Coffee Recommendations from Sumatra: Discovering the Surprising Floral Notes of Sulawesi Toraja Coffee

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Sumatra, Sulawesi, and Toraja Coffee

Asian coffee production ranks second only to Central and South America. Indonesia has traditionally been the largest coffee-producing country in Asia, but the situation has changed in recent years. With World Bank assistance, Vietnam's production has rapidly expanded, officially surpassing Indonesia in 1999 to become Asia's largest coffee producer. However, Vietnam primarily produces Robusta beans, which do not fall into the specialty coffee category. In 2007, Vietnam produced 957,000 tons of coffee, making it the largest in Asia and the second-largest coffee-producing country in the world. Indonesia produced 420,000 tons of coffee beans in the same year, ranking second in Asia.

India produced 291,000 tons of coffee beans, ranking as the third-largest coffee-producing country in Asia. Asian coffee generally has a higher body than beans from Central/South America and Africa, but with lower acidity. The flavor profile tends to include notes of wood, herbs, spices, and earthy notes, with deeper mellow aromas prevailing over bright acidic fragrances.

Sulawesi: Limited Production, Superior Quality, Rich Floral Aroma

The burlap bags of "Sulawesi" coffee often feature three English words: "Celebes," "Toraja," and "Kalossi." "Celebes" was the old name for the island during Dutch colonial rule ("Celebes Island"), but it has long been changed to Sulawesi; "Toraja" is not a place name, city name, or variety name, but rather refers to the "Toraja" people (also translated as "Taloga") who live in the mountainous regions of central Sulawesi and are skilled at growing coffee. It is also the name of the island's specialty beans. Like the aforementioned Mandailing and Gayo peoples, they belong to ethnic groups proficient in coffee cultivation; "Kalossi" is the small town of Kalossi in the central part of the island, serving as the main trading center for Toraja (Taloga) coffee beans.

Toraja (Taloga) is also one of the world's rare specialty beans, with an annual production of about 1,000 metric tons, distributed across the rugged slopes of approximately 1,200 meters in central and southwestern Sulawesi. Cultivation and harvesting are challenging, with an average annual yield of only 300 kilograms per hectare, far below the average of over 1,000 kilograms per hectare in Central and South America. The three major estates of Toraja (Taloga) are: "PT Kapal Api" with 2,000 hectares of coffee plantations; "CSR" ranks second with 1,100 hectares of coffee plantations; and Japan's "Key Coffee" "Toarco Jaya" is the third-largest estate with 700 hectares of coffee plantations. In other words, Toraja is more precious and rare than Mandheling or Golden Mandheling.

Toraja (Taloga) is washed or semi-washed, offering brighter acidity and more distinct layers compared to Sumatra's Mandheling or Golden Mandheling. It has rich caramel sweetness, but the earthy, woody notes and body are much more restrained than Mandheling, with a slight floral aroma.

FrontStreet Coffee's Mission

In short: FrontStreet Coffee is a dedicated coffee research hall, happy to share coffee knowledge with everyone. We share without reservation, simply to help more friends fall in love with coffee. Every month, we hold three coffee discount events because FrontStreet Coffee wants to let more friends enjoy the best coffee at the lowest possible price. This has been FrontStreet Coffee's mission for six years!

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