Entering the end of 2018, a cup of delicious coffee is increasingly sought after. This also goes for the awareness of people in coffee industry on the importance of quality coffee beans for a cup of Joe. To get quality coffee is surely not an easy thing. It takes effort and a long process to get best quality coffee beans. Of course, we all would agree to get a cup of quality coffee we should start by choosing a good quality beans too. Logically, good product will never be produced by raw materials of poor quality.
Understanding and paying more attention to each stage of the process in detail, starting from planting, maintenance, harvesting, post harvest and all the process until the coffee is ready to be served, has become our responsibilty in order to not only get good quality beans, but also to maintain the sustainability of the coffee supply chain. By visiting coffee plantations and looking closely at the process, we can really understand and know exactly to what potential these coffee beans can achieve, from roasting profile to its serving form, whether it is suitable for espresso or filter coffee. Visiting coffee platantions can help us connect with farmers and, in a way, help them to further understand what kind of treatment and process the coffee needs to improve its quality. Everyone in the supply chain, from farmer, buyer, Q grader, roaster to barista has their own contribution in producing a cup of quality coffee.
In order to maximize the potential of coffee products, there are several factors that need to be considered to determine how the beans will end up being served as. One of these factors is that coffee beans must be homogeneous, which means it has to have uniformity ranging from color, shape and size.
Color uniformity – If you find coffee bean that is wrinkly and whitish, it can indicate that it comes from an immature fruit. Beans that are whitish in color will give a tannic taste after being roasted, this calls for manual hand sorting before roasting the beans. But don’t misjudged that green colored beans are always better. Yellow colored beans, for example, can be caused by semi or full washed process. Understanding natural, full washed or honey process will give you an insight and guideline to determine how coffee beans will be processed next.
Shape uniformity – If you found that your beans has different shape, this means it comes from different coffee varieties. But you dont need to worry on this too much, since it doesnt have too much impact on the final result. Coffee beans that comes from various types are usually labeled “mix” on the package.
Size Uniformity – The size of coffee beans is very important for roasting process. It helps us to plan how the coffee beans will be roasted. What is the right temperature and the right period of time that brings out the character of the coffee.
Lastly, always remember to check for defective coffee beans. So there you go, this basic guideline is one to remember to ensure a good cup of coffee. The process is surely time consuming, but it’s better to spend time to find and understand what potential you can make out of the beans you’re serving, and not to dissapoint your customer. Great things take time and Rome wasn’t built in a day
