Coffee was planted in the Dominican Republic around 1735, first in Barahona. It became a commercial crop about a century later and spread to Jarabacoa, Constanza and other mountain areas.
Today 28 provinces grow coffee on about 130,000 hectares. Most farms are small and shaded, with mostly Typica trees.
Domestic demand is strong. A common saying holds that a Dominican is not a Dominican without an early-morning cup.
Field notes
What the record says
- Coffee cultivation in the Dominican Republic began in 1735, first in Barahona and nearby provinces.2
- Coffee became a commercial activity around 1860, and over the next 40 years plantations spread to Puerto Plata, Constanza, Jarabacoa and other areas.2
- 28 provinces grow coffee on about 130,000 hectares.2
- The national coffee institute INDOCAFÉ estimates domestic consumption at 640,000–700,000 quintales a year.2
- Dominican coffee is mostly grown by smallholders, in shade, without chemicals, and mostly from Typica trees.1
- Barahona coffee is known as high-grown, bright and intense but balanced.1
What we couldn't confirm
The greca stovetop pot is often named as the Dominican home brewer, but only tourism and retail blogs said so, so no ritual entry was written. Start dates vary (1734/1735). No harvest months sourced.
Sources
- Dominican Republic · Coffee Review in the bibliography
- Día Mundial del Café: historia y cifras en la República Dominicana · Revista Mercado, 2022 in the bibliography
