High Mountain
Below the Blue Mountain line, and sold under its own grade name.
Altitude
600–1,000 m
Harvest
September–December
Species
Arabica
Processing
Washed
About the region
High Mountain is what Jamaican coffee grown below the Blue Mountain line is called. It comes from the same island, often from the same varieties and sometimes from adjacent land, and it cannot use the protected name — which is precisely the point of having one.
It sells for a fraction of Blue Mountain's price and is the more honest introduction to what Jamaican coffee actually tastes like.
In the cup
Recognisably the same island: mild, low-acid, nutty and chocolatey, with a medium body. Less refined than Blue Mountain and considerably less expensive.
Terrain
Lower slopes and interior hills, warmer and faster to ripen than the Blue Mountain zone.
Varieties
Typica
Other regions in Jamaica
Sources
- World Coffee Research — Arabica Coffee Varieties (read August 24, 2026) Cited for Varieties