Specialty Coffee Beans Introduction - Mandheling Coffee Characteristics and Flavor Profile of Indonesian Mandheling

The Origin of Mandheling Coffee

We can find that many well-known single-origin coffee names are typically taken from the coffee bean's growing region, place name, variety, or the name of the green bean processor. However, the naming of "Mandheling" is quite special and stems from a story of misunderstanding.

During World War II in the last century, the Japanese army invaded Sumatra Island in Indonesia, and many Japanese soldiers could be seen locally. One day, a Japanese soldier went to a local restaurant to drink coffee and found the taste rich and aromatic. He asked the shopkeeper the name of the coffee, but the shopkeeper misunderstood and thought he was asking where he was from, so he replied "Mandailing people." After the war, that Japanese soldier recalled the coffee he drank in Indonesia was called "Mandheling" and commissioned someone to ship a batch of coffee beans from Sumatra to Japan, which surprisingly became very popular. The name Mandheling Coffee has been spread ever since.

What Are the Characteristics of Mandheling Coffee?

Friends who have come to FrontStreet Coffee's stores to drink Mandheling coffee all know that Mandheling coffee is roasted to a darker degree, with unique spice and herbal flavors, and a rich, bitter taste that some guests find difficult to accept, while others really enjoy it. Below, FrontStreet Coffee will discuss what creates such distinctive characteristics in Mandheling coffee.

The Mandheling coffee we refer to is Arabica coffee beans produced in the mountainous area around Lake Toba on Sumatra Island. Sumatra Island is the largest island in Indonesia, with a tropical rainforest climate that is hot and humid year-round. Coffee trees are generally grown in mountain forests. Among these, the coffee produced from Gayo Mountain in the Aceh region can be said to be the highest quality in the entire Sumatra region, with most being ancient varieties. FrontStreet Coffee's PWN Gold Mandheling coffee beans are selected from the Gayo Mountains in Aceh.

Sumatra Island has the fertile volcanic soil found in many renowned coffee-growing regions, containing large amounts of minerals that help coffee fruits develop more nutrients and aromas. Local farmers plant coffee trees at medium altitudes, generally between 600-1200m. The low-altitude growing environment combined with tropical rainforest climate characteristics means coffee fruits mature in a shorter time, making it difficult to develop rich acidity. Therefore, the coffee flavors here are more herbal and spicy in nature.

In northern Sumatra near Lake Toba, there is a mountainous region - the Lindong mountainous area. The Mandheling coffee beans produced here are relatively large in size with hard beans. Due to numerous defects, roasters need to strictly select them during processing. Because Lindong Mandheling green beans are not sorted, you can often see uneven sizes and relatively intense flavors.

PWN Gold Mandheling Coffee Beans

Indonesia classifies green bean levels according to the number of defects and bean size, with the highest level being G1, which means fewer than 3 defective beans in a 300g sample and green bean specifications above 18 screen.

From the Mandheling story mentioned above, it's clear that Japanese people have a special fondness for Mandheling coffee and hope to drink high-quality batches. When cooperating with Indonesian green bean suppliers, they established strict screening systems. The processed green beans need to undergo density color sorting and four manual screenings to ensure the color, shape, and size of Mandheling coffee beans are uniform. Such Mandheling coffee will taste cleaner and brighter when brewed, with more prominent body and sweetness.

Indonesia's PWN company early on saw this business opportunity and preemptively registered the "Gold Mandheling" trademark. This means only Gold Mandheling produced by PWN company is the real "Gold Mandheling." PWN company also highly values the quality of Mandheling coffee, essentially contracting the finest Mandheling coffee batches from Sumatra. The Mandheling coffee they purchase undergoes strict manual screening on top of Indonesia's highest green bean level G1, resulting in limited production of premium Gold Mandheling. Counterfeit "Gold Mandheling" coffee easily appears on the market. The Gold Mandheling green beans that FrontStreet Coffee obtained come with certification provided by PWN company, and the PWN Gold Mandheling green bean bags clearly display the PWN company logo.

What Variety is Mandheling Coffee?

Due to the localized naming conventions of indigenous people in Indonesia, we often see unfamiliar Mandheling coffee varieties, which are actually just different names for the same varieties.

Tim Tim

During the leaf rust crisis of 1877, Indonesia's coffee industry was also severely impacted. The Indonesian government began importing various disease-resistant varieties from different places, including Robusta, Tim, Catimor, and the Indian variety Jember.

The Timor variety is actually a natural hybrid of Arabica Typica and Robusta from Timor Island. It inherits Robusta's high yield and disease resistance and became popular for cultivation in the 1950s. After being introduced to Indonesia, it was called Timor Timur, also known as Tim Tim.

Ateng Series

Besides Tim Tim, there is another common variety in Sumatra called Ateng, which is what we commonly call Catimor. It was discovered in the central Aceh region (Aceh Tengah) and named after the location. Ateng is a hybrid descendant of the Arabica Bourbon variety Catuai and Timor, with several subtypes carrying 1/4 Robusta bloodline. It possesses extremely high disease resistance and is widely planted in Sumatra and other Indonesian islands. FrontStreet Coffee's Gold Mandheling coffee is of the Ateng variety.

Mandheling Coffee Processed by Wet Hulling

When it comes to Mandheling's low acidity and rich body, we cannot ignore the most distinctive local processing method: wet hulling.

Sumatra's weather is variable with frequent typhoons, lacking the conditions for natural processing found in African countries. Additionally, local growers did not intend to invest too much cost in green bean processing, making washed processing difficult to maintain. Wanting high efficiency and low cost, local people adapted to their conditions and invented wet hulling.

After removing the skin and pulp from harvested coffee cherries using machines, they are placed in a fermentation tank for three hours. The green beans with parchment are dried in the sun for 2-3 days until the moisture content reaches 20-24%, then the parchment is removed. At this point, the coffee beans are still slightly soft and can be slightly deformed by pressure, which is why we see Mandheling green beans shaped like sheep's hooves. Finally, they are placed in a temperature and humidity-controlled room for drying until the moisture content reaches only 12-13%, then they can be bagged and sent to the warehouse.

Wet hulling takes much less time than both natural and washed processing methods, and the investment cost is also lower than washed processing. During the wet hulling process of coffee beans, the fermentation period is very short while the drying time is relatively long, resulting in low acidity flavors.

How to Drink Mandheling Coffee

Currently, FrontStreet Coffee's two best-selling Mandheling coffees are the Lindong Mandheling daily bean and the premium PWN Gold Mandheling coffee beans.

If you are a coffee beginner who wants to start understanding classic coffee growing regions from the basics, FrontStreet Coffee believes you can start with our daily bean series. FrontStreet Coffee has selected the most original flavor representatives from major growing regions and launched them in 100g small packaging. FrontStreet Coffee hopes that coffee enthusiasts can taste the basic flavors of each coffee growing region at a high cost-performance ratio. One of the seven daily beans, Lindong Mandheling coffee beans, is the face of Indonesian coffee, with its unique wet hulling bringing rich, intense spice flavors.

FrontStreet Coffee: Indonesia Lindong Mandheling Coffee Beans
Region: Sumatra, Indonesia
Grade: G1
Altitude: 1100m-1600m
Variety: Ateng TimTim
Processing: Wet Hulling
Flavor: Nuts, Spice, Chocolate, Caramel

If you pursue purer herbal spice flavors of Mandheling and hope to taste clean and rich Mandheling flavors, FrontStreet Coffee believes PWN Gold Mandheling is most suitable.

FrontStreet Coffee: PWN Gold Mandheling Coffee Beans
Region: Sumatra, Indonesia
Grade: G1, Triple Hand-Sorted
Altitude: 1100m-1600m
Variety: Ateng
Processing: Wet Hulling
Flavor: Nuts, Spice, Herbs, Caramel

The flavor profile of Mandheling coffee is nuts, chocolate, and spices. FrontStreet Coffee's roasters chose dark roasting to present the profound taste of this coffee. In terms of extraction, FrontStreet Coffee's baristas have multiple brewing methods, among which the moka pot is deeply loved by many home coffee enthusiasts for its intensity, solidity, richness, and convenience. Below, FrontStreet Coffee will demonstrate how to make a delicious moka pot coffee using the PWN Gold Mandheling coffee beans regularly available in our stores.

FrontStreet Coffee Moka Pot Usage Recommendations:

1. First, grind 20g of coffee beans into powder.

2. Separate the upper and lower chambers of the moka pot, pour water into the lower chamber, making sure the water level does not exceed the pressure relief valve.

3. Place coffee powder in the metal filter (powder chamber), and use the measuring spoon to gently pat the coffee powder to compact it slightly (gently, do not apply force).

4. Install the powder chamber on the lower chamber, then screw the upper chamber tightly. (Please make sure to tighten it firmly, confirming that the upper and lower chambers are properly connected.)

5. With the lid open, heat directly on flame, controlling the heat so that the flame does not exceed the bottom of the pot. (Because there is a possibility of boiling overflow, before mastering the technique, it is recommended to proceed with the lid open. If the gas stove grate spacing is too large and the moka pot cannot be placed stably on top, please add a net before heating directly on flame.)

6. When the hot water begins to boil and start extracting coffee, turn off the heat. After all extraction is complete, to avoid over-extraction, pour the coffee into a cup as quickly as possible.

7. Finally, you can prepare a delicious moka pot coffee. If you usually prefer a refreshing taste, you can add 150ml of warm water and stir to drink; if you like the sweetness of milk, FrontStreet Coffee recommends adding 150ml of fresh milk to taste together - the texture is very rich.

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473