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10 Of The World’s Most Expensive Coffees
and 3 Incredible Value Alternatives
There’s so much choice when it comes to coffee, from budget-friendly beans to the most sought-after, high-priced varieties. While higher costs don’t always mean higher quality, here you can discover some of the most expensive varieties of coffee on the planet. 10. Hawaiian KonaFirst up is Hawaiian Kona, setting you back around £70/kg. This coffee is distinctive because it must be grown in Kona in Hawaii, an area benefiting from near-perfect growing conditions for coffee. The soil is rich in minerals and the climate is sunny, with little wind or rain. 9. Los PlanesLos Planes is a rare breed of coffee, which raises the price. You can expect to pay about £75/kg. These beans are cultivated in El Salvador on a plantation run by the family of Sergio Ticas Yeyes. It’s grown from a unique hybrid Arabica coffee tree that was first developed by the Salvadoran Coffee Research Institute in the 1950s. 8. Fazenda Santa InêsFazenda Santa Ines originates from the base of the Brazilian Mantiqueira mountains and will set you back approximately £95/kg. This variety has been cultivated for over 100 years, meaning there’s real coffee expertise behind it. 7. Jamaican BlueJamaican Blue is another well-regarded coffee costing about £100/kg. It’s grown at the foot of the Jamaican Blue mountains at an altitude of 5,000 feet. This area gets substantial rainfall throughout the year and has richly-fertilised soil, giving the beans their unique flavour. 6. MolokaiMolokai coffee costs about £100/kg and originates from Hawaii. It’s grown, processed, and roasted in Kualapu’u in Maui County, an area considered to have some of the best conditions for growing coffee anywhere in the world. It’s legally protected too – Molokai coffee must come from this region and meet strict requirements. 5. St. HelenaNext, we have St. Helena, grown on the island of St. Helena and priced at about £150/kg. Produced on a remote island approximately 1,200 miles from the African coast, the location makes these beans challenging to export, contributing to their high price. These beans also benefit from unique growing conditions. 4. Kopi LuwakOur next coffee is Kopi Luwak, one of the world’s best-known varieties and priced at approximately £300/kg. These beans are Indonesian and go through an unusual process. The coffee cherries are fed to civets - small mongoose-like mammals that can be found in the tropical forests of Asia and Africa - and then harvested from their faeces. As the civets digest the beans they ferment them, giving them an unmistakable flavour. 3. Hacienda La EsmeraldaHacienda La Esmeralda from Panama costs approximately £660/kg. The producers have established themselves as one of the world’s finest coffee cultivators, which contributes to its impressive price tag. The beans are grown under the shade of guava trees on the side of Mount Baru and have won multiple awards. At auction, the beans have reached record-breaking prices. 2. Finca El InjertoFinca El Injerto attracts prices of £900/kg minimum. This coffee is grown in Guatemala and is also an award winner. Its multiple awards help to increase the price of the beans, as does the one-of-a-kind process for washing the beans to improve the quality of the grain. 1. Black Ivory CoffeeFinally, we come to Black Ivory Coffee, the most expensive variety in the world, costing a staggering £1,800/kg or more. Grown in Northern Thailand, these beans also go through a distinctive production process. Similar to Kopi Luwak, they’re fed to elephants on the plantation and extracted from their faeces. Only a few of the coffee cherries survive this process, making it exceedingly rare and therefore attracting a huge price tag. 3 Incredible Value High Quality CoffeesWhile some of the coffees in our list undoubtedly offer a unique taste experience, it’s not always necessary to break the bank in order to serve coffee that tastes fantastic. Sourced from some of the world’s top coffee producers and roasted to perfection, the award winning range of wholesale coffee beans at PureGusto are consistently recognised for their superior taste and quality. 1. Mama CataIf you’re looking for exceptional quality at great value, take a look at our PureGusto Mama Cata coffee, which is available from as low as £10/kg (£0.08 per shot). This exceptional bean hails from Panama, and is then hand roasted using a special convection roasting process. The result is a coffee that is a double gold Great Taste Award winner, achieving a near flawless score when tested by independent experts. 2. Santa Rosa Yellow Bourbon CoffeeAnother double Great Taste award winner, the incredible Santa Rosa Yellow Bourbon coffee gets its name from the vibrant yellow colour of the coffee fruits first grown on Reunion island in the Indian Ocean, also often known as ‘Bourbon Island’. 3. Rio MagdalenaThis superb Columbian coffee is grown by the Claros and Chavarro families at the Chorro Alto and El Placer farms in the foothills of the Andes. The high altitude of the farms and their incredibly fertile soil means that Colombian Rio Magdalena coffee is of exceptional quality, and is available from approximately £11/kg (£0.08 per shot). |