Additional information

The initial steps for each process are the same: First, a day of intensive sorting at the cherry stage, under complete shade, to ensure only the ripest are chosen and any visible defects are removed. Step two is multiple rounds of floating – filling a large container with cherries and water, discarding the less dense cherries that float to the top of the tank.

The densest coffees (sinkers) are reserved to be processed as the higher-grade lots, and the less dense coffees (floaters) are mixed in with the rejected cherries from the initial sorting to be processed as lower-grade lots. It’s expected that cherries are delivered to stations, on average, between 2 to 3 hours from picking. When enough volume has accumulated, the cherries are de-pulped and the double fermentation process is started. First, a dry fermentation for 8 to 12 hours.

The tank is then filled with water for an additional 8 to 12 hours of wet fermentation. Once the fermentation process is complete, coffee is pushed through the grading channels. Here the coffee is very rigorously washed to remove any remaining mucilage and separated by density. After grading, the coffees are soaked (now with no mucilage attached) in a tank of water for a final 8 to 12 hours. This is thought to promote even distribution of moisture throughout the seeds, thus leading to more even drying. Coffee is then moved onto shaded drying beds for 48 – 72 hours.