Indian Coffee Cultivation History Stories and Growing Region Introduction - How Good Are Indian Robusta Coffee Beans?

Professional coffee knowledge exchange, more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style)

The Historical Roots of Indian Coffee

The history of coffee cultivation in India dates back to the seventeenth century. It is said that a Muslim pilgrim named Baba Budan secretly brought back seven packets of coffee seeds from Arabia during his pilgrimage and planted them near Mysore (now known as Chikmagalur, Karnataka State). This region was later revered as the cradle of Indian coffee.

According to the latest 2016 statistics from factfish, India is currently the seventh-largest coffee-producing country in the world. Most of the country's coffee is grown in three southern regions: Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. The first two regions account for over 90% of the country's total production. The majority of coffee is cultivated in the Western Ghats mountain range, which connects to the coastline and lies approximately 100 miles from the Arabian Sea.

The Distinctive Robusta Character

Haha, no need to look - you can tell Robusta has appeared just by the smell. Similar to Pu-erh tea in the tea world, this flavor that I find hard to describe is simply the characteristic of Robusta, along with its plump, round body. These are all distinctive features of Robusta... So just by the aroma and shape, it's easy to distinguish from the typical flat beans of Arabica varieties.

In India, a country famous worldwide for its tea, their coffee production actually ranks among the top in the world.

Processing and Roasting Observations

I originally thought Indian coffee only had washed Robusta (I've purchased some before), but looking at this batch of beans, the color of the silver skin doesn't seem like purely washed processing.

India is one of the countries that utilizes both washed and natural processing methods, so I suspect this batch of beans was processed using a similar approach.

Roasted with a hot air roaster, beans were dropped at the end of first crack.

By the way, Robusta has another distinctive characteristic - when roasting, if you're using a hot air roaster, you'll notice that its silver skin maintains the shape of the coffee bean, as if it's still in its shell. The silver skin is also thicker than that of Arabica (as shown in the photo)... very special!

With a medium roast degree, some silver skin remains, and the hard bean characteristics create obvious wrinkles on the coffee surface.

Tasting Notes and Reflections

Tasting: Very pure Robusta flavor.

Reflections: It's hard to imagine that the civets in Indonesia consume this low-altitude Robusta.

After the green coffee beans pass through the digestive system of these cats, during intestinal fermentation, proteins are broken down. The coffee beans interact with other things the cats eat, such as fruits, nuts, and spice plants, reducing bitter molecules and thereby decreasing the stimulating taste of Robusta while preserving a fragrant, smooth mouthfeel. Kopi Luwak thus became famous in Indonesia.

Although I've tried Kopi Luwak before and it truly has less Robusta flavor, honestly, I wouldn't want to buy it again.

First, because the price is truly too high - for the same money, I could buy better-tasting coffee.

Second, because I've seen people claiming to sell Kopi Luwak, but the bean appearance and flavor are completely Arabica... mixed pearls, so to speak. Some people also use blends.

Because of this, even now when I hear about monkey coffee, I have no desire to try it. Just kidding - one cup could buy several bags of green beans!

PS: I've heard that monkey coffee has an amazing body - after the coffee beans are "produced" by the monkeys, they still require strict manual selection before shipment.

(Monkey coffee origin: Balma Estate coffee plantation in southern India)

Future Plans

Thoughts: For the next batch of beans, I want to create an espresso blend. I must roast to at least full city, using 10% mixed with Brazilian beans - it would be wonderful... looking forward to rich crema.

FrontStreet Coffee: A roastery in Guangzhou with a small shop but diverse bean varieties, where you can find both famous and lesser-known beans. They also provide online services at https://shop104210103.taobao.com

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473