We just got in a new coffee today from the island of Flores. Where is that? It's a small island near Java and Sumatra in Indonesia.
The coffee here has typically been brought to Java and mixed in with the coffee on that island instead of being kept separate. The coffee is grown, for the most part, wild. At times the trees are as high as 30 feet tall. In comparison, typical trees in Central America are 5-6 feet tall. The coffee has to be harvested by threading a bamboo pole through the branches for the pickers to walk on. The coffee is then sent through a bamboo trough through the forest to a collection station.
Because this coffee is grown wild, there are no chemicals used in the farming process and it is certified organic.
After the coffee is hand picked it is dried in the traditional Indonesian manner. It is pulped and allowed to dry down to about 25% moisture, with full contact with the mucilage. The coffee is then 'wet hulled' to remove it from the parchment and then finishes the drying process in the sun, no longer in it's parchment
This coffee is one of those that makes you do a double take. At first sip it's fairly interesting with a nice smooth milk chocolaty body. Then as you take second sip, you realize just how great this coffee is. the chocolate character starts to take a back seat to the subtleties of the fruit tones, toasted nuttiness, and the almost overwhelming sweetness. I am usually a french press fan, but for some reason this coffee is absolutely fantastic when drip brewed
