Miami, United States. – Cuban coffee has been recognized as the best in the world according to the ranking TOP 81 COFFEES IN THE WORLDupdated last April 19 by the platform Tasteatlas. The traditional Cuban coffee (casting or Cuban Shot) Head the list with a rating of 4.6 out of 5, above other prestigious preparations such as the Indian filter, the Greek Freddo express and the Italian capuccino.
Defined in the list as “a unique variety of sweetened espresso while preparing”, Cuban coffee stands out for its singular technique: a short express prepared with sugar in a way that generates a light and brown foam clear. “Although it enjoys a special status in Cuba as an essential social and cultural drink, the Cuban express is also very popular and is widely available in Latin America and Florida,” says the note that accompanies the ranking.
Despite the international prestige of Cuban coffee, on the island access to the product is increasingly limited, and families resort to substitutes such as platanillo infusions to try to fill the void that leaves its absence in the basic basket.
While the Cuban grain It is promoted as premium coffee in Europe by brands like Lavazzawhich in 2023 launched the “Earth reserve! Cuba” – a mixture made with grains of Santiago de Cuba and Granma – on the island the population can barely acquire the national coffee mixed with chipcharo, known as “Hello”, which even challenges modern coffee makers for their poor quality.
For its part, Lavazza stressed that its product “offers the best coffee experience of Cuban origin” and represents “a contemporary experience of sustainable quality coffee.” But this “experience” is only available in hotels and restaurants outside Cuba. On the island, where many Cubans have been waiting for the coffee basket for months for months, grain production is mainly destined for commercial export.
The contrast is also manifested in Cuban airports, where according to testimonies collected by Cubanetcustoms agents ask travelers coffee as if it were a tribute. “Do you have a coffee pack that regals me?” Has a recurring phrase in each international arrival. The alternative, some say, is a cash payment to avoid arbitrary seizures.
In addition, brands that were national badge, such as Pilón, Bustelo and the key, today are elaborated and marketed exclusively outside Cuba. “It is usually a coffee package the first ‘fine’ paid by nationals on each return,” he said Cubanet in An April 2023 note.
While Cuban coffee reaches the first place in international listings, the paradox is that in its country the product is inaccessible, expensive or simply non -existent for a good part of the population. In a country where coffee has historically been more than a drink – a daily ritual, an excuse to talk, an identity symbol – this dissociation between global prestige and domestic precariousness reveals the depth of the productive crisis that Cuba lives.
