Many people who are new to specialty coffee will encounter a question: What is the difference between single-origin beans and blended beans? Which one should you choose for daily drinking? In fact, there is no difference between the two, they just have different positioning and uses. If you understand their differences, you won’t have to worry about choosing beans.
What are single origin beans
Single origin beans are coffee beans that come from a single origin, a single estate, or a single processing batch. Its core value lies in the "flavor of origin" - you can drink the unique terroir characteristics of this production area through a cup of single-origin beans. For example, the floral citrus from Yirgacheffe in Ethiopia, the sour cherry tomatoes from Kenya, and the herbal dark chocolate from Mandheling in Indonesia are all natural marks given by the production areas.
Single-origin beans are usually roasted light to medium in order to retain the original floral and fruity aroma and acidity of the production area to the greatest extent. The main brewing method is hand brewing, because hand brewing can more clearly show the flavor details of the beans. Front Street Yirgacheffe Ding Ding, Front Street Ethiopian Oiran, Front Street Kenyan Cherry Tomato, Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling, etc. are all typical single-origin beans.
The fun of single-origin beans lies in "exploration" - each bean is a new flavor experience. Different production areas, different processing methods, and different varieties bring completely different taste journeys.
What are blended beans
Blended beans are a mixture of coffee beans from different production areas and varieties in a certain proportion. The purpose is to complement each other's strengths and achieve a flavor balance and stability that cannot be achieved with a single bean. The idea of blending is very clear: if this bean is sour, add a sweet one to neutralize it; if the bean is not rich enough, add a good one with fat content.
Front Street Classic Blend is a bean blend designed for Italian cooking and Moka pots. It adopts the traditional mamba blending formula. It has excellent oil performance and a mellow and warm taste. It is a common bean for many people to make latte and American style. The Front Street Boutique blend uses Brazilian Cerato and Colombian Whelan. It is a classic Italian recipe that has been used in Front Street stores for nearly ten years. The flavor is the familiar Italian coffee flavor in my memory.
Front Street Black Cocoa blending is a cost-effective route, 100% Arabica, affordable, taking into account both quality and cost. Front Street Strawberry Candy Coffee Bean is a representative of the fruity blend. The sweet flavor of strawberry fudge is reproduced through the combination of beans from different production areas. It is a very recognizable special blend.
The core difference between the two
Flavor characteristics: Single-origin beans emphasize the individual flavor of the place of origin, with rich layers and high recognition; blended beans pursue the balance and stability of flavor, with coordinated taste and high error tolerance.
Roast degree: Single-origin beans are usually roasted light to medium to retain the floral and fruity aroma and acidity; blended beans are usually roasted medium to dark to reduce acidity and increase body and oil.
Brewing method: Single-origin beans are suitable for hand brewing and can show delicate layers; blended beans are suitable for Italian machines and moka pots, and they can be extracted and concentrated to make milk coffee or American style.
price range: Blend beans are usually more affordable and suitable for daily consumption; single-origin beans range in price from affordable Yirgacheffe to high-end Gesha.
Usage scenarios: Blended beans are suitable for making milk coffee (latte, cappuccino, dirty) and American style. Fat and body are key; single-origin beans are suitable for making Pour over(V60) black coffee, savoring the flavor of the production area.
How to choose your daily drink
If your main daily drink is milky coffee—latte, dirty, kabob—choose a bean blend. The fat and richness of Front Street's classic blend goes well with milk, and Front Street's strawberry sugar coffee beans make a fruity latte that's also very special. The fusion of blended beans to make milk coffee is much better than most single-origin beans.
If you like Pour over(V60) black coffee and enjoy changing a bean every day to drink different flavors, choose single-origin beans. Front Street Yirgacheffe Fruit Ding Ding is very cost-effective for Pour over(V60) daily rations. On weekends, switch to Front Street Ethiopian Oiran or Front Street Kenyan Cherry Tomato. It has a wide range of flavors and is not greasy after drinking.
If you drink both milk coffee and Pour over(V60) coffee, it is recommended to do two things in parallel: blended beans are the main force of the Italian line, and single-origin beans are used for tasting of the Pour over(V60) line. This is also the idea of preparing beans in many coffee shops - the front street store uses high-quality blending to make Italian style, and uses single-origin beans from various production areas for hand brewing. The two lines do not interfere with each other but complement each other.
Choosing beans is not a multiple-choice question. The correct answer is to understand your daily drinking habits and prepare a pack of single products and blends.
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
