The best Colombian coffee in the UK (taste tested by RISE)
Love specialty Colombian coffee and want to learn more? You have come to the right place! At RISE, Alice and Ben spend their lives travelling the UK to source and taste test the best coffee they can find. We often feature Colombian coffee and thought we would shed some light on why it is so good and recognise some of the best Colombian coffee we have come across (as of April 2024).
Colombia is the world’s third largest coffee producer overall, behind Brazil and Vietnam, and is the number one producer for Arabica coffee beans (Vietnam for example mainly produces Robusta, predominantly used for instant coffee). Colombia produces in the region of 12-13 million green bags of coffee per year - that's a lot!
Why is Colombian coffee so good?
The geographical position of the country, its altitude, and climate paired with the diverse history and expertise of farming traditions, makes for very distinct and reputable coffee. Colombian coffee farmers are innovative and excel in their craft. A number of anaerobic coffees now come from this region.
There are four main regions in Colombia that produce coffee, however the wonderful thing about Colombia is that coffee can be produced across the entire country.
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The North |
Santander, Cesar, Magdalena, Norte de Santander, La Guajira |
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The South |
Cauca, Huila, Nariño |
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The East |
Arauca, Casanare, Meta, Caquetá |
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Central |
North of Tolima, South of Antioquia, Quindío Boyacá, Caldas, Chocó, Cundinamarca, Risaralda, North of Valle del Cauca |
This enables Colombia to be able to produce a huge diversity of types of coffee to suit everyone's tastes, from light roasted anaerobic filters to dark and bold coffees best suited to espresso.
You will see in our list below that coffee from the region of Santander, in The North, will have completely different tasting notes than that of a coffee bean grown in Huila or Cauca, which is further south. The differences in flavour profiles created are due to the altitude and climate of each area, as well as individual traditions of the families. Different varietals of cherries determine the overall flavour of the coffee bean. Some plants are known for being more sweet and complex and others create a heavier bodied coffee. There are a number of Arabica coffee plants that exist across Colombia, including:
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Caturra
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Castillo
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Bourbon
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Gesha
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Tabi (Organic)
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Pacamara
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Typica
What does Colombian coffee taste like?
Having such a diverse range of climates and bean varietals make it difficult to articulate what Colombian coffee beans taste like, as they vary so considerably! However, Colombian coffee is know for having a few characteristics and tasting notes that might help you to recognise coffee from Colombia:
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Citrus aromas - which comes from higher altitude regions
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Chocolatey notes - often found in darker espresso based drinks
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Nutty undertones
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Moderate acidity - and often drawn out by a medium or lighter roast
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Fruity notes, such as apples, berries, and stone fruits - particularly in anaerobic or honey processing
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Caramel and syrupy sweetness
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Occasional hints of spice
Now we've shared a bit of background on Colombian coffee, let's take a look at some of our favourite coffees you can buy.
Our best Colombian coffee picks are:
- Overall best Colombian Coffee - Hermanos coffee
- Best for all round ethics - Rounton coffee Roasters
- Best Decaf - Origin coffee
- Best B-Corp - Ozone coffee
- Best light roast coffee - Square Mile Coffee
- Best Anaerobic processed coffee - Horsham Coffee roasters
1. Hermanos coffee roasters - Overall best Colombian Coffee
Hermanos coffee roasters are probably one of the best coffee roasters in the UK right now. Their heritage is an integral part of who they are and were founded by Santiago, Victor, and Adnan who all had a shared passion for their country and specialty coffee.
Hermanos have a range of Colombian coffee ranging from £13 to £30+ per 250g.
Each month they have a 'Bean of the month' and at time of writing it was - La Estrellita. This coffee is a perfectly balanced cup with tropical fruit and strawberry notes, reminiscent of savouring high-quality strawberry gelato. A must-try for anyone exploring Colombia's specialty coffee.
Hermanos now have a number of stores you can visit:
- 7 Blackhorse Lane, London, E17 6DS
- The Loom, 14 Gowers Walk, London, E1 8PY
- 7 Barnes High Street, London, SW13 9LW
- The Gantry Hotel, 40 Celebration Avenue, London, E20 1DB
- 127 Portobello Road, London, W11 2DY
- 124 Colombia Road, London E2 7RG
- Arch 16, Angel Lane, Walworth, London, SE17 3FR
2. The Colombian Coffee Company
Eduardo Florez grew up in Colombia where poverty had gripped his community and violence was a daily occurrence. Gabriela Oakley had lived and worked in Colombia, where she had seen the devastating impact of this on farmers and their families. Together they founded The Colombian Coffee Company, now a social enterprise based in both Borough Market and Soho, London. They have a great range of coffees online, and also have a coffee tasting kit!
Their coffee ranges from £12 to £17+ for 250g.
The washed Tabi is our favourite. Tasting notes include honey, caramel, chocolate, berries and molasses. How good does that sound? This coffee is bold, sweet, balanced and has a smooth creamy finish. We are not surprised this scores an 85 on the SCA cupping scale.
Tabi means 'good" in the aboriginal Guambiano language. A name given by Cenicafe, the Colombian coffee research institute, after 25 years of research and selection of the best specimens of progenitors. Tabi was developed through the hybrid of Timor and the varieties Borbón and Typica, which are tall plants and mainly produced in areas of less rain and more direct sun.
Colombian coffee company now have a roastery you can visit:
- Arch 34, 87 Southwark Bridge Road, Flat Iron Square, London SE1 0AB
3. Rounton Coffee roasters - Our top pick for ethics
Rounton Coffee Roasters are a Yorkshire-based roastery, whose mission is to bring more accessibility to the world of specialty coffee. As with most things Yorkshire, they're a pretty straightforward bunch at Rounton Coffee Roasters. As they say, "we don't need to be the coolest, or take ourselves too seriously, so long as we're roasting dead good coffee". Their dynamic little team is fiercely passionate about coffee, people, and making positive change in the world around them. Throughout their 10 year history, they have forged close relationships with producers, and now have direct links to some of the most exciting coffee producing regions in the world. They believe that doing justice to the coffees they roast isn't just about making them taste great – it's also about giving back in a meaningful way to the places they're from.
Rounton coffee roasters featured in our RISE coffee box subscription in April 2023 and were loved by all. If you're not already a member of our coffee subscription club, you can join below and enjoying 35% off your first 2 boxes!
Rounton coffee have their "Rich Roast" which is sourced from Planadas Tolima. The area is known for its fertile volcanic soil, and altitudes up to 2,000 metres above sea level, making it a great place to grow coffee.
This coffee is bold and rich and has won a Great Taste Award for it efforts. From the Great Taste Award judges: "Some brightness in the cup with a thick consistent crema. There are biscuity undertones and the coffee delivers a dark chocolate bitterness and caramelised sugar finish. There's still some brightness to finish. A really good example of a traditional dark roast."
4. Press Coffee & Co London
The guys over at Press coffee and co, based in South London, have an absolutely banging Colombian coffee called 'Nestor Lasso'. It is £16 per 250g bag which makes it slightly higher price wise, but well worth it.
This coffee comes from 24 year old producer Nestor Lasso and the El Diviso farm. The farm carries great diversity of varietals, currently home to Caturra, Colombia, Castillo, Tabi, Pink Bourbon, Red Bourbon, Yellow Bourbon, Bourbon Ají, Caturra Chiroso, Geisha, Sidra, Java, Pacamara. Nestor is using fully washed, semi washed and natural methods and uses parabolic dryers as well as raised African beds and some mechanical drying. 80,000 coffee trees grow here at a range of 1700-1850 metres.
Tasting notes of Peach, Black Grape and Green Apple.
The Nestor Lasso is an anaerobic natural coffee and for us, this is our favourite coffee on the list. It is dreamy. Smooth, delicate and absolutely delicious. This is the best Colombian coffee in London right now.
Best enjoyed as a filter, black without milk.
5. Small Batch Coffee Roasters
6. Origin coffee roasters
7. Carnival Coffee Roasters.
We are lucky enough to live in walking distance to Carnival Coffee's first specialty coffee shop in Penge, South London.
Their washed coffee is perfect for an espresso based drink.
The Carnival head roaster describes it as "a super sweet coffee, with delightful notes of autumnal fruits and a hint of chocolate. This is a balanced coffee, with lots going for it. We are enjoying this coffee as an espresso and flat white. Although this coffee is delicious which every way you brew it!". All their coffee is specialty grade and scores above 83/100.
We recently popped in to their Penge store and enjoyed two flat whites which we highly recommend. You can buy this Colombian coffee online via their store for £12.95 per 250g bag.
Carnival coffee source coffee from their farm in Medellin and from other just as reputable small-scale importers. They deeply care about the farmers and their families so it is important that they are paid well for their skills and that our trade is contributing to their sustainable development and education. This aligns with our RISE Friendly Coffee Fund which gives back 1% to fund children's education and get them off farms.
8. Ozone Coffee - our top pick for B-Corp coffee
At RISE coffee box we tend to stick to medium roasted coffee or medium dark roasted coffee, as we really believe this roast profile retains the best flavours from the coffee. However, this strong, dark roasted Colombian coffee is one of the best dark roasted coffees we have tried and we would highly recommend trying it.
Ozone, one of the pioneers of specialty coffee across the globe are leading the way when it comes to quality and progress. They are B-Corp (our RISE coffee B-Corp application is soon to be submitted!) and their packaging is all compostable. They are 'unapologetically obsessed' with coffee and travel the globe in search for the best coffee they can source.
The coffee that has made our list of best Colombian coffee is their El Yalcon which retails at £11 per 205g. As mentioned it is on the darker side but which means the slightly bitter dark chocolate flavour notes really come through and you get that tiramisu feel from the smooth texture of the coffee. We personally could't get the lemon flavour note.
Ozone coffee offer various coffee subscription services, including a monthly subscription, which delivers freshly roasted coffee beans straight to your door.
They also offer a filter subscription, providing a single-origin filter coffee every month. A bit like the variety that RISE coffee box offers, just with one roaster.
Ozone's London location is located at 11 Leonard St, London EC2A 4AQ but they can be found in coffee shop all over the UK.
9. Square Mile Coffee Roasters - Our top pick for a light roast
Perhaps one of the more expensive coffees to make it onto the list is the Colombian La Pradera by Square Mile coffee. This comes in at £27 for 350g or £75 per kg. This La Pradera comes from Tolima which is well renowned and respected coffee region in Colombia - known from producing incredibly high quality coffee.
More about this coffee:
- Light roasted
- Honey processed
- Grown at altitudes of 1700 MASL
This is Square Mile's latest coffee in their showcase of modern Colombian coffee. It comes from Herrera, Tolima. Farmer and producer Jose Hernán Quintero has quietly paved an exemplary path since he started producing specialty coffee in 2005. His dual passions of reforestation and creative processing. Square Mile have been buying this coffee since 2019. José Hernan became interested in the honey process for its minimal usage of water. He elaborated his protocol into his signature three-step fermentation process, which gives a clean blueberry flavour to this elegant Yellow Bourbon variety. In this coffee you can taste creamy tropical and floral notes. Drink as filter, only.
This really is a coffee treat and for those of you who love Colombian coffee in particular - it is a must try.
10. Workshop coffee
Workshop coffee offer a delicious Colombian espresso roast coffee called El Navado Espresso. This coffee is permanently available with Workshop and one of their core range of coffee offerings.
Described by Workshop coffee as "A vibrant espresso with a silky body carries flavours of caramelised sugars, marzipan and warm berries". The tasting notes include: caramelised sugars, marzipan, warm berries.
Workshop have worked in Huila for over a decade, and in their experience the cup profiles of top lots from this region really chime with their preferences. El Nevado del Huila is Colombia’s highest volcano, named for its snowy top, and they are referencing the notion of the pinnacle of quality in their offerings through using its name for their espresso.
This coffee comes in at £13 per 250g or if you subscribe to their regular coffee delivery service you can save 25%.
11. Horsham Coffee Roasters - top pick for anaerobic washed coffee
Back in 2012 there were very few roasters in Sussex with a focus on Specialty coffee. Horsham coffee first started using a 1kg roaster and their garage. Their goal is to source the best, ethically traded coffees in the world and through developing a highly methodical approach to roasting with the highest possible focus on quality control, bring them to customers. They are one of the best coffee roasters in Sussex and South of England.
Horsham coffee roasters have a rare and exclusive section of their website and coffee delivery service and as of April 2024 this spot was given to a Colombian coffee.
The coffee is called El Paraiso and is an anaerobic washed coffee.
Quick tip - What is anaerobic coffee?
Innovative coffee producers have been experimenting with anaerobic processing, where coffee is fermented without oxygen - and this process has become widely popular with coffee lovers. This distinct process results in rare and exotic flavours, with no two tasting the same.
Horsham coffee roasters outline this complex and unique production method as:
1. Coffee is carefully hand harvested to select only very ripe cherry.2. The coffee is washed and soaked in water for 36 hours
3. Coffee is pulped to remove the fruit
4. The coffee with mucilage is fermented with added micro-organisms for 12 hours
5. The coffee is washed with cold water using a 'thermal shock' process
6. The coffee is fried using a mechanical de-humidifier
This two stage fermentation process creates some incredible tasting notes that include cherry, raspberry, red berries and floral notes. Tasting notes for this El Paraiso are green tea, raspberry and cherry. You can see from the notes the coffee is very fruity, light and almost tea like.
12. Atkinsons coffee
An old RISE coffee box favourite, Atkinsons Coffee Roasters featured in the RISE coffee delivery service back in 2021.
13. Unorthodox coffee
Another RISE coffee box favourite, Unorthodox coffee. In our opinion, one of the best coffee roasters in Scotland. You can read all about our favourite coffee roasters from Edinburgh below!
Their coffee is some of the most interesting and complex coffees we have had to date - with a bold and exciting set of flavours. Their Colombian coffee called "Pure Magic" - really is, magic. You can buy it here online, or subscribe and save and enjoy the coffee every week!
How good do these tasting notes sound? Golden raspberry, butterscotch and vanilla pod! Yum...
Pure Magic unravels all that glitters is gold in coffee. Heady butterscotch and subtle vanilla aromas emanate from the cup. It also creates a silky and unctuous espresso with a generous, syrupy mouthfeel. Laid back notes of fruit are intermingled with a super rich backbone that also works tremendously with milk.
14. Bailies coffee roasters
The Colombian coffee we have selected is a full bodied Microlot coffee from Las Flores Farm was produced by 2nd generation producer Johan Vergara. Johan and his siblings learned coffee production from their parents who began their farm in 1990.
Since then, Johan has taken on a more extensive role on the farm through quality control & post-harvest processing. Though Johan has wealth of experience with natural processing, this lot has instead been processed through a unique washed method that incorporates elements of both anaerobic & thermal shock processing. The result of this unique process is a fascinating cup profile unlike anything we've tasted from this region.
Similar to the coffees from Workshop and Atkinsons, this coffee is also from the Huila region and processed using anaerobic thermal shock. Tasting notes include peach iced tea & lemongrass. This coffee is another best suited to filter brewing methods as it's light roasted and bursting with sweet juicy flavours. You will find with these types of anaerobic coffees, they are often very tea like.
15. Yallah Coffee
Priced at £14.40 per 250g, this Colombian coffee comes from the Nasa Wesk community in Colombia. The coffee is another filter, light roast.
The Yallah 250g bags are 100% plastic-free and can be recycled with your household paper or composted in your garden. We recommend storing your coffee in an airtight container.
We hope you all enjoyed reading about Colombian coffee and we hope you found our selections useful if you are looking to buy coffee online.
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