Wine aficionados may have their grapes and their vineyards to visit, but if you are a coffee fan, there is an equally wide world out there for you to explore. Different coffee beans create very different kinds of coffee, much like different grapes create different kinds of wine. You could travel the world tasting coffee and never have the same cup twice.
Around the World in Several Cups of Coffee
If you are a bona fide coffee fanatic, grab your passport and head out for a tour of the best coffee beans in the world. This coffee is so great you won't even get that "too much caffeine" buzz. I recently went out and bought a saeco espresso maker and along the way learned a lot about different coffees.
Columbian coffee is world renowned, and for very good reason. Consider the La Esperanza bean from the region of Tolima, for starters. This coffee bean grows at an elevation of around 6,000 feet, and this growing environment can be tasted in your cup. Rich and bold tasting, with the essence of chocolate, cherries, and even tobacco, this coffee is a taste sensation that does not require half and half to be enjoyed.
Columbia is the world's second highest producer of coffee and they have more to offer than the heady heights of La Esperanza. Columbian Supremo coffee, one of the most popular kinds of coffee in the world, is like dessert in a steaming cup. The tones of chocolate and vanilla that are in this coffee make it fan favorite with the sweet tooth crowd.
Head across to Hawaii, where you will find world famous Kona coffee in two kinds of roasts - medium and dark. The dark Kona has a very light level of acidity, but the medium has it in spades. Although tougher to find, the Kona espresso roast is a treat if you can get it, with its barely there acid taste and rich chocolates undertones.
Hope on a plane to Africa to add some Tanzanian Peaberry to your palate. This coffee grows on the south side of the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Peaberries coffee beans have a very distinct shape; unlike most beans which are round, Peaberries are oval in shape. The consequence of this unique growing environment and different bean shape is that the coffee is light and slightly more acidic than Kona and Columbian varieties.
For another light cup of coffee, head further east to Indonesia - Sumatra to be exact. In the Lake Toba region of Sumatra, you will find coffee beans that are so light and floral that they are almost like a cup of tea. These beans are meaningful for people who like a subtle, light tasting cup of coffee.
These coffee hot spots are only a few of the great places all over the world to get a good cup of joe. A visit to a coffee specialist retailer will let you taste even more of what the world has to offer.
