What is Washed Process: What are the Pros and Cons of Washed Coffee Beans?

The washed process, translated from Washed Process, also known as the washed method, is a traditional approach to processing green coffee beans. Generally, the washed process steps include floating selection, pulp removal, fermentation to remove mucilage, washing or soaking, and drying before hulling to obtain the coffee beans we need. The washing steps not only significantly reduce the defect rate of coffee beans and stabilize the quality of green beans, but also preserve the inherent flavors of the beans, offering higher clarity and better expressing the regional terroir. Therefore, this is a coffee processing method that FrontStreet Coffee particularly favors, with washed process batches available from nearly every producing region on FrontStreet Coffee's bean list.

The Washing Steps

All processing methods aim to obtain the green bean portion from the coffee fruit, involving processing steps to remove pulp, skin, and mucilage layers. Traditionally, the most common methods are natural and washed processing. With increasing market demands or adaptation to local conditions, producers have derived many innovative post-processing methods from these two approaches, such as honey processing and wet-hulling. The washed method is a processing approach that utilizes water resources to treat coffee cherries. Production sites using the washed method must build washing tanks and be able to access continuous fresh water, making production costs higher than natural processing.

After harvesting, coffee cherries are immediately sent for processing, typically within 6 to 12 hours of picking. The coffee cherries are first weighed, then placed in water for soaking treatment, aimed at selecting fruits that float due to insufficient quality. The coffee cherries are then sent to a depulper for skin removal - this step removes the skin and pulp from the coffee cherries.

The washed coffee beans are then sorted to remove defective coffee beans. Immediately after, they are sent to drying areas (waterproof tarps, cement patios, raised beds, etc.) for drying. The drying time depends on environmental climate factors and other variables, typically ranging from 5 to 14 days. During this time, the coffee bean's moisture content drops from 55% to 11%. The dried coffee beans are called parchment coffee - green coffee beans with the parchment layer. The parchment beans are sent to warehouses for storage and undergo hulling before export.

Advantages of the Washed Method

The most traditional processing method is natural processing, where coffee cherries are dried and then opened to reveal the coffee beans. However, the disadvantage of natural processing is its strong dependence on weather, requiring up to a month of drying time. During this month, any wind or rain can ruin all previous efforts. In the past, many unscrupulous processors would even let coffee beans get rained on and moldy when encountering such situations, resulting in poor quality. Therefore, the climate in most producing regions cannot meet production capacity and quality requirements. For example, Indonesia initially focused on natural processing, but Indonesia's region is humid and rainy. Later, even switching to Brazilian semi-natural processing couldn't adapt to local conditions, leading to the development of their unique wet-hulling method.

The characteristics of the washed processing method effectively reduce the dependence on weather during production. With shorter drying times, stable quality, and much lower defect rates than traditional natural processing, almost most coffee-producing countries in the Americas primarily use washed processing, such as Colombia, Panama, Guatemala, Honduras, and others.

FrontStreet Coffee often describes the taste of washed coffee as very clean with high acidity. Unlike the full body of natural coffee, high-altitude grown coffee processed using the washed method makes people feel more refined and refreshing. For example, FrontStreet Coffee's washed green label Geisha coffee beans from Hacienda La Esmeralda present citrus acidity, nutty mid-palate, delicate white floral notes throughout, and oolong tea aftertaste.

Disadvantages of the Washed Method

The biggest disadvantage of the washed processing method is the need for large amounts of water resources. At the same time, during the rinsing process, the mucilage attached to the coffee bean's parchment gets washed into the water, turning it into highly acidic "wastewater." Direct discharge into surrounding fields can damage the soil. Although it can be filtered and purified through subsequent sewage treatment pools/facilities, most small farmers lack the awareness and ability to build these wastewater treatment facilities. Therefore, under traditional washed processing methods, while achieving very clean and bright coffee flavors, the environment also bears significant pressure.

Therefore, large estates adopt advanced equipment, using water resource recycling models to reuse discharged water. For example, Clifton Mount Estate, which produces FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1 coffee beans, has specially established a sewage treatment plant that uses green bean processing water for agricultural irrigation, while the removed fruit skins are fermented and made into organic fertilizer for flower cultivation.

With diverse market demands, some estates have begun launching small batches of natural processed Blue Mountain, but FrontStreet Coffee believes that washed processed Blue Mountain represents the most classic Blue Mountain flavor. If you're tasting it for the first time, FrontStreet Coffee also recommends starting with washed coffee beans. FrontStreet Coffee's washed Blue Mountain No. 1 coffee drinks with the sweet aroma of dark chocolate, caramel sweetness, and soft, elegant acidity. Each flavor is balanced, with smooth and rich mouthfeel, presenting very typical Blue Mountain characteristics.

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