Ever spotted the word “natural” or “washed” on coffee packaging and wondered what it means? James Hanson explains all
Coffee is surrounded by specifics: varietals, roasting profiles, brew times and so on. The term “processing”, on the other hand, is about as vague as it gets, which is perhaps odd considering the myriad elements it can involve.
In essence, processing is the journey from coffee cherry to green bean. The three most common methods are natural, pulped natural (or honey) and washed. These are still broad strokes, however, as the specifics vary according to terroir, economic geography, cost and tradition, as well as the farming model.
It’s during processing that producers have the opportunity to experiment with flavour. If the freedom to choose a process exists, it can offer a wide spectrum of possibilities, as well as the freedom to respond to market demand.
The natural process involves drying ripe cherries in the sun. Once the bean inside has a 10-12% moisture content, the cherries are hulled and the beans sorted, graded for quality and bagged. While natural processing is the most accessible method owing to low set-up costs and lack of water usage, it’s also the riskiest if quality control methods are not applied. It’s also not suited to countries with high levels of rainfall.
この記事は Caffeine の June - July 2018 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Caffeine の June - July 2018 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
The Future Of Decaf?
A US company claims its pouch extracts caffeine without harming flavour
Great Coffee Shouldn't Cost The Earth
Caffeine’s editor-at-large Tim Ridley explains how to lower the environmental impact of your coffee-drinking habit
What The F**k...Is Honey Processing?
Apart from natural and washed coffees sits a whole other category, as Sierra Wen Xin Yeo explains
The grind
SEASONAL COFFEE
Tea with purpose
Michelle and Rob Comins explain how tea can be a force for good
Ten years on
We celebrate the London Coffee Festival’s first decade with a look at its successes
Chocolate and espresso pavlova with fennel roasted grapes
This year I’m giving coffee centre stage on the Christmas dessert table. I firmly believe coffee shouldn’t just be an afterthought to accompany dessert, it should be the dessert – but aside from that, it just makes sense.
Bitter Barista
Latte art competitions have been milking it for too long – they used to be fun, but now their focus on the wrong things is harming barista skills, says our cantankerous columnist
What The F**k ...Is The Maillard Reaction?
It’s just one of the elements you need to know about if you’re going to roast coffee successfully, as Edgaras Juška explains
Work Wonders
Coffee gets people through the working day. So it stands to reason that better coffee produces better work – and in some places the two are in perfect harmony, says Phil Wain