How is coffee made? Part 1
Sometimes, we are often asked about where coffees we are using are from and how it is coming. Like other things we eat and drink, coffee has come a long way travel from the farm to the cup we drink. In this article, the journey of coffee is going to be illustrated.
Coffee we have is a drink that is brewed/extracted from the coffee bean which is a roasted coffee seed. And it comes from the coffee cherry which is grown on the coffee tree. So, when we say 'coffee' it has various meanings depending on which point of view we have, as a customer, as a barista or roaster, and as a farmer.
Green Bean
Starting from the beginning, there are coffee trees in the farm. Those coffee trees produce coffee cherries once a year or twice a year. When the coffee cherries are fully ripened, then, it goes next stage which is processing.
In the processing stage, farmer can choose whether the coffee cherries go through washed or natural or something special like carbonic maceration or anarobic fementation, etc. What processing does is to separates the coffee bean seed from the cherry and let it be ready for the next step. After the processing, then, we can finally see the green coffee bean. It is dried enough to be exported.
Green bean traders import the green coffee bean from the farms or mills or corporations in the origin, and sell to roasters.
Roasting
What roasters do is to roast the green coffee beans so that the roasted coffee beans are made. And generally, we call it 'coffee bean'.
Then, baristas use the 'coffee bean' to make your flat white, latte, cappuccino, long black, pourover filter coffee, etc. Or you buy the 'coffee bean' and brew it yourself at home or office.
Even though the cup of coffee is small, there are a tremendous amount of effort, time, energy and dedication are involved in. And literally, the coffee we drink is a result of someone's hard work for a year. So, we are not just enjoying the flavour but also we should be thankful for everyone who participates and contributes to this.