How to deal with raw coffee beans

This is the oldest method still in use. Today, only Ethiopia and Brazil are still using this treatment method in places where coffee beans were planted in the early days.

After picking, the fruit began to dry in the sun without treatment. It can be dried by a mechanical dryer, or spread in the yard, on the drying table, on the tarpaulin or on the ground. The drying process usually lasts about 4 weeks.

Natural sunlight can preserve the aroma of coffee fruits. When you taste this kind of coffee, you will find that it is rich in fruit aroma and has a brighter taste. After drying, people will use special machines to remove the surface shell. This process is called "dry grinding".

02. Water washing method

Steps of water washing method: 1. Choose beans; 2. Separation of fruit and stone; 3. Fermentation; 4. Wash with water; 5. Dry and dry.

Ripe coffee fruits are picked and quickly transported to the processing place, which can be a small shed or some large processing facilities.

For the first time, the coffee beans were washed and sorted with flowing water, and then put into the beater. Here, coffee beans and pulp are separated, then put into a fermentor, where they are fermented, that is, hardened by enzyme catalysis, and then put into a larger dryer.

Usually this method is easy to highlight the acidity and refreshing quality of coffee.

03. Semi-washing method

Semi-washing method is widely used in Brazil.

First, choose ripe coffee cherries, and then lay them flat in the sun for a few days, which can reduce some water. Then they are classified and beaten with a small amount of water to promote the beating process. This method is similar to water washing, but there is no fermentation step.

All fruit layers (peel, pulp, thin skin and silver skin) are removed by beating, leaving clean raw coffee beans. Then spread the coffee beans in the sun or put them in a mechanical dryer to dry them thoroughly.

But the disadvantage is that coffee tastes relatively dull because it has not been fermented. Therefore, for super-high quality coffee beans, most coffee growers will not use this method, fearing that they will lose their original flavor. However, ordinary coffee raw bean purchasing companies rarely purchase coffee beans made in this way.

04. Honey treatment method

This method is widely used by coffee growers in Costa Rica, and it is also widely circulated in China and the United States.

Generally speaking, the nominal mucosa of coffee beans is very sticky and has a high sugar content. People usually call this substance "honey". In the process of honey treatment, coffee will leave some or all of the "honey" when it dries. After the coffee fruit is picked, it will go through the processes of grading, pulp removal and so on, and then it will be dried on the drying equipment.

However, due to the short drying time of mucosa, coffee will hardly ferment during the drying process.

The acidity of coffee beans made by this method is slightly higher than that of natural washing, but far lower than the other two.