Brazilian coffee, briefly
Brazilian coffee is coffee grown in Brazil, which produces about a third of the world's coffee and has been the largest producer for about 150 years. Most of it grows in the southeastern states of Minas Gerais, São Paulo and Espírito Santo. Nearly all Brazilian coffee is dry processed, dried as whole cherries in the sun, which sets it apart from most arabica-growing countries.
From one bush in 1727 to a third of the world
The first coffee bush in Brazil was planted by Francisco de Melo Palheta in Pará in 1727. By the 1840s Brazil was the dominant producer. A second boom, from the 1880s to the 1930s, lined up with a political era called café com leite, coffee with milk, named for the leading industries of the biggest states, and production peaked in the 1920s. As late as 1960 coffee was still 60 percent of Brazil's exports.
Today plantations cover some 27,000 square kilometers. Minas Gerais alone has about 1.22 million hectares of coffee, far ahead of Espírito Santo and São Paulo. Arabica is concentrated in Minas Gerais, and Brazil leads the world in arabica as well as total green coffee. Most farms harvest once a year, in the dry season from June through September, when most of the cherries are ripe.
Why Brazils are naturals
In most countries arabica is wet processed, or washed: the fruit is removed before the seeds dry. In Brazil, virtually all coffee goes through the dry process. The whole cherries are cleaned and spread in the sun for 8 to 10 days, or up to four weeks in poor weather, and the dried fruit is then hulled off.
The processing shows in the cup. Wikipedia's general coffee article notes that wet processing yields a milder coffee, so a natural Brazil brings more weight to a blend than a washed coffee would. Massachusetts roasters put that to work in espresso. Gracenote in Boston builds its Alpha espresso on a natural Brazil from Mogiana, and Speedwell's Nine Bars espresso in Plymouth pairs Daterra Estate in Brazil with a Colombian, roasted gently and longer to soften the acidity.
Natural Brazil vs washed coffee
| Natural (most Brazils) | Washed (most arabica countries) | |
|---|---|---|
| Fruit removed | After drying, by hulling | Before drying |
| Drying | Whole cherries in the sun, 8 to 10 days or longer | Clean seeds in parchment |
| Cup | Less mild than washed | Milder |
| Massachusetts example | Gracenote's Alpha espresso uses a natural Brazil from Mogiana | Aero's Rwanda Ishema and Burundi Turihamwe, both washed |
See natural process and washed process in the glossary.
Brazilian coffee from Massachusetts roasters
Thirteen of the 20 Massachusetts roasters we list sell a Brazilian coffee or use one in a named blend, as we read their own sites on September 27, 2026:
- George Howell, Acton: Daterra Sundrop, a single estate Brazil.
- Red Barn, Upton: Brazil Cerrado.
- Indigo, Northampton: Brazilian Sul de Minas.
- Jaho, Salem: Brazil Minas.
- Three Fins, West Dennis: Point Break House Roast, a Brazil-forward medium.
- Aero, Northborough: Brazil Rosa, a dark roast.
- Fazenda, Dedham: Midnight Blue, a dark Italian style espresso of Brazil and Guatemala. The roaster's own name is Portuguese for farm.
- Mike Shea's, Bridgewater: a Brazil, and two Brazil decafs, one mild and one dark.
- Atomic, Peabody: Daydream Decaf, a water-processed Brazil medium roast.
Acoustic Java and Esselon list a Brazil too, and Gracenote and Speedwell use one in their espressos. Buying a house blend from one of these roasters keeps the roasting, the packing and the paychecks in towns like Upton and Dedham. Why Massachusetts roasters matter.
Brazilian coffee in the club
Brazils show up most in blends and espresso. Set the style to Blends or Espresso-friendly in the plan builder, with a medium or dark roast, and you are choosing the kind of bag where Massachusetts roasters lean on Brazil. Each box is a different roaster's bag, 12 oz at $16.99, first bag free (you pay $7.99 shipping). Build your box.
Related terms and sources
Related: Colombian coffee, Guatemalan coffee, espresso roast, pulped natural, Caturra.
Read September 27, 2026: Wikipedia, Coffee production in Brazil (share, history, states, hectares, harvest, dry process); Wikipedia, Coffee (wet processing and milder coffee). Roaster facts from each roaster's own pages.