COE judge finds drought works in Brazil’s flavour favour

The winning coffee of the recent Brazil Naturals Cup of Excellence (COE) competition has set a new record high with a score of 95.18. Brothers Antônio and Sebastian Marcio da Silva Grown grew the coffee, which Head Judge Chris Wade praised for its tropical fruit flavours and champagne acidity. “The drought means lower yields and smaller bean sizes in general, but also a shortened drying time on natural processed coffees,” said Wade, in a statement. “With this shorter time we noticed that many of the coffees had exceptional acidity with great clarity. This is probably due to the coffee drying faster and preserving much of the acids within the coffee.” The fourth Brazil Naturals COE competition also set a historic average high of 88.26 points for the 23 winners, which included four 90-point or higher Presidential Awards. “What we found on the tables was absolutely stunning,” said Wade, in the statement. “Many of the coffees were so unique that every time they came to the table they blew everyone away with their flavours and clarity.”  The International Jury, representing 11 countries, found flavour profiles such as mango, sweet tobacco and apple pie. The Alliance of Coffee Excellence said that the jury’s findings of quality confirmed Brazil’s resilience in producing high scoring coffees. The competition was held in Araxá, Brazil in the third week of January.