The History, Culture, and Stories of Indonesia's West Java Ayerni Estate Premium Single-Origin Coffee Beans

For professional barista exchanges, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style)

The History, Culture, and Stories of Arinanis Estate's Premium Single-Origin Coffee Beans from West Java, Indonesia

Although Indonesia produces so many acclaimed coffees, it's puzzling that local residents prefer to drink Turkish-style coffee rather than its long-renowned European-style coffee.

Coffee Origin Information

Origin: Mont Tikukur Mountain, Tikukur, West Java?

Altitude: 1400-1600m?

Variety: Arabica?

Producer: Arinanis?

Flowering Period: March-May, September-November?

Processing Method: Honey Process, Natural Honey Processing?

Cupping Score: 92 points?

Flavor: Mango, red wine, peach juice, intense fruit aroma, with plum and jackfruit flavors, clean and sweet aftertaste.

The natural processed coffee beans from Indonesia's Arinanis Estate don't taste like typical Indonesian beans at all. This coffee has its own unique intense fruit aroma—mango, red wine, peach juice, along with plum and jackfruit flavors, with a clean and sweet aftertaste. With a cupping score as high as 92 points, you won't believe this is a coffee bean from Indonesia. The English name of this bean is Aromanis, which means "sweet mango" in Indonesian.

Indonesia Coffee Overview

Indonesia

Population: 237,424,000

In Indonesia, coffee beans gradually spread from Java to neighboring islands. In 1750, they reached Sulawesi, but didn't extend to North Indonesia at that time. Until 1888, when cultivation began around Lake Toba, they eventually spread to Lake Tawar in the Gayo region in 1924.

SUMATRA

Sumatra Island has three main growing regions: Aceh in the north, the area slightly south of Lake Toba, and the recently emerged islands near Mangkuraja. Smaller areas may also trace back to: Takengon, Bener Mariah in Aceh Province, Lintong, Sidikalang, Dolok Sanggul, and Seribu Dolok around Lake Toba. Previously, coffee beans sold from this region were generally called "Sumatra Mandheling," but there's actually no place called Mandheling—the name comes from the local island tribe's name. Mandheling usually has grade distinctions, divided into Grade 1 or Grade 2. The grading method undoubtedly uses cupping quality rather than the generally assumed green beans themselves. However, I still have reservations about recommending Grade 1, as this grading seems to have become泛滥. It's strange to separate different varieties into different batches, so most Sumatra coffee beans are mixed from unknown varieties. Sumatra coffee beans are exported through Medan port, but prolonged stagnation at the port before export adversely affects coffee quality due to the humid climate.

Altitude: Aceh 1100-1300m, Lake Toba 1100-1600m, Mangkuraja 1100-1300m

Harvest: September-December

Varieties: Typica (including Bergandal, Sidikalang, Djember), Timtim, Ateng, Onan Gajang

JAVA

In Indonesia, this region follows Dutch colonial traditions and habits, so it has more large coffee estates. The four main coffee plantations cover 4000 hectares and were previously government-owned estates. Coffee beans from this region enjoyed a first-class reputation at that time. Although I believe that recently, many blend beans have been replaced by other coffee beans instead of "Mocha-Java." Java coffee beans remained expensive for a long time but showed significant price drops in the 20th century. Growing areas include the vicinity of Ijen volcano in eastern Java and the western region.

Altitude: 900-1800m

Harvest: September-September

Varieties: Typicas, Ateng, USDA

SULAWESI

Even though seven major estates supply about 5% of Sulawesi Island's production, local production is still dominated by small farmers. Most Arabica beans are grown at high elevations around Tana Toraja, while Kalosi in the south has become a brand name. There are two lesser-known regions: Mamasa to the west and Gowa south of Kalosi. A few particularly interesting water-processed coffees are worth exploring—highly recommended to try when you have the chance. Semi-washed processing is the common method for Sulawesi Island, and the region also produces quite a lot of Robusta beans.

Altitude: Tana Toraja 1100-1800m, Mamasa 1300-1700m, Gowa average 850m

Harvest: May-November

Varieties: S795, Typicas, Ateng

FLORES

Flores is a small island about 320 kilometers (200 miles) east of Bali, part of the Indonesian archipelago. As a region that joined the coffee industry relatively late, it has developed a good reputation for coffee cultivation. In the past, much of Flores' coffee production was for domestic consumption or mixed with other coffees for export, rarely sold directly as "Flores coffee." The island has active and dormant volcanoes, with mixtures from Bajawa volcano having a significant positive impact on the main growing areas. In coffee processing, semi-washed processing is the most common method in the region, though some coffees are still produced using fully washed processing.

Altitude: Tana Toraja 1200-1800m, Mamasa 1300-1700m, Gowa average 850m

Harvest: May-September

Varieties: Typicas, Ateng, Robusta

BALI

Coffee came to Bali relatively late and initially grew in the Kintamani Highlands. Coffee production was severely affected when Mount Agung erupted in 1963, killing over 20,000 people and widely destroying eastern Bali. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, to promote coffee production, the government distributed Arabica seedlings, but some believe this had limited effect as about 80% of the island's current production is Robusta beans. Although tourism provides the largest income, agriculture employs the most people on the island, and Japan was the largest buyer in the past.

Altitude: 1,250-1,700m

Harvest: May-October

Varieties: Typicas, Typica derivatives, Robusta

Java produces refined aromatic coffees with relatively low acidity, delicate mouthfeel, and good balance. Java coffee's aroma and acidity surpass those from Sumatra and Sulawesi islands. Java's best plantations include Blawan, Jambit, Kayumas, and Pankur. Java Mocha coffee is a blend of Java coffee and Yemen Mocha coffee.

Sumatra Island, the second largest island of the Indonesian archipelago, is Indonesia's petroleum industry center, and the island's rubber and timber are also famous export commodities. However, Sumatra's coffee is even more remarkable—similar to Java coffee but with slightly heavier beans. Mandheling and Ankola coffee beans are also highly valued, with the former even praised as the world's fullest-bodied coffee beans.

West Java Province is a first-level administrative region of Indonesia. Located in the western part of Java Island, it faces the Java Sea to the north, the Indian Ocean to the south, and includes nearshore islands, covering an area of 46,300 square kilometers. Java's climate is tropical rainforest, hot and humid year-round. The plains along the northern coast have the highest temperatures, while mountainous areas are much cooler. High humidity often creates debilitating weather conditions.

From November to March is the northwest monsoon period, with more rain and clouds; from April to October is the southeast monsoon period, with more sunny days and less rainfall. Jakarta's average annual rainfall is about 1,760 millimeters (69 inches). Jakarta's average daily high temperature is 30°C (86°F), with a low of 23°C (74°F). In the highland area of Tosari (elevation 1,735 meters [5,692 feet]), the average temperature is 22-8°C (72-47°F). Java's soil is very fertile because volcanic ash periodically fertilizes the land.

Aromanis is a traditional Indonesian sweet snack made from basic ingredients of flour and sugar. Using Aromanis to name this coffee indicates that these coffee beans have a cotton candy-like mouthfeel. The coffee beans come from Ciwidey Garut, West Java. Actually, no special coffee seeds are used, but natural processed coffee can present such distinctive flavors. Of course, this flavor is not widely recognized in West Java, Indonesia.

West Java Aromanis Coffee Details

Region: Mount Tikukur, Indonesia

Altitude: 1400-1600 meters

Roast Level: Light

Processing Method: Honey Processing

Taste Description: Intense fruit aroma, with plum and jackfruit flavors, clean and sweet aftertaste.

Flavor: Complex floral entry, tropical fruit flavors like mango and jackfruit on the palate, soft and thick mouthfeel, long aftertaste.

West Java Honey Processing

West Java honey-processed Aromanis from Indonesia scores as high as 92 points in cupping. The English name of this bean, Aromanis, means "sweet mango" in Indonesian.

At the estate, we personally tasted completely different Indonesian coffee.

The farmers used the simplest hot water immersion method to brew coffee from their plants for us.

Careful cultivation and processing

Allowed the coffee's flavor to break free from the established framework of Indonesian coffee.

Fruit sweetness, lemon fragrance, and even floral notes

Are all strongly presented in different varieties

Truly subverting our preconceived notions of bitter, rich flavors.

For pour-over West Java: 15g of coffee, medium grind (small Fuji ghost teeth grinder #4), V60 dripper, 88-89°C water temperature. First pour 30g of water for 27-second bloom, then pour to 105g and stop. Wait until the water level drops halfway, then continue pouring slowly until reaching 225g. Avoid the tail section. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

West Java Honey Processing Aromanis

Country: Indonesia

Estate: Aromanis

Region: Mount Tikukur

Roast Level: Light Roast

Processing Method: Honey Processing

Honey Processing

Honey processing, called Honey Process or Miel Process, produces what's known as Honey Coffee. Coffee plantations in Costa Rica, Panama, and Guatemala all use this processing method. So-called honey processing refers to the production process of green beans that are sun-dried with mucilage intact. After removing the outer pulp from coffee beans, there's a layer of viscous gelatinous substance. Traditional washed processing would wash it away with clean water, but due to water resource limitations in some high-altitude areas, this direct drying method was developed.

Honey processing is a relatively complex, time-consuming, and difficult processing method. The first step is selecting high-quality fruits, then removing the pulp while leaving the parchment—this parchment is the core of honey processing. The parchment contains rich sugars and acids, which slowly penetrate into the coffee beans during the drying process. The second step is drying, which is also the most important condition for producing high-quality coffee beans.

Honey processing allows coffee to retain the cleanliness of washed processing. Although the coffee's brightness decreases, it increases sweetness and caramel flavors. According to the degree of honey processing, honey-processed coffees are divided into yellow honey, red honey, and black honey processing. The advantage of honey processing is that it best preserves the original sweet flavors of ripe coffee fruit, presenting elegant brown sugar flavors and fruity sweetness, while berry flavors support a red wine-like aroma base, considered very elegant products.

Varieties: Jember, S-795

Altitude: 1400-1600 meters

Flavor: Fruit aroma, plum, jackfruit flavors, clean and sweet aftertaste

Indonesia West Java

Coffee beans are picked from branches and separated from the fruit, then washed and immediately dried. The coffee beans are stirred every hour to ensure even drying, including at midnight. "It's during the night that this is very important because of the high humidity," said Aryev of Transform Coffee (August 5, 2014)—translated from Indonesian original text.

The coffee processing takes 25-26 days! It's not surprising that Aromanis coffee beans are slightly more expensive than regular coffee beans. The Coffee Farmers' Cooperative sells Aromanis coffee beans for IDR 130,000-150,000 per kilogram, while Transform Coffee offers them at a retail price of IDR 80,000 per 200g package.

Manufacturer: Coffee Workshop
Address: FrontStreet Coffee, Bao'an Qian Street, Dongshankou, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou
Contact: 020-38364473
Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 227g
Packaging: Bulk coffee beans
Roast Level: Raw or roasted
Sugar Content: Sugar-free
Origin: Indonesia
Roast Degree: Light roast

Sulawesi Island, located between Borneo and New Guinea, is sometimes also called Celebes. Coffee produced on this island has full-bodied beans and rich aroma. The best coffee beans come from Kalossi and Rantepao in the southern part of the island. Among many brands, you might try Celebes Kalossi coffee.

Overall, Indonesian coffee has a strong taste, mellow flavor, slightly syrupy, with excellent acidity. Its two main export markets are Germany and Japan, which indirectly reflects the excellent quality of this coffee. What attracts consumers is its superior quality characteristic of Arabica coffee beans. You can add milk or cream to high-quality Indonesian coffee without worrying about affecting its taste. Indonesian coffee is divided into six grades, with AP being the best. But no one is certain what these two capital letters actually represent.

When steamships replaced sailing ships, coffee from these islands faced the same problem as coffee from Mysore, India—that is, consumers had become accustomed to coffee affected by long journeys and were unwilling to accept the taste of this "fresh" coffee. To solve this problem, the Indonesian government tried hard to imitate coffee affected by long journeys by "aging" coffee beans for up to a year. However, disappointingly, this moisture-processed coffee was not widely accepted and affected its good reputation.

However, Indonesia's "aged" coffee or "journey" coffee is still produced today. Its common brand names are "Old Government," "Old Brown," and "Old Java."

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473