If these words make no sense to you, have a read and let us explain processing! We’re going to talk about what processing is, what washed, natural, honey, and pulped natural coffees are, and what that means for your purchasing choices!
What is processing?
The coffee we know and love is the seed of a cherry – just like an actual cherry – that grows on a coffee plant. The seed has to be fermented and removed from the fruity part, then dried and shipped to us. That’s where we, the roasters, roast it up. The picking, fermenting and drying part is what ‘processing’ is. Processing methods tend to vary country to country, farm to farm, region to region, and are often methods used by producers to find the value of their crops. Access to water, as well as infrastructure influence these processing decisions greatly. The image here is a coffee cherry and its removed seed!
What is 'Washed' processing?
In the washed process, the goal is to separate the cherry from the fruit as soon as possible. Then, producers soak, float and ferment the coffee in water to activate sugars, to make it easier to remove the sticky remaining bits of fruit that surround the seed called mucilage. The seed is usually soaked in a tank, and the mucilage is removed by being washed with water and agitated. Then the coffee seed, is left to dry in the sun (or sometimes in big dryers)! The image here is coffee being washed!
Why would I drink washed coffee?
In the washed process, the goal is to separate the cherry from the fruit as soon as possible. Then, producers soak, float and ferment the coffee in water to activate sugars, to make it easier to remove the sticky remaining bits of fruit that surround the seed called mucilage. The seed is usually soaked in a tank, and the mucilage is removed by being washed with water and agitated. Then the coffee seed, is left to dry in the sun (or sometimes in big dryers)! The image here is coffee being washed!