please view our full selection of high-quality coffee beans at Lavie Coffee.