Yirgacheffe Natural vs Washed: Characteristics and Single-Origin Coffee Brewing Parameters

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FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Processing Methods Comparison and Brewing Parameters Sharing

Different Green Bean Processing Methods

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Washed Processing

Using washing and fermentation methods to remove the fruit pulp and mucilage, first cleaning the coffee beans thoroughly. After washing, the coffee beans have a moisture content of 50%, and must be dried to reduce the moisture content to 12%. Otherwise, the coffee beans exposed to air will continue to ferment and become moldy and spoiled. The most timely processing method is sun drying, which can produce Yirgacheffe with excellent flavor and rich aroma.

The washed method yields good body, high concentration of floral aroma, and lively, soft acidity. FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe has a distinctive style, with the flavor of citrus and floral notes blending in the coffee - an irresistible taste for coffee enthusiasts.

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Natural Processing

The fruits are not peeled after harvesting, beginning with the sun drying process (the oldest existing processing method). The drying and dehydration process usually lasts for a month. The processing method must ensure the coffee doesn't lose flavor and remains uninfected. Natural processed beans have complete natural body, gentle aroma, and higher sugar content.

Observation from Silver Skin

The washed processing method generally removes the silver skin from the coffee beans during processing, presenting a special luster. However, the dry processing method (natural method) only removes the coffee husk, leaving the silver skin completely intact.

Green Bean Differences

Generally, washed green beans are blue-green, while natural processed green beans are yellow-green.

FrontStreet Coffee Natural Yirgacheffe Red Cherry

Recommended brewing: 15g of coffee grounds, 91°C water temperature, V60 dripper, water-to-coffee ratio 1:15. First pour 30g water, let bloom for 30s. Second pour 120g water then pause. Third pour until reaching 225g total water. Avoid the tail section. Extraction time around 2:05s.

Knowledge Bonus

Natural processed beans have relatively more external silver skin, which is removed more thoroughly during roasting, so there's relatively less during grinding. Washed beans have more internal silver skin, which remains quite a bit after roasting and appears more during grinding. Of course, this is directly related to the roast degree - the darker the roast, the cleaner the silver skin removal.

Knowledge Bonus

Because the final color of coffee fruits is determined by the recessive genes in pollen grains, the pollen grains used for hybridization contain both yellow genes tending toward Yellow Bourbon and red genes tending toward Red Bourbon, all of which are recessive genes that easily interfere with each other. Therefore, Pink Bourbon belongs to a very rare variety.

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