Volcanica Coffee Review – Exotic Gourmet Coffee

The world of upscale gourmet coffee is extremely competitive. To convince a coffee lover to spend the extra dollars for exotic coffee is a challenge for any coffee brand. However, a company named Volcanica Coffee has for years been successful in winning over the hearts of even the most discerning coffee lovers. Today we'll be doing a full Volcanica Coffee review to see whether this highly-coveted coffee lives up to the hype.

Volcanica Coffee is by all counts considered a high-end coffee brand. We reached out to them to see if they'd be interested in us doing a unbiased review of their brew and they happily accepted. For this Volcanica Coffee review, we'll be taking a look at their organic El Salvadorian Peaberry and Blue Mountain Peaberry coffee (two of their most exotic brews).

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Before jumping right into this Volcanica Coffee review, it's worth noting a few things about this specific coffee. Peaberry, which makes up about 5% of all coffee beans, is a type of coffee variety that is one of the most sought-after in the world. Normally the fruit or cherry of a coffee plant contains two seeds. However, a Peaberry coffee contains only one leaving this single seed as the sole recipient of the fruit's nutrients. This has a major effect on the final brew. Check out our Peaberry article for more information.

As a starting point, it's worth briefly addressing what makes this coffee company unique. As any quality gourmet coffee company knows, where you source your coffee beans really matters. Volcanica Coffee sources beans that are cultivated at ‘heights up to 3,000 to 7,000 feet' from coffee plants grown in volcanic soil. This unique volcanic environment at high elevations infuses the coffee beans with a distinctly smooth flavor that has become a trademark for a coffee company that's so aptly named. Volcanic coffee beans are grown out of mineral-rich soil that is the direct product of millions of years of volcanic activity…clearly not conditions that are not easily nor quickly made. It's a little wonder that these unique environmental qualities contribute to the creation of some of the most exceptional coffee available.

Volcanica Coffee Review: El Salvador Peaberry

As soon as I opened up the bag, I was greeted with a wonderfully rich and unique aroma. It was especially intense and if anything, was a tantalizing preview of what was to come.

Volcanica El Salvador Peaberry Coffee is from the Santa Barbara Estate.

For the record, I've tried Peaberry coffee before from various coffee brands. And while I enjoyed them, I wasn't inclined to spend the extra money on it. However, Volcanica Coffee's Peaberry is another story.

This coffee is incredibly well-balanced. It has a silky smoothness to it while also offering a refined sharpness. Well-balanced coffees allow the drinker to taste a wide range of flavors and really allows the complex notes of the coffee bean to express themselves. It's a full-bodied coffee medium roasted to perfection in order to bring out all of the bean's natural characteristics.

Peaberry coffee is typically sweeter than average coffee and this was no exception. This coffee has a sweetness that tastes incredibly natural. With so many artificially-flavored coffees in circulation, I always welcome fresh, clean, and pure flavors.

This was undoubtedly the best Peaberry coffee I've ever tried and given my coffee history, that's saying a lot.

True to the packaging notes, I could detect mild citrus notes along with soft floral notes.

I really enjoyed the coffee experience afforded by Volcanica Coffee. Even with my high expectations going into this Volcanica Coffee review, the coffee did not disappoint.

Volcanica Coffee Review: Volcanica Blue Mountain Coffee

Volcanica Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is one of their most popular brews and for good reason. Now this is literally the creme de la creme of coffee. Blue Mountain Peaberry is super rare and as such, is often called the coffee connoisseur's delight. Adding to the rarity of this coffee is the fact that it's also Peaberry which as was already mentioned makes up only 5% of the world's coffee supply.

For those who may not already know, Blue Mountain Coffee, like Peaberry, is literally some of the best coffee in the world. They are grown in the high-altitude Jamaican Blue Mountain range from which the coffee's name is derived. Volcanica Coffee uses 100% Certified Blue Mountain Coffee by the Jamaican Department of Agriculture. Make no mistake. This is truly authentic Blue Mountain coffee with absolutely NO filler beans. Finding real Blue Mountain coffee can be a challenge which is why we mention this. Check out our guide to Blue Mountain Coffee for more details on how to identify genuine blue mountain coffee.

Volcanica Blue Mountain coffee delivers an aroma that will hit you square in the face in a very good way. It's intense just like the Peaberry.  This exotic coffee yielded a delightful sweetness to the fragrance that I'd never smelled in any coffee before. I savored it.

The coffee itself is listed as a medium roast. However, the beans seemed to be a little darker than the medium roasts I'm used to. And this is certainly not a bad thing. As soon as I tasted this coffee, I immediately understood why this some of the world's most exotic and coveted coffee. It bears a deeply rich yet complex flavor that took my taste buds on a multi-sensory journey.

This coffee is smooth but well-balanced with a distinctly enjoyable acidity and mild sweetness. I usually don't favor the acidity in coffee but this was definitely an exception.

Blue Mountain coffee is famed for its refined taste, uniquely delicious sweetness and balanced body. Having tried Volcanica Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, I can completely understand why.

This is what the best gourmet coffee is supposed to do. It's supposed to have dimensions or stages if you will. A mild sweet flavor is ever present yet not overwhelming. The aftertaste offers a sweet cherry finish that is most enjoyable. It kind of reminds of the cherry on a piece of dark chocolate cake that adds the perfect accent to a bold taste. Even though this is a medium roast, it teems with a flavor that will have you appreciating the difference between good coffee and exquisite gourmet coffee. Volcanica Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee erupts (pun intended) with a taste and depth that can easily cause a person to ponder whether they've ever truly had gourmet coffee before.

Who is Volcanica Coffee

As a testimony to Volcanica Coffee as a company, the company fully believes in the motto of “do unto others”, a rarity in what has become a business with increasingly thin margins. They believe in establishing a harmony where all parties involved benefit and are proud to say that their coffees are Fair Trade Certified, Rain Forest Alliance Certified, and Shade Grown. While these may be afterthoughts to some customers who simply care about the taste of the coffee, these traits really do speak to the core values of a company which inevitably affect the quality of their end product.

Volcanica Coffee has a wide range of exotic coffees to choose from including exotic favorites like Volcanica Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee, Volcanica Kona coffee, and Volcanica Colombian Peaberry

As we mentioned earlier in this Volcanica Coffee review, this coffee isn't for those looking for fast food coffee. It's specifically for coffee drinkers who deeply and simply value great coffee. In this regard, Volcanica Coffee more than lives up to the hype. Actually, at the end of the day, it's not hype at all. It's just a well-deserved reputation.

As the saying goes, “Life is too short to drink bad coffee”.

I'd say the price of Volcanica Coffee is attractive for what you get. Sure, it's going to be more expensive than your average coffee. But then again, it's  anything but average.

If you've had the opportunity to try this coffee and would like to share your Volcanica Coffee review, we'd love to hear from you.