Dry and Wet Processes

Coffee was first harvested and made into a beverage for human consumption in Ethiopia the better part of a millennium ago. Coffee cultivation spread from Ethiopia across the Red Sea to Yemen and eventually to the Indonesian Islands, primarily, Java. The means used to process harvested coffee in the "old world" by the pioneering farmers and still commonly practiced in this region today is a method referred to as the "natural" or dry process. The natural process relies on a dry climate after harvesting. In the natural process, the coffee cherry is picked and the bean and fruit remain intact as the sun dried process will shrivel the fruit on the bean to a rock/stone hardness. Just prior to exportation, the bean is hulled (broken free) from the dried fruit casing. Having had a long contact with the fruit, the bean will have characteristics such as a heavier body or earthy and fruit or citrus flavors like blueberry, chocolaty, or lemony.

When coffee first went to the Americas, "new world", by the French in the 17th century, the natural process method came too. Unfortunately, the climate in the new world was quite different with extended damp or humid conditions. Some of the fruit began to rot and ferment before it could be fully dried. As the saying goes, "one bad apple spoils the barrel", another method had to be developed. The farmers discovered the "wet process". The wet process method strips the fruity covering off immediately and washing with water takes care of the remaining residue. The beans could then be sun dried satisfactorily and produce a coffee with different characteristics. These coffees are typically described as being bright, clean, aromatic, acidic, and having a medium body with just a hint of fruit.

This is generally why African and Asian coffees bring a different taste to a cup then Central and South Americans coffees do. When we do our special blends, we often use coffees from both the Old and New World. We like the complexity that occurs on the palate when coffees from both worlds get mixed together. All of our coffees our top grade and highly rated by a team of experts. We want to know that all of our coffees have lots of flavor before we purchase them. Just "have fun and enjoy" is our motto. We love our coffees and want you to have fun and enjoy too. If you feel like doing your own blend(s), don't be shy, it would be very difficult to make a bad blend even if you tried.