How are the prices of aged Mandheling coffee beans? Which brand of aged Mandheling coffee is best?

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What is Aged Mandheling?

Aged Mandheling is a distinctive specialty Mandheling created by applying special, complex handling to fresh Golden Mandheling beans and then storing them for over 5 years. Like Golden Mandheling, annual production is limited, and because the processing and storage are so difficult and involved, aged beans yield even less, which only adds to their value.

Aged coffee actually has a long history in Indonesia. Because early shipping was undeveloped, moving coffee from Indonesia to other countries took a considerable amount of time. As the months passed, the moisture-rich fresh beans gradually dried, and exposure to sea breezes added a rather special flavor. With modern shipping cutting those transit times drastically, coffee with that particular flavor has become a specialty processed bean in its own right.

Producing aged beans is a technical skill that demands close monitoring throughout the aging process. Warehouse humidity and temperature have to meet set standards, and the beans in their gunny sacks must be turned periodically to prevent differences in humidity between top and bottom, or mold that would ruin the lot. The goal is not to diminish flavor but to create another flavor, and a pleasant one, which is why this bean can fairly be called a "kung fu" bean.

Mandheling Coffee Overview

Mandheling is a premium coffee grown at altitudes of 750-1500 meters in mountainous regions. It is a rare Arabica variety in Indonesia, a country that mainly produces Robusta. Due to altitude, climate and a range of environmental factors, the beans grown there have a rich aroma, full body and strong flavor, with hints of chocolate and syrup.

It is precisely that rich intensity and lively character, without astringency or acidity, that makes the flavor so special and provides such an unforgettable taste and aroma.

Bean Information

Variety: Typica

Region: Aceh Province

Flavor Notes: Spices, caramel, woody, earthy

Flavor Description

The dry aroma has notes of glutinous rice, malt, spice, caramel and wood. Adding hot water releases a wet aroma of dark roasted caramel and pine with a faint earthy fragrance. On entry the mouthfeel is strongly and stimulatingly bitter, with clove and woody aromatic flavors, spice and mint notes, and a strong, persistent aftertaste.

Suitable for coffee lovers who prefer bitter flavors!

Product Details

Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 227g
Packaging: Bulk
Origin: Indonesia

The Art of Aged Coffee

Just as wine improves with age, coffee beans can also undergo aging. In successful aged beans the acidic and astringent components settle out and convert to sugars, making the coffee mellower.

Perhaps because of soil, climate and bean characteristics, the most successful and highest-quality aged beans currently come from Indonesia and India. Indonesian aged beans are most famous for Mandheling and Old Brown Java. During production the beans are first removed from their pods and dried. When moisture content reaches a certain level, the parchment is deliberately left on to protect the beans, which are then sealed and stored in a warehouse.

Warehouse humidity and temperature follow specific operating standards, and the pods in the gunny sacks must be turned regularly to prevent differences in humidity between top and bottom, or mold that would ruin the lot. The maturation of aged beans takes at least two to three years, which truly earns them the name "kung fu" beans. Aged beans have a yellowish-brown or dark brown color, excellent sweetness, and can be used both as a single origin and in espresso.

Aged Mandheling Specifications

Country: Indonesia

Grade: G1

Origin: Sumatra

Roast Level: Medium-dark roast

Processing Method: Semi-washed

Aged Golden Mandheling Brewing Guide

Hand-pour Mandheling: 15g of coffee, a medium grind (Fuji ghost tooth grinder at setting 4), a V60 dripper, water at 88-89°C. First pour 30g of water for a 27-second bloom, then pour to 105g and pause. Wait until the water level drops to half before continuing, pouring slowly until reaching 225g. Avoid the tail end. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Aging is one way to reshape a coffee, but it is not the only route to the deep, low-acid profile Mandheling drinkers chase. For a cup in the same spirit without the five-year wait, FrontStreet Coffee's Indonesia Mandheling is the everyday answer. Grown around Lake Toba in the Lindong region of Sumatra and processed by the local wet-hulled method, in which the parchment is stripped while the beans are still half-dry and the green beans are exposed to the air, it develops a pronounced herbal and spice character. Roasted medium-dark, it is low in acidity and heavy on the palate, layered with caramel, dark chocolate and toasted bread and finishing long and sweet, which is why it suits anyone who prefers a strongly bitter coffee.

For those who want the cleanest possible version of that intensity, FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling is produced by the same Pawani Coffee Company that introduced Mandheling to the Japanese market in 1968. PWN sources only premium Mandheling green beans and holds strict standards: beans of 18 mesh and larger, fewer than three defective beans per 300-gram sample to meet the top G1 grade, then three rounds of hand sorting to remove every remaining flaw. The result is a bean that is uniform, plump and low in defects, and after a medium-dark roast it brews a clean, full-bodied black coffee with rich roasted aromas and a sweet, lingering aftertaste. FrontStreet Coffee suggests 87-88°C water, 15g of coffee, a 1:15 ratio and a coarse granulated-sugar grind poured in three stages of 30ml, 100ml and a gentle 95ml, which coaxes out the caramel sweetness and the chocolate and nut notes. Whether you choose an aged lot or a fresh one, the slow, controlled pour described above is what lets these coffees show their depth.