What are the characteristics of Yemeni Moka-Matari natural processed coffee beans? How to make Moka coffee beans

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What are the characteristics of Yemen Mocha-Matari natural processed coffee beans? How should Mocha coffee beans be brewed to taste good?

Yemen is located in Asia, facing Ethiopia across the Red Sea in East Africa. It is the highest-quality natural sun-dried coffee producing country. Coffee produced in Yemen is called Mocha beans. In fact, Mocha is a coffee export port. Early natural sun-dried beans from nearby East Africa were all exported to various parts of the world through Mocha Port, so natural sun-dried beans produced in this area, including Yemen and Ethiopia in East Africa, are collectively called Mocha beans.

Yemen Mocha (YEMEN MOCHA): Although from a botanical perspective, coffee originated in Ethiopia, from a cultural perspective, the event of introducing coffee as a beverage to the European world occurred in Arabia's Yemen. From that time on for a period, talking about coffee was equivalent to talking about Yemen, and also equivalent to talking about Mocha. Mocha is a commercial port, just as Brazilian coffee is exported from Santos Port, so Santos is used to refer to Brazilian coffee. The coffee-exporting Mocha Port also became the collective name for Yemen coffee. Yemen is completely different from other coffee-producing countries. Lack of water, arid climate, and barren land have made the coffee tree species that survive in Yemen different from the meticulously cultivated varieties of other major coffee countries. Compared to Arabia's Yemen, the climate of Central and South America is like a fully equipped greenhouse. These unfavorable factors have caused Yemen's coffee industry to decline day by day. However, due to these factors, Yemen coffee flavor exhibits uncontrollable, primitive wildness.

Although Yemen's coffee industry has declined, this bean can still be found in the current specialty coffee market. Yemen coffee varieties are complex, so they are generally named by origin, such as Mattari, Sanani, Ismaeili, Hirazi, etc.

Yemen's natural sun-drying processing method involves manually harvesting fully ripe coffee beans and then directly placing the freshly harvested coffee beans in a dedicated coffee drying field or their own compacted earthen courtyard to receive sun exposure. During the sun-drying period, similar to drying rice in Taiwan, wooden rakes must be used to turn the beans to ensure each bean dries evenly. After about twenty days when the coffee drying is complete, the outer pulp and skin are removed to extract the coffee beans. Yemen coffee is characterized by rich, complex, wild, mellow, and strong fermented flavors with lower acidity. In addition, Yemen coffee often contains an uncertain factor (the timing of seasonal rainfall) that makes it unpredictable. Calling it the most special coffee in the world is no exaggeration.

Yemen coffee grows on steep slopes with little rainfall, barren land, and insufficient sunlight -不利 conditions for coffee growth. However, these unique, difficult, and unfavorable conditions have nurtured the irreplaceable Yemen Mocha in the coffee world. The main coffee-producing regions are Sanani, Matari, and Ismaili.

Coffee from the Matari region has inconsistent bean sizes and quite large color differences, appearing to be composed of small pea-sized beans and empty shell defective beans (Bulo has pictures). The raw beans have a fermented wine aroma. The fragrance is not as eye-catching as the strawberry sandwich cookie aroma of Ethiopian Red Cherry coffee, but the low-key, calm, and sufficient fermented wine aftertaste is unmatched by natural sun-dried beans from other countries.

There are many empty shell beans in Yemen Mocha raw beans, and the raw beans vary in size and color depth. This is a characteristic of Yemen Mocha and also the reason for its variable fragrance.

On the right are Ethiopian Mist Estate raw beans with consistent size and color, no empty shells or defective beans. On the left are Yemen Mocha Matari raw beans with inconsistent size and color, with some empty shell beans.

Light Roast City (Fresh Fragrance)

Before grinding, the coffee beans have a peanut aroma. After grinding, there's a fragrance of hawthorn plum fruit wine. During the brewing process, there's a light fermented taste. The mouthfeel is varied with complex layers in the mouth. A slight grape acidity appears at the changing end in the mouth. The aftertaste is long, with saliva-inducing sweet return that is mellow and has a Middle Eastern milk tea feeling that lasts for a long time. The bottom of the cup has malt sweetness. Light-roasted Yemen Mocha will continue to change constantly. It's recommended to brew 7-14 days after roasting when the complex wild fermented flavor is at its best.

Dark Roast (General C)

It has a very obvious gentle wine-like fragrance characteristic of Yemen natural sun-dried beans. The beans contain the sweetness of cocoa chocolate. The entire style transforms to gentle and reserved, but unexpected aromas may appear at any time. The aftertaste has a mellow Mocha taste (fermented fragrance) that uniformly and continuously develops in the mouth.

Yemen Mocha is a coffee full of changes and uncertainties. After brewing, you can first smell the fermented wine aroma at high temperature. As the temperature decreases, you begin to taste the varied and complex mouthfeel. At low temperature, you can taste the complete release of acidity and sweetness from the coffee. After purchase, it's recommended to drink half first to taste the fresh Yemen Matari floral aroma, and let time fully display all the wildness hidden in the other half of Yemen Matari without regrets.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommended Brewing:

Dripper: Hario V60

Water Temperature: 90 degrees

Grind Size: Fuji Royal grinder setting 3.5

Brewing Method: Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, 15g of coffee grounds. First infusion with 25g of water, let bloom for 25s. Second infusion to 120g of water, then stop pouring. Wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to halfway, then continue pouring. Slowly pour water until reaching 225g total. Extraction time around 2:00.

Analysis: Using a three-stage brewing method to clearly distinguish the front, middle, and back-end flavors of the coffee. Because V60 has many ribs and drains faster, stopping pouring during the process can extend the extraction time.

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