Bali - Dec '23 Coffee of the Month
Origin: Bali
Flavor: Pipe Tobacco, Dark Chocolate, Cedar, Blackberry, Brown Sugar
About the Coffee:
Geography: Region Kintamani, Bali
Altitude: 1300-1600 masl
Producer: Sang Artawibawa, Ketut Puri Artana, Nengah Ngenteg, Sang Wardana, Kadek Ardiasa
Variety: Arabica B-1 (Kopyol), Arabica Kate Kartika, Arabica Cobra
Processing: Semi Washed
From Genuine Origin Website:
Bali Kintamani Grade 1 Triple-Picked Green Coffee Beans
Five farmers in the Kintamani Highlands, with farms spanning 1,300-1,600masl, collectively produced this lot of Grade 1, Triple-Picked Bali green coffee. The intercropped farms, with their humus-rich soil influenced the classic Bali flavor profile of the coffee.
Citrus was once the main crop, rich volcanic soil and higher altitudes in the Kintamani Highlands gave rise to dedicated coffee farming, nurturing Bali green coffee beans that result in a classic, clean cup with mild intensity and full body.
What Is Wet Hulled Coffee Processing (Giling Basah)?
The wet-hulled coffee process, locally known as Giling Basah, is the method of choice in Indonesia due to the humid climate. The wet-hulled process has become synonymous with Indonesian coffees and contributes to its unique cup profile.
In the wet-hulled process, coffee cherries are generally depulped at the farm level using hand-cranked machines. The cherries are then fermented overnight to help break down the mucilage, which is subsequently washed off. Afterwards, the coffee is quick-dried to 30-50% moisture and dried to between 11%-13% as it makes its way through the supply chain into an exporter’s mill.
Most smallholder coffee farmers in Indonesia process their coffee directly at the farm level. However, Genuine Origin’s sourcing partner buys cherry directly from farmers. This provides a higher degree of control over the coffee processing and the final product.
Indonesian Green Coffee Bean Quality
Green coffee from Indonesia is classified into different grades depending on the number of defects present in an unroasted coffee sample of 300 grams. The highest, Grade 1 TP, signifies that the coffee was triple-picked, referring to how many times the beans were hand-sorted, and less than five defects were found per sample. Similarly, Grade 1 DP (double-picked) signifies less than nine defects were present in the sample. For a Grade 1 Indonesia green coffee without a TP or DP mark, less than 11 defects were found per sample. The grading system spans grades 1 to 6.
Indonesian Green Coffee
The key Indonesian green coffee regions are Aceh, North Sumatra, South Sulawesi, West Java, Bali, and Flores. Green coffee from Java is exceptionally well-known for its role in disseminating Indonesian coffee production throughout the archipelago. In contrast to the long history of coffee from regions like Sulawesi and Sumatra, green coffee from Bali, a relatively newer coffee region in Indonesia, mainly produces small-batch, limited-scale coffee quantities.