How to Brew Mocha Coffee Powder? Detailed Tutorial and Brewing Parameters for Yemen Mocha Coffee

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Yemen Coffee Growing Conditions

Yemen coffee grows on steep terrain with little rainfall, poor soil, and insufficient sunlight—unique and difficult conditions unfavorable to coffee cultivation. Yet these conditions have given birth to Yemen Mocha coffee, irreplaceable in the coffee world. The main coffee-producing regions are Sanani, Matari, and Ismaili.

The Matari region is located in the highlands west of the capital, at elevations of 2,000-2,400 meters. It is Yemen's highest-altitude coffee-growing area but also the most remote, with inconvenient transportation. Farmers often have to wait a considerable time after harvest before they can transport their coffee out.

Mocha Coffee Bean Processing Method

Ancient Natural Sun-Drying

Yemen is a classic of ancient natural sun-drying flavors and the world's only country that produces exclusively natural-processed coffee. The traditional water-free processing method has remained unchanged since the 17th century when Europe became fascinated with wild Mocha coffee. This is related to Yemen's extremely dry climate. Coffee is mainly cultivated in the central highlands, with annual rainfall of only 400-750 millimeters—far below the optimal 1,500-2,000 millimeters for Arabica coffee.

Due to water scarcity, farmers have been unable to adopt more advanced washed processing methods. The wild flavor characteristics exceed those of Harrar coffee, making Yemen the best choice for experiencing ancient flavors.

In the central highlands of Yemen, with its rolling mountains and rugged terrain, small farmers mostly use scattered planting methods—several plants on steep slopes, dozens on terraces or cliffs. Each location has different soil conditions and microclimates, resulting in different aromatic components.

Yemen's natural sun-drying processing is rougher than Ethiopia's. Coffee cherries are not picked when they turn red; instead, they are left to dry naturally on the branches until they become purplish-black and fall to the ground, where they are then collected. This differs from the refined natural processing of Yirgacheffe or Sidamo, where red cherries are picked and spread on raised African beds. This is the main reason for Yemen's particularly wild flavor.

Yemen's natural sun-drying process involves manually harvesting fully ripe coffee beans, then placing the freshly harvested beans directly on dedicated coffee drying grounds or in their own compacted earthen front yards to receive sunlight. During the drying period, similar to drying rice in Taiwan, wooden rakes are used to turn the beans to ensure even drying. After about twenty days, when the coffee is completely dry, the outer pulp and skin are removed to extract the coffee beans. Yemen coffee offers rich, complex, bold, and full-bodied flavors, with strong fermentation notes and lower acidity. Additionally, Yemen coffee often contains an unpredictable factor (timing of seasonal rainfall) that makes it elusive, making it no exaggeration to call it the world's most special coffee.

Mocha Coffee Green Bean Analysis

Mocha coffee grades are divided into: Sanani

Due to Yemen's low annual coffee production, only about 35% consists of Mocha Sanani and Mocha Mattari, which can be considered the better quality Yemen coffees.

Coffee from the Matari region has the following characteristics: appearance with "unattractive" features, uneven sizes, considerable color variation, looking like small peas mixed with empty shell defective beans.

Mocha Coffee Green Bean Information:

Yemen Mocha Mattari

Country: Yemen

Region: Mattari

Altitude: 1,300-1,900m

Varietal: Typica, Bourbon

Process: Natural / Sundried

Because the bean shape is very small, some people call it "small Mocha." Mocha is a flat bean, not a round bean—small but aromatic and rich.

Mocha Coffee Cupping Report:

Medium Roast City (Caramel Aroma): Before grinding, the coffee beans have a peanut aroma. After grinding, there's a caramel fragrance. During cupping, the complexity is layered, with a hint of grape acidity appearing at the end of the changing flavors in the mouth. The spicy aftertaste is long, with mouth-watering sweetness that is smooth and rounded, carrying a Middle Eastern milk tea feeling that lasts for a considerable time. The bottom of the cup has malt sweetness. Medium-roasted Yemen Mocha coffee continues to develop changes; it's recommended to brew 7-14 days after roasting when the complex wild fermentation flavors are at their best.

04 | Brewing Analysis

The condition of the coffee bed in pour-over brewing cannot be overlooked—this must be emphasized! The coffee bed plays a subtle role, one of which is to provide resistance, allowing hot water to remain in the filter cup long enough to ensure sufficient flavor extraction. For medium roast coffee, the bed must also have certain structural strength to fulfill its "blocking" function. To prevent weakening the coffee bed's support, one must master [water column intensity], [pouring position], and [stable circular pouring technique]—this constitutes a complete [pouring technique].

1. Filter cup: V60

2. Water temperature: 88°C

3. Grind size: Fuji Royal grinder setting 4

4. Roast level: Medium roast

5. Bloom time: 25 seconds

Flavor: Balanced, chocolate, long-lasting caramel sweetness in the aftertaste

FrontStreet Coffee recommends: 15g coffee, Fuji Royal "ghost tooth" grinder setting 4, V60 filter cup, water temperature 88-89°C. First pour 30g of water for 25s bloom, then pour to 104g and stop pouring. Wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to half, then continue pouring slowly until reaching 220g total. Avoid the last 5g. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time around 2:00 (counting from after bloom completion).

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