The Evolution of Coffee Soybean Honey treatment process and processing method what's going on in the treatment of coffee raw bean gold honey

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Pulp treatment refers to what honey treatment changes which step of the raw bean treatment method

Honey-treated coffee, honey-like treatment, what a beautiful coffee term! This simple description can move people (after all, most people like honey). In fact, honey-treated coffee has become more and more popular among consumers recently. There is no better description than "honey treatment" for this coffee processing: during drying, coffee beans are still accompanied by golden, sticky, sugary coffee pectin. In the process of washing, these pectin should be completely removed.

It is the Brazilians who make the honey-treated coffee known to the world, and they used to call it "pectin sun treatment". It is clear that Brazilian coffee people want to maintain their successful experience in defining coffee terms in the past. Brazilians defined and promoted the "sun treatment", which means that coffee beans are still in the whole coffee fruit during the drying process. Before that, this method was called "drying treatment" or "non-washing treatment". When I started the coffee industry more than 40 years ago, I often asked myself why Brazilians use the term "unwashed". Is their "unwashed" coffee very dirty? The coffee term is no longer used and replaced by "tanning".

The term "tanning" sounds much bigger and represents a more finely processed type of coffee. No matter how good you are, you can't beat everyone, which applies to the naming of the way coffee is handled. Central American countries have come up with an updated term "honey treatment" to define all coffee beans that are dried in the fruit, and the term "honey treatment" is popular all over the world except Brazil. In this issue, there are 21 kinds of honey-treated coffee from different places around the world, 7 from Costa Rica (one of which appears in this article), 5 El Salvador (one of which appears in this article), 2 in Brazil, Nicaragua, Colombia, Sumatra, Rwanda, Thailand, Honduras, Sri Lanka and other countries.

The evolution of honey processing methods

In this issue, the honey-treated coffee from Costa Rica accounts for the majority. Although Brazil is a pioneer in the processing of honey, the term "honey treatment" and the processing of coffee with micro-batches of refined honey were first popular in Costa Rica. In the process of innovation in micro-batch processing of coffee in Costa Rica, coffee growers use machines and equipment with new washing methods to process their own coffee, rather than buying coffee fruit to large coffee processing plants as in the past.

In the water washing method, mechanical equipment is used to remove pectin from the pulp and core of coffee, using only a small amount of water in the process. These machines can also be used for more elaborate "honey-treated" coffee processing. Now there are all kinds of honey-treated coffee "black honey", "red honey", "yellow honey" and "white honey" on the market. In the treatment of black honey and red honey, coffee beans are dried with all or almost all of their pectin. The difference between the two lies in the drying speed of coffee: black honey dries more slowly than red honey. In the process of yellow honey treatment, a degumming machine is used to remove 20% Mel 50% coffee pectin before drying the coffee beans (the coffee sample treated with yellow honey was not received in this test). For honey treatment, almost all pectin is removed in advance, leaving only about 10% of the pectin dried with coffee beans.

Subtle changes in processing methods will affect the quality characteristics of coffee, so we can assume that the bright and transparent characteristics of white honey-treated coffee are closest to those of water-washed coffee; black honey and red honey (as mentioned above, almost all the pulp pectin of the coffee is retained) is closer to the traditional sun-treated coffee: it has strong aromas of fruit, chocolate and wood fiber.

Cup test and hypothesis

Another red honey, the Reunion Island Sol Naciente Costa Rica has a relatively more crisp lime citrus flavor.

Two tested samples of black honey showed strong woody aroma characteristics, which are often shown in sun-dried coffee that has been slowly dried for a long time. The black honey from Willoughby's Costa Rica El Puente Cerro Verde has a score of 93, full of vitality and without any flavor defects, high cleanliness, complex aroma, slightly irritating spice and high sweetness. The careful treatment of black honey has created such coffee quality characteristics.

Further classification of the test results will be very complicated and cumbersome, and more than half of the coffee bean samples tested do not clearly indicate which treatment method is used. although the information obtained from the test results can be summarized as "honey treatment" and used in this test report. For example, El Salvador Fincal El Pozo with high flavor complexity and PT's Coko Rwanda Honey with strong origin style, these two kinds of coffee are simply marked as "honey treatment" without further detailed treatment and flavor introduction.

Charming and fickle

When we tested 21 honey-treated coffee samples, all the previous scattered experience and cognition helped us to make a general summary of honey-treated coffee: we perceive that the most important feature of honey-treated coffee is its softness, unpredictable flavor complexity and complexity. The subtle changes we perceived when we tested a group of honey-treated coffee were more obvious than those of a group of washed coffee. With the exception of two black honey coffees with a single plain flavor, the differences between the tested honey-treated coffees were so subtle and fascinating that it was difficult to express them in words.

There is no doubt that the way of treatment is directly related to the change of flavor. How much pectin pulp is removed before drying, and the control of the details of the drying process are all factors that affect the flavor. All in all, the four samples with the highest score (93 points) showed natural and pure sweetness, fine changes in flavor and taste, smooth and sticky taste, all of which benefited from honey processing. The next level (6 coffee samples with a score of 91) also showed a fine and fascinating change in the way honey was processed: woody spices mingled with flower and fruit aromas.

For example, in a cup of coffee, it can be seen that subtle test results confirm our hypothesis to some extent. Equator Costa Rica El Aguacate honey with a score of 93 was the cleanest and brightest of the 10 coffees tested. At the same time, the cup test characteristics of two red honey, the Magnolia Costa Rica Esnider Rodriguez and the Manzanita El Salvador Loma La Loria reflect the influence of the change of treatment: the aroma of flowers and wood fiber are intertwined with the flavor of brandy fermentation.

Honey treatment and producing area

The test results of limited degree and range show that the honey processing method enriches the uniqueness and unpredictable complexity of coffee flavor compared with water washing treatment. This is not to say that honey processing is better than washing processing. For example, in producing areas such as Rwanda and Sumatra, traditional local processing methods lead to the uniqueness of coffee flavor. Delicate honey treatment may also create a different flavor of coffee in the past. The specific situation in Brazil is different, as mentioned earlier in this article, people have been using terms such as "sun treatment" or "drying treatment" in Brazil. Compared with the traditional full-sun Brazilian coffee, the exquisite Brazilian honey-treated coffee does not get the corresponding attention of the world. Brazilian honey-treated coffee has a brighter and finer flavor, with more floral and fruit aromas than the traditional Brazilian sun-cured nut chocolate flavor.

In any case, if you prefer soft, floral and fruity coffee to traditional bright and well-balanced washed coffee, then honey-treated coffee from Costa Rica, Honduras, and El Salvador should suit you. For those who are addicted to coffee, they should also enjoy the fascinating flavor of honey-treated coffee, a developing processing technology.

93 points El Salvador Finca El Pozo Microlo Honey

Roaster: Propeller Coffee- Toronto, Canada

Aroma: 9

Acidity: 9

Alcohol thickness: 9

Flavor: 9

Yu Yun: 8

Origin: Ataco, Apaneca- Ilamatepec, Ahuachap á n Department, El Salvador

Baking degree (caramelization meter value): Medium (53 to 70) moderate

Note: 12 ounces cost C $22, (the coffee has been sold out and the baker Propeller hopes to buy more in 2017). It is an Arabica pacamara variety, which is a hybrid of giant beans maragogipe and pacas and belongs to the Guyu bourbon series. From Anibal Lunna Finca El Pozo. Roaster from Toronto, Canada, has been engaged in high-end boutique coffee roasting.

Blind test: balanced, high sweetness, floral aroma, oak, dark chocolate, berries, cherries. Active acidity, honey taste, finish with aromas of oak and berries, dark chocolate.

Basic features: honey treatment results in the flavor outline of this coffee and a pleasant balance between sour and sweet.

Roaster: 35kg Loring Kestrel

The difficulty lies in how to properly bake the inside of these large beans thoroughly while avoiding damage to the soft outer layer of the coffee beans during roasting. In order to achieve the expected effect, the initial temperature of baking is faster (a small amount of beans, the temperature of beans is lower), the heating rate of the middle part slows down, and the beans are baked at the end of the explosion. Soft acidity, high sweetness, complex aroma, low and round taste.

-- Jonathan Cox. Chief baker

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