Which Sumatra Coffee Beans Taste Best? How Much is a Cup of Golden Mandheling to be Authentic PWN

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Which Sumatra Mandheling Coffee Bean Tastes the Best?

There are really many names for Mandheling on the market: Lintong Mandheling, Golden Mandheling, Premium Golden Mandheling, Tiger Mandheling, Mahan Mandheling, Emerald Mandheling. In fact, Mandheling is not a region name, place name, port name, or coffee variety name. Its name is actually a mistranslation of the Mandheling ethnic group in Indonesia.

FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling is divided into various regional Mandheling types such as FrontStreet Coffee's Lintong Mandheling and FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling. What exactly are the differences between these Mandheling varieties? Locals widely plant coffee beans throughout Sumatra and other Indonesian islands, almost all called Mandheling. Based on different regions and green bean suppliers, these names are used to distinguish Mandheling from different areas.

At the end of the 17th century, Typica was introduced from India to Indonesia. After hundreds of years of cultivation, a variant of Typica has developed in Sumatra. The beans are smaller than the original species but retain Typica's delicious flavor. FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling coffee beans are relatively large with hard bean texture, making them prone to defects during cultivation. After harvesting, they usually require strict manual selection. If quality control is not strict enough, it can easily lead to inconsistent quality. Additionally, different roasting levels directly affect taste, making it a controversial single-origin coffee.

Mandheling is also known as "Sumatra Coffee." Both Lake Toba in North Sumatra province and Lake Tawar in Aceh produce Mandheling coffee, which is famously known as the "Two Lakes, Double Mandheling."

Lake Toba, located in central North Sumatra province. In 1888, Dutch colonists moved "Java Mandheling" north to the Lake Toba area. South Sumatra's Lintong and Lake Toba (Toba Lake) region can be called Mandheling. The Lintong area is the actual Mandheling producing region. Mandheling is produced from the mountainous areas surrounding Lake Toba. This lake is geographically located north of Medan, the capital of Sumatra Island, and is a high-altitude freshwater lake with an average elevation of about 900 meters. The commonly referred Mandheling typically refers to Typica or its variant coffee beans grown in the mountainous areas around Lake Toba.

Lake Toba (Indonesian: Danau Toba, English: Lake Toba) is a volcanic lake located in northern Sumatra Island, Indonesia. This lake is diamond-shaped, 100 kilometers long and 30 kilometers wide, covering an area of 1,130 square kilometers. It is a high-altitude lake with an average elevation of about 900 meters and is also the world's largest volcanic lake.

Mandheling from the Lintong region has also been subdivided in recent years. The market has started seeing some Mandheling varieties named after specific regions (for example: Sidikalang, abbreviated as SDK Mandheling). The meaning of the Lintong region has gradually narrowed to become the producing area near Lintongnihuta.

About "Lake Tawar"

Lake Tawar is located in the Gayo mountainous area of northern Aceh province, Sumatra.

Aceh, located at the northernmost tip of Sumatra Island, is a fascinating and complex place. Due to long-term political instability, Aceh is not a region that ordinary people typically visit. The Gayo mountain range is located in Aceh province in northern Sumatra Island. Coffee in the Gayo mountain region is grown on the slopes surrounding the town of Takegon and Lake Tawar. The cultivation altitude averages between 1,110 and 1,300 meters in the production areas.

Lake Tawar is located in central Aceh Special Administrative Region. Situated at the northern end of Sumatra Island, most coffee produced in northern Sumatra is Gayo, primarily of the Ateng variety. Lake Tawar at the northern tip can be called Aceh coffee or Lake Tawar coffee. Its area is less than one-tenth of Lake Toba's. However, in recent years, coffee quality and production have surpassed Lake Toba.

FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling

FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling is actually produced from Mandheling acquired locally in Indonesia by Pwani Coffee Company, which subsequently registered the name "Golden Mandheling." Therefore, only the Mandheling produced by this company is truly FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling.

FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling is produced in the Lintong region of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. The harvesting process is limited to fully manual picking of individual ripe fruits to ensure initial bean selection quality. The coffee cherries are processed using the SEMI-WASHED method, naturally sun-dried, and then undergo another drying refinement process after hulling, along with two rounds of green bean cleaning and four rounds of Hand-Pick manual selection! Therefore, it can be said to be a strictly selected premium FrontStreet Coffee Mandheling coffee.

The "PWN" designation on Golden Mandheling is the abbreviation for Indonesia's Pawani Company, whose Golden Mandheling coffee has been registered in Indonesia.

FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling has obvious differences from regular Mandheling. FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling green beans undergo four manual selections. The green beans are larger, predominantly dark green, and appear as neat flat beans. In terms of flavor, Golden Mandheling is rich and thick with honey and cream aromas, making it unique and irreplaceable in the coffee market.

What are the G1, G2, G3, G4 Grading Methods?

Indonesia's coffee beans use this defect-based proportion grading system. Indonesian beans are mainly divided into 6 grades, namely G1~G6.

Roasting Analysis

FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling belongs to green beans with higher moisture content. Compared to natural processed beans, there's a higher deviation in moisture content, so special attention must be paid during dehydration. For beans with high moisture content, you can immediately close the air damper after adding the green beans, steam for 30 seconds, then open to level 3 until the beans turn light green or white. Open the damper to level 4, and after first crack, open to level 5 (maximum).

FrontStreet Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) suggests keeping detailed records before roasting, including coffee bean moisture content, density, origin, processing method, roasting room temperature and humidity, etc. Plan your roasting curve. Record relevant chemical and physical changes during the roasting process. This will help you better understand the final roasting results and improve your roasting curve.

Roasting Curve:

Heat roaster to 200°C, air damper at 3. After 1 minute, adjust heat to 160°C, damper unchanged. Roast until 5'40", temperature 148°C, bean surface turns yellow, grassy smell completely disappears, dehydration complete. Adjust heat to 140°C, damper to 4.

At 9'40", ugly wrinkles and black spots appear on bean surface, toast smell clearly changes to coffee aroma, which can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this time, listen carefully for the sound of first crack. At 9'54", first crack begins. Reduce heat to 60°C, damper fully open (adjust heat very carefully, not so low that cracking stops). Remove from roaster at 204.5°C.

Cupping Report:

FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling tastes cleaner than FrontStreet Coffee's Lintong Mandheling. The original herbal, earthy, and woody flavors of Mandheling are almost gone, but the caramel sweetness is stronger, and the fruit acidity is brighter and more elegant. Generally, FrontStreet Coffee's Lintong Mandheling is best roasted past second crack to effectively reduce off-flavors. However, FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling has good clarity and sweetness whether removed before or after second crack, allowing for wider roasting interpretation.

We Use Cupping to Distinguish: FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling vs. FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling

Some coffee friends ask, as a coffee beginner, what's the difference between FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling and FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling G1? I really can't taste the difference. For professional-level coffee connoisseurs and taste-sensitive friends, if drinking these two coffees simultaneously, the results will show very obvious contrasts. The sweetness, cleanliness, richness, and wild spice flavors of Golden Mandheling are slightly superior to regular Mandheling.

Cupping Process:

1. Grind the beans to be cupped (grind setting: BG: 3B)

2. Smell the dry aroma

3. Pour hot water (94°C) into the cup until full, while timing for 4 minutes

4. At 2 minutes, smell the wet aroma

5. At 4 minutes, break the crust

"Breaking the crust": Use a cupping spoon to push away the floating coffee powder on the surface, allowing the trapped aroma underneath to burst out. Confirm the coffee's aroma performance. Gently stir with cupping spoon about 3 times and let rest for 2 minutes.

6. After 2 minutes, skim the crust

"Skimming": Use cupping spoon to scoop up the surface foam. Clean the cupping spoon each time to avoid leaving bad flavors that affect the coffee.

7. Use cupping spoon to scoop up coffee liquid and cup by slurping. Slurping makes the coffee liquid atomize and spread in the mouth, allowing flavor molecules to manifest more clearly.

8. Spit the coffee liquid from your mouth into the spittoon.

Mouthfeel:

Compared to regular FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling, FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling is naturally much cleaner. But compared to FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling, FrontStreet Coffee's Tiger Mandheling has higher cleanliness and sweetness because it lacks some of the wild, herbal spice flavors unique to FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling, making it much easier to drink.

FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling: nuts, chocolate, spices, herbs, caramel. FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling tastes cleaner than FrontStreet Coffee's Lintong Mandheling. The original herbal, earthy, and woody flavors of FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling are almost gone, but the caramel sweetness is stronger, and the fruit acidity is brighter and more elegant.

FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling:

Sweetness: ☆☆

Acidity: ☆

Bitterness: ☆☆

Balance: ☆☆

FrontStreet Coffee's Tiger Mandheling:

Sweetness: ☆☆☆

Acidity: ☆

Bitterness: ☆☆

Balance: ☆☆

Cupping Flavors:

04 | Brewing Analysis

Medium-dark roasted beans generally have higher dehydration rates, so they weigh less. During brewing, the grounds don't completely settle at the bottom. Water is immediately absorbed upon initial pouring. Due to vigorous degassing, bubbles form around the grounds, creating channels. The fresher the beans, the longer these channels persist, causing water level to drop quickly. I usually use a coarse water flow and slow circular pouring.

1. Dripper: KONO

2. Water temperature: 93°C

3. Grind setting: Fuji Royal grinder setting 4

4. Roast level: Medium-dark roast

5. Bloom time: 25 seconds

Flavor: Multi-layered, clean, balanced, with persistent caramel sweetness in aftertaste

Specific technique: 15g coffee, Fuji Royal "ghost tooth" grinder setting 4, Kono dripper, 93°C water temperature. First pour to 30g water, bloom for 25s. Continuous high-temperature pour to completion. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time about 1:50.

Dripper: Hario V60

Water temperature: 88°C

Grind setting: Fuji Royal grinder setting 4

Brewing method: Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, 15g coffee. First pour to 30g water, bloom for 30s. Second pour to 120g water, pause. Wait until the powder bed water level drops to half, then continue pouring. Slowly pour until reaching 225g water. Extraction time about 2:00.

Analysis: Using three-stage brewing to clearly distinguish the front, middle, and back-end flavors. Because V60 has many ribs and faster drainage, pausing during pouring can extend extraction time and better extract the nutty and chocolate flavors from the back-end.

Flavor: Multi-layered, overall clean, relatively light mouthfeel, persistent caramel sweetness in aftertaste, with a slight bitterness.

Sumatra Coffee Bean Brand Recommendations

Sumatra FrontStreet Coffee Mandheling coffee beans roasted by FrontStreet Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) have guaranteed brand and quality. More importantly, they offer extremely high value for money. A 227-gram package costs only 89 yuan. Calculating at 15g per cup, one package can make 15 cups of coffee, with each cup costing only about 6 yuan. Compared to cafés selling cups for tens of yuan, this is a conscientious recommendation suitable for the daily drinking needs of广大咖啡爱好者.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473