How coffee is transformed in the Cordillera mountains

The process of creating coffee from a small seed to a fragrant cup. On the example of growing coffee in the Cordillera mountains.

Sowing seeds 

It's all beginning with sowing, of course. In shaded nurseries, coffee seeds grow in the beds. Usually, it takes about a month for them to grow.

Transplant

They are transplanted from the beds to the pots when the first 2-4 leaves appear on the young shoots.

Then another transplant to the planting site, when the young seedling has 1-2 pairs of branches. The process of reaching this stage after sowing takes about a year. During the rainy season from May to September, coffee plants are transplanted into the soil of the Cordillera. The plants need a great deal of water to root properly in the ground.

Care

Coffee trees need fertilizer and weeding to keep them growing strong. The flowering and fruiting of coffee trees takes 3 to 5 years. In subsequent years, he brought more and more fruit.

Flowering and fruiting

White flowers are typically produced by coffee trees between March and May. There's a strong smell in the flowers.

They start to grow green berries once the flowers are gone. The berries are changing their color from green to yellow and then orange. They're at full ripening when they turn deep red, which is a good time to harvest them.

Harvest

In traditional terms, coffee is harvested by hand in one of two ways: strip picking where all fruits are extracted at the same time. And selective picking where only the red fruits have been harvested. The first is mainly from Robusta coffee, while the second comes from Arabica.

 The ripe coffee cherries are carefully harvested by hand. The harvest period usually starts in November and goes on until February in the Cordillera.

Fermentation

The grain is soaked in water and floats are removed after boiling. To remove the slimy mucus from their surface, they are then left to ferment overnight.

Drying

In the sun, coffee parchment is dried. This process will normally last between one week and ten days according to the weather. The humidity should be lowered to between 10% and 12%. The coffee goes through four different processing steps, which affect the taste and aroma of the coffee when it is consumed. Natural processes, washes, wet husks, and honey treatment are also known as these methods.

-Natural Process

The most common way coffee is processed is through natural processes, such as the drying process. It's about drying off freshly picked coffee berries, along with the pulp. For about three to six weeks, farmers place coffee berries on drying beds and leave them to dry in the sun. A full-bodied cup of coffee with a deeper, more complex flavor is usually produced by naturally processed coffee.

-Washed Process

Depulpers that remove the skin and pulps from seeds before drying are included in a washed or wet process. The seeds are placed in containers with water and the rest of the mucus is washed away after the skin has been removed.

Seeds are sent to drying beds for drying.

Compared to natural processed coffee, washed processed coffee has a more pleasant taste and is generally lighter in texture.

-Wet Husk (Half-Washed)

Some machines remove the fruit pulp from cherries as part of the wet husking process, sometimes referred to as partial washing. After this, the seed and mucus are kept in plastic containers until they develop a thick shell that coats the seeds. Then, to remove the husks and dry flakes, it goes through a different process called peeling and then spreads out to dry.

-Honey Process

The process of honey formation is a combination of natural and processed processes. The process involves the removal of the pulp by a machine, but instead of washing the seeds after they've been removed, they're dried with the slime. A complex flavor and a cleaner, lighter texture than natural processed coffee are typical of honey-treated coffee. Compared to filtered unprocessed coffee, it has a sweeter taste and mild acidity.

 The majority of beans are "wet processed" from Central and South America, whereas in Indonesia or Africa, the coffee is often semi hulled. In places such as Yemen, where there are many small farms located away from processing facilities, the practice of dry grinding is less common. Dry processing is best when the husk has to be kept for a lengthy time after harvest, more than 24 hours After Harvest.

 

Peeling

 Farmers in the province of Cordilleras are using a mortar and fork to remove parchment from their beans. The term "flaking" is used to describe this process.

Sorting

Manual removal of contaminated grains and foreign objects is carried out. Defective coffee beans may be damaged by insects/diseases, moldy, fermented, etc. The quality of the coffee is ensured by the removal of these defective beans through careful sorting.

Roasting

The roast ranges from light to dark at an average of eight degrees. Each produces a distinct aroma and taste. Traditionally, people roast their coffee in an oven or a stove in the Cordillera. At the same time, to promote coffee production in this part of the country, roasting machines are now available on a commercial basis and public authorities provide them to farmers' associations.

Shredding and packaging

Roasted coffee beans are ground using a coffee grinder. Depending on preferences and brewing style, the degree of grinding (fineness/coarseness) is adjusted.

Coffee

After a lengthy process from seed to processing, brewing yields a delicious cup of coffee. For centuries, the people in the Cordillera had boiled coarse grinds into a cauldron. The coffee made by hand produces a lighter and more refreshing taste, while the French press has a stronger wood flavor.