Yemen's Legendary Natural Coffee: How Good is Yemen Mocha Coffee Flavor?

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The Mysterious Allure of Yemeni Coffee

When Yemeni coffee is mentioned, one immediately thinks of the magical natural sun-dried beans with a rich, satisfying mouthfeel. The aftertaste presents a fantastic wild aroma reminiscent of fermented tea, stacking layer upon layer, much like Yemen itself—a country full of mystery, unpredictability, and endless fascination.

Geographical and Historical Context

Yemen is located in Asia, facing Ethiopia across the Red Sea. 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 on, natural sun-dried beans from nearby East Africa were also exported worldwide through Mocha Port, so the natural sun-dried beans produced in this region, including Yemen and Ethiopia in East Africa, were collectively referred to as Mocha beans.

Traditional Processing Methods

Yemen's natural sun-dried processing method involves manually harvesting fully ripe coffee beans and then placing freshly harvested beans directly in specialized coffee drying fields or on their own compacted earthen front yards to receive sun exposure. During the sun-drying period, similar to drying rice in Taiwan, wooden rakes are 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. Yemeni coffee is characterized by rich, complex, wild, mellow, and strong fermented flavors with lower acidity. Additionally, Yemeni coffee often contains an uncertain factor (the timing of seasonal rainfall) that makes it unpredictable, making it no exaggeration to call it the world's most special coffee.

Unique Growing Conditions

Yemeni coffee grows on steep terrain with little rainfall, poor soil, and insufficient sunlight. These unique, difficult, and unfavorable conditions for coffee growth have nurtured the irreplaceable Yemeni Mocha in the coffee world. The main coffee-producing regions are Sanani, Matari, and Ismaili.

Historical Cultivation Practices

For centuries, Yemen's rough and primitive coffee cultivation methods have seen slight improvements. Coffee trees are planted in small plots on steep mountain slopes, and these mountainous areas are difficult to access. The dry Arabian soil and lack of moisture in the air make the coffee beans grown here particularly hard and small. Sophisticated irrigation systems bring spring water to terraced coffee gardens surrounded by soil and low walls. All this work is done manually. Coffee beans are mostly dried on rooftops or flat ground. Strangely enough, coffee beverages are not very popular in this region where coffee was first consumed, and the coffee brewing methods are also quite poor. Coffee liquid is generally boiled with bean pods. Small farmers pay more attention to cultivating a medicinal plant called qat because chewing qat is popular locally, while neglecting to care for coffee trees. Mocha production remains limited by local political turmoil and cultivation that doesn't meet economic scale. Mocha coffee gets its name from Yemen's Moka, which was the earliest coffee export port, supplying global coffee commercial trade until the end of the 17th century.

Flavor Profile and Blending

Since people began drinking coffee, Mocha has always been recognized as excellent coffee with distinctive acidity. Some consider Mocha's special acidity to be aggressive. That's because after a day of hard work, people's sense of taste becomes dull to delicate flavors. The coffee itself is very aromatic and rich. Yemeni Mocha is represented by Mattari from the Bani Matar region. It has a sweet, smooth mouthfeel with a unique aromatic flavor. It is characterized by slight acidity with a strong aftertaste. Mocha is suitable for blending with Milds category coffees, especially suitable for creating blended coffee with Mysore coffee, Indonesian Java coffee, and Sumatra coffee. Locals like to mix Mocha with Mysore to make Turkish coffee. It is the most suitable coffee for post-meal consumption. It is also the finest among Mochas.

FrontStreet Coffee's Yemen Mocha Mattari

FrontStreet Coffee's Yemen Mocha Mattari, perhaps due to Yemen's cultivation methods and ancient sun-dried processing, gives this bean a somewhat nostalgic taste. Wild, full of untamed spirit and freedom, the intense chocolate flavor upon entry is intoxicating. As the coffee cools slightly, the sweet and sour grape sensation fills the entire mouth.

Brewing Recommendations

FrontStreet Coffee brewing parameter recommendations:

V60/89°C/1:15/Two minutes

Flavor: Dark chocolate, grape, spices

Related recommendations: What is Mocha coffee? Yemeni Mocha-Mattari sun-dried beans are the true Mocha coffee beans from Yemen

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