Layer-by-Layer Analysis of Coffee Natural Processing Steps - Coffee Bronze Doesn't Understand What Natural Processing Is

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FrontStreet Coffee's Introduction to Natural Coffee Processing Steps

Natural Method (Natural, Natural Dry, Sun Dry, Dry Process)

1. Drying

The coffee cherries are spread out directly on drying grounds to dry, sometimes with the help of drying machines. Once the moisture content reaches 12%, the dried cherries can be stored in warehouses. Dried whole cherries keep far longer than beans that have had their parchment and silverskin removed.

Natural drying can also be called the natural process. Essentially, it is the oldest, simplest, and most primitive method, and it requires the fewest mechanical tools.

After coffee cherries are harvested from the mountains, the next step is to remove the fruit skin and pulp to obtain the coffee beans. There are two main processing methods, washed and natural, and the ultimate deciding factor is simply whether enough water is available. Some specialty coffees use both natural and washed processing.

The first step is sorting and cleaning. Unripe, overripe, and damaged cherries are removed first. At the same time, branches, leaves, mud clods, and stones mixed in with the cherries are taken out. Sieves are typically used for this preliminary sorting.

The cherries are then dried in the sun, usually on concrete floors or raised straw mats. Drying takes about 3-4 weeks. During drying, rakes are used to turn the cherries several times so they heat evenly and the pulp does not mold. At night they must be covered to keep off the moisture from morning dew. When the cherries' moisture content reaches 12%, they are collected and placed in storage bins.

Before export, the cherries undergo hulling, which removes the dried fruit skin, pulp, parchment, and silverskin all at once.

Finally, the coffee beans are graded and packaged by hand or by machine.

Over-dried cherries can make the beans more brittle, resulting in too many defective beans. Cherries that are insufficiently dried because of high moisture content are more susceptible to spoilage and pest damage.

The natural process is widely used in coffee-exporting countries such as Brazil, African nations, and Asia. Naturally processed beans can make coffee taste sweeter and richer. After natural processing, the beans range in color from light green to light coffee color. Coffee processed this way is characterized by a thick, smooth texture and sweet fruity flavors.

Knowledge Expansion: Sumatra Wet Hulling Method

Beyond adapting to the rainy season, the Sumatra wet-hulling method also produces unique earthy flavors, herbal notes, a rich body, and lower acidity.

In Summary

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FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Natural and washed processing sit at opposite ends of the flavor spectrum, and FrontStreet Coffee's lineup lets you compare them directly. For a clean, washed reference point, FrontStreet Yirgacheffe Guddina comes from a cooperative in Guddina village whose meticulous washing produces an especially delicate, clean cup; the process lets jasmine florals and bright citrus acidity lead, and a medium-light roast adds green tea and honey tones across a pour-over, a cold brew, or an espresso.

At the other extreme, FrontStreet Kenya Cherry Tomato is one of the best-known examples of washed coffee done intensely. Kenya is famous for its double-washed method, repeating the washing step so the beans are floated, rinsed of residual mucilage, soaked, dried, and hulled. The repeated soaking and rinsing push the juice-like quality to its limit, so the cup shows cherry tomato, smoked plum, snow pear, black plum, and brown sugar aromas with a sweet, juicy, full body. If you prefer the naturals described above, the same country's washed logic explains why FrontStreet Jamaica Blue Mountain No.1 tastes so even: Jamaica's short island sunshine hours made pre-drying removal of skin, pulp, and mucilage the practical choice, and it yields translucent, low-defect beans with hazelnut, cream, chocolate, and caramel notes in a truly balanced cup.