Brazilian coffee - the largest coffee producing country.

Brazil is the largest coffee producing country.

Brazil is the world leader in coffee production and exports. About 30% of the world's coffee comes from Brazil. Huge coffee plantations grow in the states of Minas Gerais, Paraná and São Paulo. Both arabica (predominantly) and robusta coffee trees are grown in Brazil. The harvesting season traditionally runs from June to September and most of it is harvested by hand.

The origins of coffee cultivation in Brazil

The first coffee tree in Brazil was reportedly planted in 1727 in the state of Pará. Legend has it that the Brazilian government wanted to grow their own coffee instead of buying it, but their neighbours, French Guiana, did not want to sell the seeds. So the government sent a man called Francesco de Melo Palheta to French Guiana to procure the seeds. Palcheta accomplished his task not by trying to break into the fortress-like coffee farms, but by going round to the First Lady of French Guiana, who gave him several coffee plants as a farewell gift. They turned Brazil from a coffee importer into a coffee exporter.
In 1840, Brazil became a leader in coffee production and by 1884, numerous coffee varieties were on display at the International Horticultural Exhibition in St Petersburg. After the exhibition, demand for Brazilian coffee increased several-fold, and between 1920 and 1950 it accounted for as much as 80% of all coffee grown and exported worldwide.
Since the end of the 20th century, Brazil has had around 220 000 coffee farms, 27 000 square kilometres of coffee plantations and 3.5 million people working in the coffee industry. Coffee is grown in the southern states of the country, where the climate offers ideal growing conditions.

Regions and types of cultivation

Robusta coffees are grown in the flatter and hotter northern states of Brazil, while arabica coffees are grown in the slightly cooler terraces of the northern mountains. The harvested coffee is processed in two ways: the dry method (Brazilian naturals), i.e. the coffee berries are first dried in the sun and then cleaned, or the semi-dry method (Pulped naturals), where part of the pulp is removed before drying. The dry-peeling method is considered to give Brazilian arabica coffees a milder flavour, which is not as strong as washed coffees.
For different Brazilian coffee the port from which the coffee was first exported shall identify and name the types. Bourbon Santos (from the name of the port of São Paulo) is considered the best. It is an arabica coffee from the first harvest of the Bourbon variety, small, round beans with a flavour described as mild and balanced. It is low in acidity and has aromas of roasted almonds and prunes with a slight chocolate aftertaste.
In later harvests, Bourbon beans become larger and wider and lose some of their aroma. They are called Santos flat beans.

Brazilians, the second biggest coffee drinkers

Brazilians, unlike other coffee growers, drink a lot of coffee themselves and are the second biggest coffee drinkers in the world, after the USA. The traditional Brazilian way of making coffee is cafezinho - black, good quality coffee in a miniature cup. This coffee is drunk several times a day, at all hours of the day, without milk but with plenty of sugar.