Different Indonesian Coffee Beans - Do You Know Bali Coffee Beans? How Much Do Bali Coffee Beans Cost?

Indonesia: The Island Nation of Coffee

Indonesia, known as the "Thousand Islands Country," is the country with the most islands in the world. When people mention Indonesia, the place they know best is probably the tourist destination Bali. Today, let's take a closer look at the coffee of Indonesia.

The Flavor Profile of Indonesian Coffee

What does Indonesian coffee taste like? Clean, fruity, sweet and spicy — though many people disagree with that answer. They argue that traditional Indonesian coffee should show strong earthy notes, a stimulating spiciness from fermentation, and a damp, woody fiber sensation.

Coffee Varieties

In Indonesia, 90% of coffee is Robusta, likely a consequence of the devastating coffee leaf rust disease of the 19th century. In the Toraja region, however, 95% of coffee is Arabica. The main variety in the Toraja region of Sulawesi is S795 (also known as Jember), an Arabica with strong resistance to leaf rust and a prominent sweetness that reads as maple syrup or brown sugar.

1. Sumatra: Sumatra Coffee

Sumatra Island is the largest coffee-producing region in Indonesia. The well-known growing areas are concentrated mainly in the northern mountains, and famous coffees include Mandheling, Lintong and Gayo Mountain.

Mandheling coffee is said to take its name from the local Mandailing ethnic group, with production areas mostly pointing to the mountains north of Lake Toba, though the specific areas still need further verification.

Lintong coffee comes from the mountains around Lake Toba, the largest volcanic lake on Sumatra, in North Sumatra Province. The name comes from a small town called Lintong to the south-west of the lake.

Gayo Mountain coffee comes from the mountains around Takengon and Lake Tawar in Aceh Province.

2. Java: Java Coffee

Java is the earliest coffee-growing area in Indonesia and dominated the world coffee market as early as the 18th century. The famous Java Mocha, made by blending Java coffee with Yemen Mocha, represents an entire era's impression of coffee. There is also the classic Monsoon Coffee and Aged Coffee.

Coffee cultivation on Java initially ran through large farms established by Dutch colonisers in the 18th century. After World War II and various upheavals, it gradually shifted to smallholder cultivation. High-quality Java coffee typically comes from the five remaining large farms. Although Java's production accounts for only about 10% of Indonesia's total coffee output, it forms an important part of the country's specialty coffee.

3. Sulawesi: Sulawesi Coffee

The most famous region on Sulawesi Island is Toraja.

Toraja coffee comes from the Tana Toraja region of South Sulawesi Province, named after the local Toraja people. Tana Toraja lies approximately 300 kilometers north of the provincial capital Makassar and is a well-known tourist destination in Indonesia.

Initially, the Sulawesi coffee industry mainly supplied the Japanese market.

Processing Methods

The main processing method for Indonesian coffee is wet-hulling, locally called Giling Basah — the traditional Indonesian method and one of the drying techniques that makes traditional Indonesian coffee unique.

1. Why Use Wet Hulling

The tradition of wet-hulling in Indonesia stems from local weather conditions. Indonesia's humidity stays between 70-90% year-round, with continuous typhoons, and in some regions annual rainfall reaches as much as 2,000mm.

In such a humid climate, drying coffee becomes a serious problem. Coffee drying takes longer, and throughout that time the coffee stays relatively humid, which makes it easier for bacteria to penetrate the raw beans. Wet-hulling removes the parchment before the final drying step, allowing direct sunlight to reach the surface of the raw beans and making them dry 2-3 times faster than washed processing would.

2. The Wet Hulling Processing Method

Wet-hulling is a variation of washed processing, generally completed by the farmers themselves.

1. Remove the skin and pulp, retaining the parchment and mucilage

2. Ferment in water pools

3. Wash off the mucilage

4. Sun-dry with parchment for 2-3 days until moisture content reaches 20-24%

5. Hull off the parchment

6. Dry the raw beans until moisture content reaches 12-13%

7. Prepare for export

Through this complex series of drying steps, the beans are slightly moulded, creating the famous "earthy" flavor of Sumatran coffee. This natural earthy aroma manifests as a complex, stimulating sweetness, delicate and pleasing — at least as it was in micro-lot estate coffees from Sumatra about 10+ years ago.

As time has passed, wet-hulling in Sumatra has been further improved: earthy flavors have become marginal while the sweetness has deepened. Some people associate these earthy aromas with fresh leaves on the ground, tobacco, cedar, fir trees and peppercorns, along with a slightly fruity quality, soft acidity and a heavy body.

3. Processing Defects: Kuku Kambing

When the parchment is hulled off in wet-hulling, the coffee's moisture content is still as high as 20-24%, whereas in general processing methods the moisture drops to 10-12% before hulling. In this "semi-dry" state, parchment tends to adhere to the surface of the raw bean, making hulling more difficult than "fully dry" hulling and requiring greater friction force.

From another angle, though, "semi-dry" raw beans are very fragile at this point, with a hardness far below that of "fully dry" beans, so they are more likely to be squeezed and injured, forming small gaps. This is what is often called horsehoof or goat's hoof bean, locally known as kuku kambing.

The ultra-fast processing speed of wet-hulling also results in higher defect rates in Mandheling. At processing plants, employees carry out manual defect sorting, generally DP (double picking) and TP (triple picking). Mandheling that has undergone triple picking will have lower defect rates than double picking.

4. Impact of Wet Hulling on Toraja Region Coffee Flavor

S795 has prominent sweetness, black cherry, nutmeg spice and a high body. International cupper Mauricio Murillo's assessment of Sulawesi coffee is that it places equal emphasis on fruit and earthy flavors.

Some roasters believe Toraja is popular in Japan, the United States and some European countries because it can serve as a "bridge" between traditional coffee consumers, who prefer body, and modern coffee consumers, who prefer flavor — especially fruit and cleanliness — accommodating both habits at once.

Local roasters and cuppers describe the flavor profile of specialty coffee from the Toraja region as sweet nuts, caramel and a medium, smooth body, with an acidity reminiscent of citrus and passion fruit, a stimulating spiciness similar to cinnamon and cloves, cocoa flavors in the aftertaste, and an overall balance and cleanliness.

Grading

Indonesia's coffee grading system can be traced back to the Dutch colonial era, and the latest standards are still based on defect counting. The 1983 coffee quality standards were revised and implemented in October 1990, namely Standar Nasional Indonesia (SNI) biji kopi, No: 01-2907-1999.

Washed and dry-processed coffees are divided into 6 grades, G1 to G6, with G4 subdivided into G4a and G4b and G1 the highest. That gives G1, G2, G3, G4a, G4b, G5 and G6. Export beans are usually above G4.

1. General Standards for Raw Coffee Beans

1. Moisture content. WP washed beans maximum 12%, DP dry-processed beans maximum 13%.

2. Foreign matter content. Maximum 0.5%.

3. No live insect beans, mouldy beans or stinky beans.

4. Sample defect count, 300g.

2. Grading Reference

3. Sun-dried Bean Defect Counting Reference

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

FrontStreet PWN Golden Mandheling — Among Mandheling coffees, Golden Mandheling is the one that satisfies the most exacting drinker. FrontStreet's Golden Mandheling comes from Indonesia's PWN company, which applies extremely strict standards: only beans of 18 mesh and above are selected, and each 300g green bean sample must contain fewer than 3 defective beans to meet the highest G1 standard. On top of that, three rounds of hand sorting remove every remaining defect, raising the cup's cleanliness and the intensity of its sweetness. That demanding standard explains both the quality and the limited output of FrontStreet's PWN Golden Mandheling, and why it naturally ranks at the top of Mandheling coffees. It shows sandalwood, herbs, spice, roasted hazelnut, caramel and dark chocolate, with a clean, sweet, rich cup and a fascinating, layered aroma.

FrontStreet Lintong Mandheling — The traditional Mandheling production area lies in the Lintong region around Lake Toba in North Sumatra, where diverse plant life and a suitable growing altitude combine with the special wet-hulling method and the local microbial fermentation to produce the mysterious, distinctive Mandheling flavor: a rich aroma, a generous body and a strong taste. Wet-hulling gives this coffee its heavy, unique earthy and herbal character — the taste that has kept a certain breed of coffee lover devoted to it for years. Dark and bittersweet in the cup, it hits the palate intensely, with clove and woody aromas, and, as a medium-dark roast, low acidity, spice and mint notes and a strong, lasting sweetness.

FrontStreet Classic Espresso Blend — Mandheling was long considered the world's richest, most aromatic coffee and was often used in espresso, and that is where the Mamba recipe comes from. FrontStreet's Classic Blend sits on the creamy nutty base of Brazilian coffee with a medium-dark Mandheling added; butter, roasted chestnut and caramel stand out, while Mandheling lifts the body and contributes sandalwood, herbal and spice notes. A small addition of Robusta further enriches the crema, making it easy to pour latte art or layer a Dirty.