ORGANIC SUMATRAN - Womans Co-operative, COFFEE BEANS
- Country: Sumatra
- Region: Gayo Highlands, Central Aceh
- Producer: Ipak Bensu Womens Co - Op - part of the Kopepi Ketiara Cooperative
- Variety: Bourbon, Typica, Caturra, Catimor
- Altitude: 1200–1700 masl
- Processing Method: Wet-Hulled
These ethical, organic Sumatran coffee beans are produced by the Ipak Bensu group, of the
Ketiara Cooperative; located in the Gayo Highlands, district of Takengon & Bener Meriah, Central Aceh, Sumatra.
A large percentage of the Kopepi Ketiara Cooperative members are women. This inspired the cooperative to form a kind of 'junior' group, an affiliated association of women members whose coffees are kept separate & sold as Ipak Bensu.
All of the farms that contribute to the cooperative produce 100% shade-grown coffee beans.
Ketiara Cooperative was founded in 2008 by farmer & former coffee collector (or “broker”) Ibu Ramhah, who is the manager & chairperson of the co-op, & who has inspired many of the women to band together to market their coffee for a premium.
The women hope to increase their family’s access to education & health care, to invest in their farms & to continue to thrive.
Our Sumatran coffee is savory, soft & smooth exhibiting flavours of:
berries, cherries, dark chocolate & subtle herbs with a bright grapefruit acidity, complex, velvety & rich with a lingering demerara sugar finish.
Sumatran Coffee
Sumatran coffees have long been distinct for their earthy, savoury, somewhat vegetal or herbaceous characteristics. This is in part contributed by the climate & the mix of varieties grown, but also due to a specific post-harvest processing style locally known as ‘Giling Basah’.
Giling Basah/Wet-Hulled process: a unique style of handling & drying that is largely responsible for Sumatran coffees’ unmistakable flavour characteristics.
In Sumatra, coffee farmers typically harvest their coffee cherry & de-pulp it by hand at their farm or home, allow it to dry for a very short time, then bring it either to a coffee marketplace or directly to a collection point. There the beans are purchased at anywhere from 30–50% moisture, with their mucilage still partially intact.
The coffee is then combined & hulled (has its parchment removed) while it is still in this high-moisture state. It is then dried to the more commonly globally accepted 11–13% moisture in order to prepare for export.
The Wet-Hulled process was developed specifically to speed up drying & efficiency in a climate that sees heavy rain & clouds most of the year: Removing the parchment layer allows the coffee to dry much faster on patios or tarps even in these conditions.
General Info
Growing Regions - Aceh/Gayo, Lintong, Takengon/Bener Meriah
Common Varieties - Bourbon, Catimor, Caturra, Tim Tim
Harvest Period – October–June