Lindong Mandheling Coffee: Origin, Flavor Profile and Taste Characteristics - Features of Indonesia Sumatra Golden Mandheling

On FrontStreet Coffee's menu featuring nearly fifty coffee bean varieties, you'll find beans with intense fruit acidity as well as those with rich, mellow flavors. Among these, Indonesian Mandheling coffee beans hold a unique position as representatives of rich, full-bodied coffee.

The Divisive Charm of Mandheling Coffee

Mandheling coffee is characterized by its viscous, full-bodied texture and low, mellow notes of herbal plants. Many coffee enthusiasts have polarized opinions about this coffee bean—those who love it can't get enough of Mandheling, while those who don't tend to avoid it entirely.

The Historical Origins of Indonesian Coffee

As the commonly known "hot fact" goes, coffee originated in Ethiopia. The beginning of coffee cultivation in the island region of Southeast Asia was also initiated by the arrival of Europeans.

As European coffee consumption grew increasingly large, the Dutch purchased coffee beans from the port of Mocha and sold them at high prices to various European countries. Simultaneously, the Dutch planned to cultivate coffee in their colonies to achieve higher profits. In the late 17th and early 18th centuries, the Dutch introduced coffee to the West Java region of Indonesia for cultivation. By 1726, the Dutch controlled approximately 50% to 75% of the global coffee bean trade.

Because Indonesia consists of thousands of islands, not all coffee from the country tastes the same. Besides Java island, coffee beans produced on Indonesia's Sumatra island have gained global recognition for Mandheling coffee beans due to their heavy body, low acidity, and earthy, spicy, herbal aromas.

The Unique Wet-Hulling Processing Method

The uniqueness of Mandheling coffee flavor comes from the local distinctive post-harvest processing method for coffee beans. Due to year-round rainfall and high air humidity in Sumatra, if the natural drying method were used, coffee cherries might become contaminated by rainwater or even over-ferment, leading to spoilage. Therefore, this doesn't meet the conditions for natural processing.

Additionally, the washed processing method requires sufficient water resources and adequate funding, but the local economic conditions are limited and cannot fully meet the requirements of complete washing. Therefore, the uniquely Sumatran wet-hulling method emerged, featuring short drying times and less water usage during the process.

After removing the skin and pulp of coffee cherries, the parchment beans with sticky mucilage are briefly washed and then placed in water tanks for short-term fermentation. The longer the fermentation time, the more pronounced the acidity. Some processing plants or estates even skip the fermentation step entirely, directly spreading the parchment beans evenly for drying. This approach both inhibits acidity and enhances the viscosity of the body.

When the parchment beans reach a semi-dry, semi-wet state, a hulling machine is used to directly expose the green coffee beans for drying. In many coffee processing methods, the parchment layer is removed only when the coffee beans are about to be exported. The parchment layer serves as a protective layer for green coffee beans to some extent, protecting them from external damage.

However, the local climate in Sumatra is too humid, and coffee drying takes longer. Maintaining high humidity for extended periods can lead to bacterial contamination, causing the coffee beans to spoil. By removing the parchment layer, sunlight can directly shine on the surface of the green coffee beans, allowing them to dry quickly.

During the process of removing the parchment layer, significant friction is generated between the coffee beans and between the beans and the machine. The excessive heat generated may cause coffee to age rapidly, resulting in the special woody and earthy flavors found in Sumatran coffee.

Gold Mandheling vs. Lintong Mandheling

Among the numerous Mandheling coffees, you often hear two terms: "Gold Mandheling" and "Lintong Mandheling." FrontStreet Coffee's bean selection also includes both of these coffee bean varieties.

Many people may have heard that the traditional Mandheling producing region should be near Lake Toba in the Lintong region. However, the production in the Aceh region of North Sumatra far exceeds that of the Lintong region. Despite this, this doesn't affect the fact that Mandheling coffee beans from both regions fully showcase the flavors of Sumatran coffee.

FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling Selection

FrontStreet Coffee's daily bean series spans multiple major coffee-producing countries: Ethiopia, Guatemala, Colombia, Costa Rica, Indonesia, China, and Honduras. The daily bean series predominantly uses the washed processing method. Without the flavor enhancement from the skin, pulp, and mucilage, the most basic flavors of the producing region are revealed. The Mandheling coffee beans in FrontStreet Coffee's daily bean series, as representative works of Indonesia's Sumatra, use the wet-hulling method, allowing coffee beginners to experience traditional Sumatran flavors at an affordable price.

Another frequently mentioned Mandheling coffee bean is called "Gold Mandheling," where the term "Gold" reflects the high quality of this coffee bean. FrontStreet Coffee sources Gold Mandheling from PWN company. When producing Gold Mandheling, PWN company adopts extremely strict standards: green coffee beans must be size 18 or larger, with fewer than 3 defective beans per 300-gram sample. On top of meeting G1 grade standards, they undergo three rounds of manual selection to ensure complete removal of defective beans, thereby maximizing flavor clarity and enhancing sweetness.

Roasting and Brewing Recommendations

According to FrontStreet Coffee's understanding, there are some lightly roasted Mandheling coffee beans on the market that display juice-like acidity and sweetness. However, traditional Mandheling coffee flavor has a full body due to deep roasting. To present traditional Mandheling flavors, FrontStreet Coffee uses a medium-dark roast level when roasting Mandheling.

FrontStreet Coffee's baristas use the following parameters when brewing medium-dark roasted coffee beans to present a full body and avoid bitterness from over-extraction:

Filter: KONO
Water Temperature: 88°C
Coffee Dose: 15g
Coffee-to-Water Ratio: 1:15
Grind Size: 70% pass-through rate on Chinese standard #20 sieve

When coffee beans are freshly roasted, they contain abundant carbon dioxide gas, making it difficult to stably extract optimal flavors during brewing. FrontStreet Coffee ships coffee beans roasted within 5 days, which have already undergone a 4-7 day degassing period upon arrival. However, FrontStreet Coffee suggests performing a blooming step during brewing to promote the release of carbon dioxide from the coffee powder particles.

First, pour 30g of hot water for blooming. Then, pour from the center with a fine water stream, slowly circling to 125g. When the water level in the filter drops to just above the coffee bed, continue circling and pouring to 225g. The total extraction time is approximately 2 minutes.

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