Papua New Guinea | Eastern Highlands Baroida Estate Washed Bean Flavor and Brewing?

Papua New Guinea | Baroida Estate Washed Bean Flavor and Brewing from the Eastern Highlands Region

Baroida Estate is located in the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea, at the top of the Lamari River Valley in the Jabarra mountain range, and was founded by Ben Colbran. In the 1960s, Ben purchased this land from the indigenous Taro people, and they were practically the first to grow crops in this valley. This 220-hectare plantation with approximately 1 million coffee trees is the only coffee estate in Papua New Guinea owned and operated by foreigners. The elevation reaches up to 1775 meters. In the past, traceable information about independent plots mostly appeared for Gesha varieties primarily from Central American Panama, and later occasionally seen in countries mainly from South American Colombia.

In 1965, the government encouraged early settlers to start planting coffee as a long-term crop. Ben began planting coffee trees at Baroida Estate and became one of the first coffee producers in the Eastern Highlands, starting to export the output to foreign countries. The entire estate is divided into 26 blocks, and GPS is used to accurately track the varieties and daily production processes of each planting area's output batches. The Colbran family has now passed to the third generation, operated by Ben's son Nickel and grandson Chris together. In addition to the estate's own output, Baroida also integrates the production resources of small estates and small farmers around the estate, establishing a larger supply chain network. After more than 50 years of cooperation with estates and small farmers in this region, the Colbran family has gained widespread respect from the residents of the Lamari River Valley, from early guidance in agricultural techniques and promotion of the coffee industry to recent bridge building, road paving, and school construction locally, opening up product sales markets for them. For the past 20 years, the Colbrans family has served as a procurement agent for large multinational traders, ensuring continuous and stable supply of high-quality coffee through direct trade, which is still quite admirable today, and undoubtedly one of Papua New Guinea's most outstanding and unique coffee estates.

Papua New Guinea is located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, within the Pacific Ring of Fire's volcanic belt, belonging to volcanic geology with fertile soil, which is an important natural condition for nurturing good coffee. Although it has a good environment, its current share in the global coffee bean market is not high, only 0.7%. Coffee is very important to Papua New Guinea, being the only cash crop in the highland areas. 40% of the country's more than 2 million small farmer families rely on coffee beans as a very important source of livelihood. Most of Papua New Guinea's coffee beans are grown in the highlands, with Arabica accounting for as high as 95%, and the processing method is mainly washed fermentation in the early stage followed by sun-drying in the later stage. Main varieties include Bourbon, Arusha, and Mundo Novo.

Estate coffee from Papua New Guinea comes from larger-scale farms and has cleaner and more refined cupping characteristics. The taste is lighter than Java beans, with subtle aromas and complexity, and sometimes the acidity and brightness can even rival the highest quality coffee beans from Central America. A renowned American roaster described Papua New Guinea's sun-dried beans as: astonishing depth and diverse aromas. Coffee from Kimmell Estate is bright, acidic, and rich in fruit aroma, while coffee from Arokara Estate has milder balance, suitable for espresso.

Within Papua New Guinea, important coffee-producing regions include Eastern Highlands Province, Enga Province, Western Highlands Province, and Chimbu Province, with elevations mostly between 1200-1900 meters, having a strong Central American style. The production system is mainly dominated by small farmers, with a few large estates or government-specific support programs. Papua New Guinea's coffee beans have been highly acclaimed by many people in recent years because of their solid taste, yet very low acidity, and clean flavor, which aligns well with Asian preferences for coffee, making it a rising Asian coffee-producing region.

Coffee Information

Region: Eastern Highlands

Producer: Baroida Estate

Processing Method: Washed

Varieties: Bourbon, Typica

Elevation: 1800 to 2000 meters

Flavor: Malic acid, dried fruit, syrupy sweetness, nutty chocolate, Southeast Asian spices, round texture, balanced taste

FrontStreet Coffee Recommended Brewing:

Dripper: Hario V60

Water Temperature: 90°C

Grind Size: Fuji Royal grinder setting 3.5

Brewing Method: 1:15 water-to-coffee ratio, 15g coffee, first pour 25g water, 25s bloom, second pour to 120g then pause, wait until the water level drops to half before pouring again, slowly pour until reaching 225g, extraction time around 2:00

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

Important Notice :

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