How Many Types of Brazilian Coffee Beans? Understand the Pulped Natural Process

FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Brazilian Coffee Varieties and Semi-Washed Processing

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Brazil cultivates numerous coffee varieties, with Red Bourbon, Yellow Bourbon, Mundo Novo, and Catuai currently being the main varieties. Catuai, Acaia, Obata, Amarello, and Laurina are also cultivated and researched. The Campinas Agricultural Research Institute in São Paulo is Brazil's renowned coffee variety improvement arsenal, and Catimor, the most widely planted variety globally, is the masterpiece of Portuguese and Brazilian scientists.

Brazilian coffee is generally grown at lower altitudes compared to other producing countries in Central and South America, resulting in lower acidity in coffee flavor, with caramel and chocolate notes, prominent sweetness, but an overall lighter mouthfeel.

After 1990, Brazil advocated for the semi-washed method (also called pulped natural), which involves using water channels to remove defects and floaters after harvesting, then using machines to remove the skin, pulp, and part of the mucilage, followed by washing, and finally drying in the sun or in drying rooms. Compared to the washed method, the semi-washed method saves water and labor, significantly improving the quality of Brazilian coffee and reversing its long-standing poor reputation for crude natural processing.

Semi-Washed Processing Method

After coffee cherries are harvested, they first pass through water channels to remove unripe fruits and foreign objects, then the skin and pulp are removed, leaving the mucilage for sun drying.

After removing the outer pulp from sun-dried coffee beans, there remains a layer of viscous, gelatinous substance.

Advantages: During the process of removing coffee skin and pulp, fully ripe cherry pulp will be completely removed, while unripe coffee fruits (green or reddish-green) are difficult to remove. Therefore, this processing method can filter out unripe fruits. Compared to the natural method, maturity is more uniform; drying days are halved compared to natural processing; mainly used in Brazil, aiming to improve coffee quality.

Disadvantages: The drying process is susceptible to contamination and mold damage; requires constant close monitoring and continuous turning to accelerate drying to avoid undesirable fermentation flavors.

Knowledge Point: The more mucilage, the deeper the color of the beans, and you can experience stronger, richer sweetness and mouthfeel.

In Summary

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