Golden Mandheling Coffee Bean Brewing Guide: Grind Size, Water Temperature, and Flavor Profile of Indonesian Sumatran Coffee

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The Unique Regional Character of Mandheling Coffee

"As the environment shapes the people, so too does it shape coffee" - this saying applies perfectly to coffee, where regional differences create distinctive flavor profiles. Among the most memorable is Indonesia's Mandheling coffee.

FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling is characterized by its steady, rich, and aromatic profile, capturing the essence of traditional black coffee. It is precisely these qualities that have made FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling beloved by many coffee enthusiasts.

For those who don't prefer FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling, the intense bitterness can be off-putting, reminiscent of traditional herbal medicine. Some friends also note that FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling carries herbal and earthy notes that they find challenging to appreciate.

The Diversity of Mandheling Varieties

However, Mandheling comes in many varieties, such as regional Mandheling (Lintong Mandheling, Aceh Mandheling), varieties distinguished by bean type (Mandheling Dragon, Mandheling Longguo), and those prized for their flavor quality (Tiger Mandheling, Golden Mandheling, Dingshang Mandheling).

Despite this variety, all these Mandheling coffees retain the characteristic rich and full-bodied flavor while adding their own unique characteristics. For those wanting to experience the essence of Mandheling, FrontStreet Coffee recommends choosing "FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling." Why do we make this recommendation?

After cupping numerous Mandheling coffees, FrontStreet Coffee found that PWN Golden Mandheling is the cleanest and best represents the positive characteristics of Mandheling coffee, while eliminating the earthy notes often associated with it. This is all thanks to the high standards maintained by Pawani company.

The Excellence of PWN Golden Mandheling

Currently, the origin of Golden Mandheling is the Gayo Mountain region in Aceh, where most high-quality Mandheling coffees come from. The most distinctive feature of Golden Mandheling is its large bean size, minimal defects, and excellent appearance. To achieve this quality, Pawani implements one machine sorting followed by three manual hand-sortings, greatly ensuring the quality of FrontStreet Coffee's Golden Mandheling. Consequently, it commands a higher price than other Mandheling varieties.

It is precisely because of the high-quality control standards of FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling that it is cleaner, has fewer off-flavors, and is richer than other Mandheling coffees. Many friends report that brewing Mandheling often results in bitter and harsh flavors, creating a negative impression. FrontStreet Coffee suggests these friends try FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling.

FrontStreet Coffee would like to add that not all Mandheling with large beans and few defects can be called Golden Mandheling. The Golden Mandheling trademark is owned by PWN company, and imported Golden Mandheling green beans always come with a PWN certificate for authenticity verification. Additionally, Golden Mandheling is packaged in 30kg burlap bags, with each batch having a corresponding number that matches the certificate.

Brewing Recommendations for FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling

Of course, if brewed improperly, FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling can also easily develop bitter and harsh flavors. For those experiencing this issue, FrontStreet Coffee suggests trying the following brewing parameters.

When brewing FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling, Jamaica Blue Mountain, and other dark roast coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using a Kono dripper. This helps enhance the rich body of the coffee. If unavailable, a V60 dripper can also be used.

Use 15g for a single serving. It's recommended to let the beans rest for 4-7 days (counting from the roast date as day one) for optimal flavor development.

For grind size, when brewing FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling, use a slightly coarser grind than for light roast beans. Since FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling undergoes dark roasting, its structure becomes more porous, making it easier to absorb water and extract coffee compounds. If ground to the same fineness as light roast beans, it can easily develop burnt bitterness; grinding too coarsely will result in a thin, watery coffee. The ideal grind passes through a #20 sieve at 70%.

For water temperature, FrontStreet Coffee recommends brewing with water at 87-88°C. Much of the burnt bitterness in coffee comes from using water that's too hot. Conversely, water that's too low in temperature will result in flat, flavorless coffee.

For the coffee-to-water ratio, FrontStreet Coffee recommends 1:15. Although some brewing methods suggest using 1:13 or even smaller ratios for a more concentrated cup, this approach is sometimes used to avoid the bitter notes in the finish, which can also affect the aftertaste. FrontStreet Coffee believes that with proper control of water temperature and grind size, the 1:15 ratio better expresses the overall flavor profile of FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling.

The brewing method uses the common three-pour technique. Dividing the water into three pours better expresses the rich body and caramel sweetness of FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling. The specific water distribution is: First pour 30ml for blooming, fully wetting the coffee grounds to allow degassing for better extraction of flavor compounds. Second pour 100ml, which primarily brings out the golden crema of Mandheling.

The final pour is a gentle center pour of 95ml, which enhances the coffee's sweetness, expressing a full-bodied rich texture with caramel sweetness and notes of chocolate and nuts.

This is a relatively simple brewing method that highlights the characteristics of FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling, though there are certainly many other interesting and fun brewing approaches to explore.

Important Notice :

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