Nov Blog

Washing and Processing: Coffee Bean Basics

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Have you washed your coffee? If it isn’t washed, it is dirty? Those of us who work professionally in the coffee roasting field know these terms well, but for those new to the coffee industry, the different types of washing and processing that a coffee bean goes through before it reaches your cup can be confusing. Today, we’re sharing our expertise on the coffee roasting process so you can make the best choices for your best taste!

Washing
When one processing coffee by “washing” it, otherwise known as “wet processing,” the coffee bean goes through a lot before you drink it! The bean, or cherry as it is often called at this stage, goes into a machine that removes its outer skin and allows the seeds and the surrounding substances to ferment in water for about 2 days, releasing the flavorful sugars and acids that give coffee its distinct taste. Longer fermentation results in stronger-flavored coffee. Washing is the most-frequently used processing technique and is often used for high-end coffees.

Unwashed
If washing gives coffee all those benefits, why skip it? A natural or “dry processing” has been used for centuries, far longer than the “wet” method, and produces equally delicious results in a different way. These coffee beans are laid out flat in the sun and rotated regularly for two to six weeks, allowing the flavors to develop. The seeds are then removed. This strategy requires less complex equipment, and is well-suited for desert regions where water supplies are poor.

Happy Hybrid: Semi-Washed
For those seeking the best of both worlds, semi-washed coffee starts off like the wet method, with machines removing the skins, but then the beans are allowed to dry in the sun, like the dry method. This process provides some of the benefits of each, and is often easy for farmers. The flavor tends to be somewhere in the middle as well.
Ready to experiment with your new knowledge? This is the perfect opportunity to host a coffee sampling party—for one, or for friends! Don’t forget to check out the best selection of bulk green coffee beans, café kopi luwak, and fresh-roasted beans from Lavanta coffee roasters!

Have you washed your coffee? If it isn’t washed, it is dirty? Those of us who work professionally in the…
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Oct

The Life of the Coffee Bean

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While most people are aware that coffee comes from beans, few people realize the many steps it takes to go from a plant to the delicious green coffee beans you can buy in bulk from our online store! Read on to find out the humble life of the coffee bean and how it plays a role in your coffee roasting process!

Coffee Beginnings
The coffee plant is versatile, able to grow from seeds, cuttings, or shoots. However, only some climates work for this sensitive plan, requiring a careful range of temperatures and plenty of water. A coffee plant takes about 5 years to grow from seedling to mature plant, at which time it can produce enough coffee beans to make a pound of roasted coffee!

The Fruit
Coffee beans are actually hidden inside of the fruit of the coffee plant. Often referred to as cherries, this fruit looks like a crabapple or very small cherry, and ranges from green to red. The best-quality coffee is handpicked to ensure that only the best and most ripe cherries are selected for roasting.

Cherry Processing
To get to the “beans,” the fruit and husks of the coffee cherries must be removed. This can be done in the traditional dry method, laying the coffee cherries out in the sun or another hot, dry place, turning them regularly, and ensuring they reach about 11% moisture content. Another method uses water to soften the outer fruit, then the beans are put through a pulping machine. After that, they are submerged into an enzyme solution that removes the outer layer and dried. These can be dried naturally, like the dry method, or dried in special drying machines for a faster process.

Quality Assurance
While these processes can be automated, having a human being involved in the process ensures the best quality. Those coffee roasters with the highest standard source their coffee beans from supplies who hand-sort and check for quality, such as discarding damaged or broken beans. Once the beans are ready, they are packed and shipped to coffee roasters around the world. Lavanta Coffee Roasters in New Jersey works to find the best-quality coffee producers around the world so we can share them in our store and sell those high-quality green coffee beans online!

While most people are aware that coffee comes from beans, few people realize the many steps it takes to go…
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Coffee Varieties and What They Mean in Your Cup

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Arabica or Robusta? Faced with these different terms, many consumers simply take a guess—Arabica sounds… Arabic, perhaps, like it comes from a hot climate, where Robusta… will be robust? For those in the coffee industry, however, there is far more to it than just what those names can suggest. At Lavanta Coffee Roasters in New Jersey, we make sure to carefully select the best green coffee beans and roasted coffee to send to our customers, and part of that includes spelling out the differences between our most popular products. Get ready to find out about the differences, benefits, and distinctions between the Arabica and Robusta varieties of coffee!

The Classic: Arabica
If you travel back in time before the 1900s, coffee was of the Arabic variety. Even today, Arabica varieties of coffee make up 75-80% of the coffee produced around the world! Many of the best coffees in New Jersey are of the Arabica variety, which is grown at high altitudes, producing a moderate-sized crop yield. Arabicas are known for a sweet, mild taste, with plenty of variety available as this variety has been cultivated for many decades. The flavor is more acidic than bitter, and typically has less caffeine than a Robusta variety—up to half the amount of caffeine.

The Up and Comer: Robusta
Since the mid-1900s, there has been more interest in the Robusta variety. Originally, this variety of coffee was criticized and considered subpar to Arabica coffees—and no wonder, when Arabica coffees had a headstart of many centuries! A crop disease increased interest in the Robusta variety, which is able to grow at lower altitudes and is generally more resistant to pests and crop diseases, making this hardier variety more available and affordable when the bigger Arabica farms were struck with disease. Over time, smaller coffee growers have taken interest in the Robusta variety, improving the quality and flavor to the point that some connoisseurs prefer Robusta! The beloved café kopi luwak is actually a Robusta variety, and the best coffee roasters know that this coffee is prized by many! Plus, as Robusta varieties can be grown in more climates and produces a higher crop yield for the same resources, some suggest that this could be an environmentally sustainable option into the future.

Bonus Varieties
While most coffee produced and sold around the world is either Arabica or robusta, there are other varieties in existence! One of the better-known specialty varieties is Café Baraco (Barako coffee to some), and a variety from the Philippines called Liberica.

Ready to try some of the best coffee varieties today? Our online store features the best-quality green coffee beans in bulk, as well as fresh-roasted coffee. We even have a rewards program! Or, if you’re local to NJ and want to try a cup, visit our coffee shop in Hackettstown!

Arabica or Robusta? Faced with these different terms, many consumers simply take a guess—Arabica sounds… Arabic, perhaps, like it comes…
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100% Kopi Luwak Green with Authenticity Certificate

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Legend has it Kopi Luwak was discovered in Indonesia under Dutch colonial rule. During that time, native farmers and plantation workers were forbidden from harvesting coffee for their own use from the cash-crops and were left to scrounge around the plantations.

The civet cat eats only the ripest of coffee cherries and passes the seeds—the coffee beans—without digesting them. During digestion these beans would also have all the extra fruity bits stripped off by enzymes, resulting in a thoroughly clean result! Locals would collect these deposits off the jungle floor and brew the beans into what tasted much better than the conventional coffee of the time.

“The secret of this delicious blend,” enthuses the Indonesia Tourism Promotion Board, “lies in the bean selection, which is performed by a luwak, a species of civet cat. The luwak will eat only the choicest, most perfectly matured beans which it then excretes, partially digested, a few hours later. Plantation workers then retrieve the beans from the ground, ready for immediate roasting.”

The aroma is rich and strong, and the coffee is incredibly full bodied, almost syrupy. It’s with a hint of chocolate, and lingers on the tongue with a long, clean aftertaste. Kopi Luwak began showing up in North America during the 1990s at the height of the Starbucks-inspired gourmet coffee craze. It has been sold in the U.S. for up to $600 per pound and can fetch as much as $30 for a single brewed cup in some parts of the world.

Visit our website for more information www.lavantacoffee.com

Legend has it Kopi Luwak was discovered in Indonesia under Dutch colonial rule. During that time, native farmers and plantation…
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Facts About Sualwesi Toraja Coffee – White Eagle

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Critical coffee lovers nationwide are investing in a sweet, spicy, and clean coffee made from beans grown in a secluded part of the Indonesian mountains on the tropical island of Sulawesi. The geographic location is so remote that it takes four days of horseback riding on the hard dirt road to get into this region where the Toraja coffee beans grow. The high elevation with equally high humidity levels are two of the main reasons why this smooth, creamy blend with hints of delicate sweetness is worth the trouble.

Located deep in the jungle surrounded by hundreds of indigenous bird species and countless flora and fauna, the White Eagle coffee is sustainable as coffee can get. The 250-year old Toraja trees are typically small and begin producing coffee after only five years of being in the ground. After an extensive selection of picking the coffee cherries are put into a pulper to remove nearly all of the coffee fruit. This unique processing method, known as the Giling Basah wet-hulled method, is what gives producers a run for their money! The remaining thin layer of mucilage on the beans is left there for an additional 24 hours. After that removal the beans are dried and now ready for roasting.

Due to this extensive process the beans typically roast unevenly. But it is the uneven roast that is key to the resulting medium to dark flavor. Just one cup of the Sulawesi Toraja White Eagle earthy beverage with its pronounced aromatics of tobacco spice is perfect to round out a sweet breakfast or dessert!

Since Toraja Sulawesi beans are 100% arabica and carefully culled, only the best beans are utilized for customers Known as the Crown Jewel of all Toraja arabicas, Sulawesi Toraja White Eagle is kept separate from other coffees. On average only 300-600 vacuum-sealed bags are produced from each crop annually.

Ready to join the club of Sulawesi Toraja White Eagle coffee buyers? For more information / Contact us today.

Critical coffee lovers nationwide are investing in a sweet, spicy, and clean coffee made from beans grown in a secluded…
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