A natural coffee? Funny expression ... There would be synthetic coffees? And a washed coffee what does that mean, a washcloth soap and rubs?
Behind these somewhat mysterious formulations are in fact the two main methods of drying coffee: an essential step in extracting the coffee bean from its envelope, the coffee cherry.
THE HARVEST OF COFFEE CHERRIES
In the specialty coffee sector, cherries are harvested manually and only at maturity: yes, depending on the regions and the weather, the latter do not ripen all at the same speed. The agricultural workers are thus made to make several passages in order to pick only the ripe cherries and in good condition, which is why the crops spread more or less long depending on the country. Once picked, the cherries will be sent to washing or drying stations to remove the coffee beans inside. This process is carried out mainly in two ways: by dry method or by washed method.
DRY METHOD: NATURAL OR NATURAL COFFEE
The dry method is to let the whole cherries ferment on the grains. For 10 to 30 days depending on the region, the coffee cherries are spread out in the best case on raised African beds, failing on a concrete floor and dry quietly in the open air. In order to protect them from the nocturnal humidity, they are protected at night with tarpaulins. The cherries are finally peeled to keep only the green beans.
What result in cup : the long fermentation of cherries on the grain offers tasting notes of very pronounced, lively, ripe or more jammy fruit depending on the coffee. We will also detect a more marked sweetness and a denser body. A natural coffee can also be easily identified in the nose with an intensity of red fruits sometimes referring to the middle of the wine.
WET METHOD: COFFEE SAYS WASHED
The washed or wet method proceeds in three stages. The first step is to de-pulp the coffee cherries (the skin and a large part of the pulp are removed) using a device called a "pulper". A stream of water then allows to take the grains in large tanks where they ferment for 6 to 72 hours - and more generally between 12 and 36h: the fermentation is made possible by the temperature (40 ° C max) coupled to the fine layer of pulp still present on the wet grain and called mucilage. The second step is then to wash the grains after fermentation: they pass through water channels and are stirred for several tens of minutes with large rakes to remove the remaining pulp.
This step also allows a first sort: the floating grains, of lower quality, will be sidelined. Finally, depending on the country, the grains are dried on African beds, on patios or in wind-blowing sheds for 1-3 weeks in order to reduce the humidity rate to 10 or 12%. ideal for good conservation.
What outcome cup : in general, a washed coffee will provide a clearer cup a coffee with a natural acidity stronger.
Purgator at Hallo Fuafate car wash, Ethiopia - photo taken during our trip 2018
Fermentation tanks at the Dimtu washing station, Ethiopia - photo taken during our trip 2018
Drying of grain on African beds at Hallo Fuafate car wash, Ethiopia - photo taken during our trip 2018
MIXED METHOD: THE HONEY PROCESS
The honey process is a method combining the characteristics of the dry and washed methods: it associates the pulping of the cherries used in the washed method and then directly the drying in the open air used in the dry method. There are different degrees of honey (white, yellow, red, black) that correspond to the percentage of mucilage left on the grains. The grains are then dried for 7 to 25 days.
What a cup result : a technique that tries to offer the best of both methods. The cup is clean enough and has more body and less acidity than a washed coffee, all closer still more than a natural coffee.
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