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The practice of coffee drinking began more than one thousand years ago in Ethiopia. According to legend, a shepherd tried eating coffee cherries after observing that his goats didn’t sleep when they ate the wild fruit.
One of the first written records mentioning coffee tells the story of Sheik Omar, who brought coffee to the city of Mocha in 1258. This city, now called Al Mukha, is in modern day Yemen. For hundreds of years, coffee from Yemen has been blended with coffee from Indonesia (Java), to create the classic Mocha Java.
The world’s first coffeehouses were opened in Mecca in the early 15th century. They were comfortable places, where men relaxed and discussed politics over a cup of coffee. During this time, coffee was brewed by boiling the beans in water. The practice of pulping and roasting coffee began in Turkey, about 100 years later. Istanbul was famous for having hundreds of coffee houses.
It is thought that Muslim pilgrims returning from the Middle East brought coffee seeds with them to India in the early 1600s. Written records show that the Dutch governor in Malabar (India) sent a Yemeni or Arabica coffee (Coffea arabica) seedling to the Dutch governor of Batavia (now Jakarta) in 1696. This first seedlings sent was failed to grow due to flooding in Batavia. The second shipment of coffee seedlings to Batavia was reported in 1699. The plants grew, and in 1711, the first exports were sent from Java to Europe by the Dutch East Indies Trading Company, known by its Dutch initials VOC (Verininging Oogst-Indies Company), which was established in 1602. Within 10 years, exports rose to 60 tons per year. Indonesia was the first place outside of Arabia and Ethiopia, where coffee was widely cultivated. VOC monopolized coffee trading in 1725 to 1780.
The coffee was shipped to Europe from the port of Batavia. There has been a port at the mouth of Ciliwung River since 397 AD, when King Purnawarman established the city he called Sunda Kelapa. Today, in the Kota area of Jakarta, one can find echoes of the sea-going legacy that built the city. Sail driven ships still load cargo in the old port. The Bahari museum occupies a former warehouse of the VOC, which was used to store spices and coffee. Menara Syahbandar (or Lookout Tower) was built in 1839 to replace the flag pole that stood at the head of wharves, where the VOC ships docked to load their cargos.
In the 1700s, coffee shipped from Batavia sold for 3 Guilders per kilogram in Amsterdam. Since annual incomes in Holland in the 1700s were between 200 to 400 Guilders, this was equivalent of several hundred dollars per kilogram today. By the end of the 18th century, the price had dropped to 0.6 Guilders per kilogram and coffee drinking spread from the elite to the general population.
The coffee trade was very profitable for the VOC, but less so for the Indonesian farmers who were forced to grow it by the colonial government. In theory, production of export crops was meant to provide cash for Javanese villagers to pay their taxes. This was in Dutch known as the Cultuurstelsel (Cultivation system), and it covered spices and a wide range of other tropical cash crops. Cultuur stelsel was initiated for coffee in the Preanger region of West Java. In practice however, the prices set for the cash crops by the government were too low and they diverted labor from rice production, causing great hardship for farmers.
By mid of 1970s the VOC expanded Arabica coffee growing areas in Sumatra, Bali, Sulawesi and Timor. In Sulawesi the coffee was first planted in 1750. In North Suamatra highlands coffee was first grown near Toba Lake in 1888, followed by the Gayo highlands (Aceh) near Laut Tawar Lake in 1924.
In 1860, a Dutch colonial official, Eduard Douwes Dekker, wrote a book called “Max Havelaar and the Coffee Auctions of the Dutch Trading Company”, which exposed the oppression of villagers by corrupt and greedy officials. This book helped to change Dutch public opinion about the “Cultivation System” and colonialism in general. More recently, the name Max Havelaar was adopted by one of the first fair trade organizations.
In the late eighteen hundreds, Dutch colonialists established large coffee plantations on the Ijen Plateau in eastern Java. However, disaster struck in the 1876, when the coffee rust disease swept through Indonesia, wiping out most of Typica cultivar. Robusta coffee (C. canephor var. robusta) was introduced to East Java in 1900 as a substitute especially at lower altitudes, where the rust was particularly devastating.
In the 1920s, smallholders throughout Indonesia began to grow coffee as a cash crop. The plantations on Java were nationalized at independence and revitalized with new varieties of Coffea arabica in the 1950s. These varieties were also adopted by smallholders through the government and various development programs. Today, more than 90% of Indonesia’s Arabica coffee is grown by smallholders mainly in Northern Sumatra, on farms of one hectare or less in average. Annual Arabica production is about 75,000 tons and 90 % of which for export. Arabica coffee from the country mostly goes to specialty market segment.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Jakarta
www.indonesia-tourism.com/jakarta/history.html
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Indonesia is the fourth largest producer of coffee in world, with exports of 300,000 tons last year. Of this total, about 75,000 tons was Arabica. Ninety percent of this coffee is grown by small-holders, on farms of one hectare or less.
Generally, Indonesia’s specialty coffee has a full body and relatively low acidity. Each region is known for a typical cupping profile, although there is a great deal of diversity within the regions. These include:
* Sumatra – intense flavor, with cocoa, earth and tobacco notes
* Java – good, heavy body, with a lasting finish and herbaceous notes
* Bali – sweeter than other Indonesian coffees, with nut and citrus notes
* Sulawesi – good sweetness and body, with warm spice notes
* Flores - heavy body, sweetness, chocolate, and tobacco notes
* Papua - heavy body, chocolate, earth, and spicy finish
The flavors of Indonesian coffee are distinctive for a variety of reasons. The most important variables are soil type, altitude, coffee variety, processing method and aging. This combination of natural and human factors creates a unique “terroir” for each coffee.
Soil type:
The soils in the highlands of Aceh, Bali, Papua and Flores are primarily Andosols, a term that comes from the Japanese words “an” (black) and “do” (soil). These young soils develop from volcanic material and are highly fertile, containing important micro-nutrients.
In the Arabica producing areas of Java and Lintong, the soils are a combination of Andosols and Umbrisols. Umbrisols, such as Brown Podzolic, are weathered volcanic soils that incorporate significant amounts of organic material.
Sulawesi is one of the oldest islands in the archipelago, with exposed rocks dating back more than 100 million years. Over the eons, Lixisols have developed, such as the Yellow-Red Podzolic soil that is found in the coffee production area. These soils are rich in iron and often have a clay layer below the surface.
Altitude:
All the Arabica producing areas in Indonesia fall within the ideal altitude range for Arabica coffee of 1,000 to 1,800 meters. Generally, coffee grows more slowly with increased altitude, producing smaller, denser beans, which can be more flavorful.
* Wamena region of Papua: 1,400 to 2,000 meters
* Moanemani region of Papua: 1,400 to 1,700 meters
* Central region of Flores: 1,200 to 1,700 meters
* Toraja region of Sulawesi: 1,000 to 1,700 meters
* Kintamani region of Bali: 1,000 to 1,500 meters
* Ijen Plateau in eastern Java: 1,300 to 1,500 meters
* Lintong region of Sumatra: 1,200 to 1,500 meters
* Aceh region of Sumatra: 1,110 to 1,300 meters
Variety:
There are more than 20 varieties of Coffea arabica being grown commercially in Indonesia. They fall into six main categories:
Typica – this is the original cultivar introduced by the Dutch. Much of the Typica was lost in the late 1880s, when Coffee Leaf Rust swept through Indonesia. However, both the Bergandal and Sidikalang varieties of Typica can still be found in Sumatra, Sulawesi, and Flores, especially at higher altitudes and in remote areas.
Hibrido de Timor (HDT) – This variety, which is also called “Tim Tim”, is a natural cross between Arabica and Robusta. It was first collected in East Timor in 1978 planted in Aceh in 1979, and in Flores 1980 where the variety is called Churia.
Linie S – This is a group of varieties was originally developed in India, from the Bourbon cultivar. The most common are S-288 and S-795, which are found in Lintong, Aceh, Flores, Sulawesi, Papua, Bali and Java.
Ethiopian lines: These include Rambung and Abyssinia, which were brought to Java in 1928. Since then, they have been brought to Aceh as well. Another group of Ethiopian varieties found in Sumatra and Flores are called “USDA”, after an American project that brought them to Indonesia in the 1950s.
Caturra cultivars: Caturra is a mutation of Bourbon coffee, which originated in Brazil.
Catimor lines – This cross between Arabica and Robusta has a reputation for poor flavor. However, there are numerous types of Catimor, including one that farmers have named “Ateng-Jaluk”. On-going research in Aceh has revealed locally adapted Catimor varieties with excellent cup characteristics.
Harvesting and processing methods:
All Arabica coffee in Indonesia is picked by hand, whether it is grown by small-holders or on medium-sized estates. Because coffee cherries do not all ripen at the same time, farmers harvest every 10 days, over a period of 5 to 6 months. This allows them to pick only red, ripe cherries, to achieve best quality in appearance, aroma, and taste. When mechanical harvesting is used, under-ripe cherries can give the coffee a thin aroma and harsh cupping profile.
After harvest, Indonesia’s specialty coffees are processed in a variety of ways, each imparting its own flavors and aromas to the final product. In general, these characteristics improve the quality of the coffee. However, poor or uneven processing can result in off-flavors and taints. Three main processes are used – the dry, wet hulled, (semi washed) and washed methods.
A small number of farmers in Sulawesi, Flores and Bali use the most traditional method of all, dry processing. These farmers simply dry their coffee cherries in the sun. This method imparts fruity, fermented or sweet earthy flavors to the beans as they dry. After drying, the dried cherries are hulled, mechanically remove the dried outer fruit layer and the parchment that covers the bean.
Most small-scale farmers on Sulawesi, Sumatra, Flores, and Papua use a unique process, called "giling basah", which literally means "wet grinding" in Bahasa Indonesia. The industry also uses the terms wet hulling , semi washed and semi dried for this method. To avoid confusion, SCAI is encouraging the term "giling basah".
In this technique, farmers remove the outer skin is removed from the cherries mechanically, using rustic pulping machines, called “luwak”. The coffee beans, still coated with mucilage, are then stored for up to a day. Following this waiting period, the mucilage is washed off and the coffee is partially dried for sale (to 30% to 35% moisture).
Processors then hull the coffee in a semi-wet state, which gives the beans a unique bluish green appearance. This process reduces acidity and increases body, resulting in the classic Indonesian cup profile.
Larger processing mills, estates and some farmers’ cooperatives on Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi and Bali produce “fully washed” coffee. First, ripe cherries are milled to remove the outer skin. The de-hulled coffee is then placed in tanks or barrels to ferment for 12 to 36 hours. After fermenting, the beans are gently washed and spread out to dry on cement patios or drying tables. After drying, the parchment skin or pergamino becomes loose and crumbly. At this point, the beans are dry hulled and ready for machine and hand sorting, before packed and exported.
After hulling, the coffee is then sorted by size, weight and color, first mechanically and then by hand. Finally, the green coffee is then packed in 60 kilogram, food grade bags for export. Throughout the process, test cupping insures that the coffee is “specialty grade”
After sorting, some producers age their coffee for one to three years before marketing. This process develops woody and cinnamon flavors, with a very mild and warm character. The green beans change color, becoming dark yellow to brown. Roasters like to use this coffee in special blends, at Christmas time, for example, where warm cinnamon flavors are desired.
Several companies create a product called “Kopi Luwak”, which is one of world’s rarest coffees. Kopi Luwak is processed in a unique fashion, by feeding the coffee cherries to palm civets, an indigenous species related to the mongoose. The civet’s digestive tract removes the fruit layer. After the beans pass though, they are washed and sorted. The resulting coffee is highly valued for its rarity and distinctive flavor.
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Arabica Producing Regions of Indonesia
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