Coffee from the Colombian coffee growing axis, the Eje Cafetero, ranks with the best coffee in the world. And, while many great coffees are only available in small quantities, the area in the west of the Colombian Andes produces excellent Arabica coffee in substantial quantities. Coffee from this part of the world is grown at high altitudes in rich, volcanic soil and excellent mountain side drainage. These factors combine to produce coffee with excellent aroma, flavors, and notes. For those unfamiliar with what coffee notes are, notes are the aftertaste that helps to accentuate the excellent flavors of Colombian coffee. Colombian coffee is known for its fruity notes.

What If You Cannot Taste the Notes in Colombian Coffee?

A friend of this writer once remarked that he loved his coffee but could not for the life of him distinguish fruity notes in his Colombian coffee. He went on to ask what he was missing by not having the sense of smell and taste of a bloodhound. He did not mention that he was a pack a day smoker which, most likely reduced both his sense of smell and his sense of taste. In addition to my friend, there are non-smoking individuals who would love to experience the full range of taste of their great Colombian coffee and believe they are missing out because they do not have the taste buds of a professional coffee taster. What can they do?

First Ways to Help Enjoy Fruity Notes in Colombian Coffee

The first thing to ask yourself if you think you are missing the great flavor and notes in Colombian coffee is if your coffee is fresh. Do you buy green beans, store them properly, and only roast enough to make coffee the same day. That is the optimal way to retain freshness and optimal flavor and notes from your Colombian Arabica coffee. If you buy roasted coffee, do you buy whole bean that was roasted recently? Roasted coffee beans retain optimal freshness for up to two weeks and reasonable freshness for up to a month. The first best way to enjoy aroma, flavor and notes is to brew coffee from fresh beans. If you buy ground coffee that was vacuum packed, it begins to lose its freshness the moment you open the container. In this case your odds of enjoying the best that Colombian coffee can offer have gone way, way down.

Using Additives to Enhance Colombian Coffee Fruity Notes

If you have done everything that you can to ensure fresh coffee for brewing and think you are missing the fine fruity notes of your Colombian coffee, you might try additives to enhance the fruity notes. Specific additives you might try include fresh berries or drops of fruit juice. Orange blossom or rose water are also useful in this regard. Some folks use a fruit puree or infusion. In each case, add the fruit enhancements to the coffee grounds before you start brewing to ensure maximum infusion into the brew.

Our suggestion is to start with tiny amounts of enhancers and increase until you obtain the result that pleases you. What you are trying to do is taste the fruity notes or your coffee and not mask the coffee’s native flavors and notes with overpowering additives!