Sumatra Lake Tawar Wet-Hulled Longberry Dragon FruitCoffee Bean Intro:

Sumatra Lake Tawar Wet-Hulled Longberry Dragon Fruit

Sumatra Lake Tawar Longberry Mandheling G1

Country of Cultivation: Indonesia   

Coffee Region: Aceh Province   Lake Tawar Area

Planting Altitude: 1200 to 1600 meters

Coffee Variety: Longberry Dragon Fruit

Processing Method: Wet-Hulled

Coffee Region

When it comes to Asian coffee, the first impression for coffee enthusiasts is often rich and mellow. Asian coffees generally have higher body than those from Central and South America or Africa, with lower acidity and flavors that lean slightly toward woody, herbal, spicy, and earthy notes. The deep, muted aromas are more pronounced than the bright, acidic fragrances.

Aceh is located at the northernmost tip of the Indonesian archipelago. Situated on both sides of the equator, it has a typical tropical equatorial maritime climate, with year-round hot summer-like weather and an average annual temperature of around 27 degrees Celsius. The region is hot and rainy, with the period from 10 to 3 being influenced by Asian and Pacific air currents, making it the rainy season in Indonesia with abundant rainfall and cooler temperatures. From 4~10, influenced by continental air currents from Australia, the moisture brought by the air currents decreases, resulting in dry and hot weather, marking the dry season.

In response to the climatic factors of the dry and rainy seasons, the coffee harvest season generally falls during the rainy season, from 10 to 3, with processing followed by drying during the dry season.

Lake Tawar is located in the Gayo Mountains (Aceh) north of Aceh Province in Sumatra. The hot and humid tropical rainforest climate brings abundant rainfall, along with fertile volcanic soil. These conditions provide inherent advantages for coffee cultivation, but due to its remote location and poor transportation, coffee planting only began in (Gayo)The mountainous region features a hot and humid tropical rainforest climate with abundant rainfall and fertile volcanic soil. It has inherently advantageous conditions for growing coffee, but due to its remote location and poor transportation, it was not until1924.

Coffee Variety

Among the coffee varieties in Sumatra, there is a rather unique one called  “ Longberry Dragon Fruit ( long berry）·  Mandheling ”). The Longberry coffee tree grows very slowly, taking 7 years to mature and bear fruit,   whereas most coffee tree varieties only require 3 to 4 years. Additionally, due to its low yield, it is relatively rare on the market.

The Longberry Dragon Fruit originally comes from the Harar ( Harrar) region of Ethiopia in Africa. It has a three-century history of cultivation in Aceh Province. Unlike other coffee bean varieties, this batch of beans is named for its elongated shape. It is also referred to as “ Long Bean Mandheling ” and is a natural mutation of Typica ( typica).

Processing Method

Due to the rainy and humid climate in Asia, the wet-hulled processing method is commonly used for green coffee beans. The beans are generally uniform in shape, and the processed beans tend to be darker in color.

The wet-hulled process ( Wet-Hulling) involves removing the parchment layer when the beans are only halfway dried, with a moisture content as high as  30%~50% , and then continuing to dry them. This method addresses the issue of prolonged drying times. As a result, the drying period is shortened to just two to four days, reducing the fermentation period and significantly lowering acidity. In contrast, the body becomes more intense, with pronounced caramel and fruity aromas, and even herbal or grassy notes as well as woody scents, forming the distinctive regional flavor of Sumatra.

However, the downside of removing the parchment layer early is that the beans, still halfway through drying and lacking their final two protective layers (note: the four protective layers of coffee beans are the skin, mucilage, parchment, and silver skin), are essentially exposed to the sun like being stripped bare. While the wet-hulled process solves the drying time problem, it also significantly increases the risk of contamination by mold, fungi, and yeast.

Another characteristic brought about by the wet-hulled process is the increased likelihood of so-called "elephant foot beans." Because the beans are still in a moist, semi-soft state when the parchment is removed with a hulling machine, the fragile, wet beans are highly susceptible to mechanical pressure, leading to cracking, breaking, or surface scratches. This results in so-called elephant foot beans or scratched beans, which detract from the visual appeal of the green beans.

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