Coffees are becoming increasingly complex in taste. Experimental fermentation practices are creating new flavors that we previously couldn't find in coffee. We humans are getting involved and adding something to coffee that wouldn't otherwise be there. Where is this journey taking producers, roasters, and consumers?
Part 1: Challenges
Sensory Perception: How do we evaluate these coffees?
Developments in coffee production are, in some cases, rapid. We hear about Anaerobic Fermentations and Double Barrel Fermentations and Carbonic Macerations. While all of this sounds interesting, these are terms heavily borrowed from winemaking. Sometimes these names even sound very artistic. This seemingly offers producers the chance to make a name for themselves with an original name. We clarify exactly what fermentation in coffee is in this detailed article.
This whole development is certainly very interesting from a sensory perspective – suddenly we find flavors of cherry liqueur, violets; these are heavy, boozy coffees, highly fermented, without drifting into the vinegar realm. These are new taste fields that are just emerging. A few years ago, I tasted a coffee for which the official cupping score sheet no longer seemed appropriate to me.
The coffee offered much more than I could have expressed on an evaluation form. The aromas were so diverse; I had never had such a coffee before me. It was a multi-dimensional coffee that I couldn't match with anything in my sensory repertoire.
I rated it 93 points. But here I clearly distinguish between a professional and a subjective evaluation – I rated it highly to the best of my knowledge and conscience and my cupping experience.
However, my subjective evaluation was completely different – did I like the coffee? No. I don't want to drink it again. There was simply too much flavor in too little space. But I am convinced that there is a market for these coffees. I just don't think they are very common in Europe.
Roasting: how do we roast these coffees?
Coffee roasters are now coming into contact with these coffees more and more. So are we. On our own farm in Nicaragua, we conduct several fermentation experiments and accompany them scientifically. The flavor notes we can achieve this way are sometimes truly absurd. In a positive sense.
However, we also realize that we need to roast these coffees a little differently. Some of these coffees are bursting with aroma. It would be a shame to drown them in a more developed, darker roast. We almost always opt for filter coffees with this type of green coffee.
Roasting these coffees requires a lot of intuition to find the right roast profile. The aroma is intense and should be preserved, but the acidity is often very intense, so a little more balance is needed without compromising the flavors. I would also like to encourage all other roasters to try something new here, perhaps even to leave the usual path of roasting and try something different.
The progress on the production and fermentation side is enormous. On the roasting side, I don't see it as strongly yet. I also wonder if our way of roasting is the right one to do justice to such coffees at all?
Enjoyment. Are these coffees a pleasure or a horizon expansion?
I have the feeling that I am becoming somewhat – forgive me – mellow with age. I notice how these coffees technically interest me and sensorially challenge me, but gustatorily leave me rather cold.
Recently, a friend who is certainly mellow with age said that it felt similar to the Chardonnays from the USA in the 90s.
Lots of texture, lots of aroma, lots of everything, but little inherent flavor.
a mellow coffee friend
He finds it hard to enjoy them. He prefers lean wines, elegant, distinct. I understand him. That's how I understand coffee. I personally like elegant coffees, often tea-like, with limited complexity but high clarity. These are coffees that I can wonderfully enjoy. The "novel coffees" (oh dear, I'm really getting old) challenge me anew every time. I can't enjoy them yet, maybe that will come.
2. Opportunities
Anyone who has already tasted such coffees must show a little openness, because they taste different. One can simply grumble about it and enjoy the coffee that tastes more familiar. One can dismiss this as a "gimmick," "newfangled stuff," or a "trend" – I've heard it all in recent months. Or, we can show a little more openness and take a closer look at who makes these coffees.
A recent post from a renowned cupper from Costa Rica irritated me somewhat. He grumbled, as described above, about these
"trendy cinnamon-fruit bombs," saying that it's no longer coffee. He prefers the crystal-clear, juicy, and naturally fruity coffees from Tarrazu – which is one of the highest-altitude growing regions in Costa Rica.
Cupper from Costa Rica
And here lies the problem. Not all producers have a farm at almost 2000 meters above sea level. The majority do not. The majority are far below that and produce coffee for a market that often cannot cover production costs. Another market channel could help. One that seeks extreme flavors.
With extreme fermentations, we create extreme flavors – even at 800 meters above sea level. Of course, not just any raw material can be used; only well-sorted, optimally very ripe cherries ultimately produce excellent green coffee. But the altitude at which coffee is grown could suddenly be relativized.
And this is a huge opportunity for all producers who haven't won the lottery of a high-altitude farm, but, like most coffee farmers, are still in the sensory mainstream.
3. Risks
"For they know (not) what they do"
Highly fermented and delicious coffees don't just happen. They are not a coincidence, but the result of a precise, controlled, and intentional post-harvest process.
We often hear of "over-fermentation" when something tastes strongly fermented. We disagree with that. Something is either controllably fermented, or it isn't. Lucia Solis recently made the comparison in a podcast to a pregnant woman – a woman is either pregnant or not. But she is not a little pregnant, or too pregnant. She simply is, or she isn't. Just like coffee that has been fermented, or not.
"Over-fermented" carries a clear subjective connotation and historically stems from the fact that uncontrolled fermented coffees were often referred to in this way. Coffees that smell and taste of vinegar, leather, rotten fruit, etc. These are defects. And these are the product of uncontrolled fermentation, not over-fermentation.
These "modern" flavor profiles tend towards strong, opulent fruit notes, often with heavy floral aromas. They remind me of old ladies' perfume.
Creating such a profile requires a lot of knowledge. The know-how must be present, otherwise it won't turn out well and the coffee will ferment uncontrollably. Producers who know what they are doing always take extreme paths and create even more intense flavor profiles
Producers who have heard about it and are now trying something are taking a pretty high risk of doing a lot of things not quite correctly. This can lead to uncontrolled fermentations.
The pH value, the temperature, the available sugar, the presence of air, the headspace in a closed container, the agitation, the temperature development, etc. – all these are factors that must be considered in such a fermentation. Otherwise, it quickly becomes leathery, vinegary, and smelly.
Copy-paste. Will all coffees soon taste the same?
We are fortunate to be able to taste a lot of different coffees. If we don't order samples ourselves, we get them sent to us. Often these are intensive fermentation coffees. This expands the sensory horizon.
The problem here, however, is that I remember a general flavor profile much more than unique, characteristic features.
A coffee from Flores, Indonesia, was recently on the table next to a coffee from Colombia, and both tasted suspiciously similar. The post-harvest process involved the cherries spending 6 days in an anaerobic barrel before being dried as naturals for more than 25 days.
This intense process evoked such similar notes in both coffees that I almost confused them. The Colombian tasted like the Indonesian.
"Is that tragic?" some might ask. Perhaps that's the way things are. Others, however, see this as the "loss of terroir" and may cling to profiles that were standard 20 years ago, but are now increasingly giving way due to socio-economic, botanical, and climatic conditions.
I am neither a terroirist, someone who seeks "terroir" in coffee. Anyone who knows me a little better knows how much I am at odds with this term. Nor am I someone who blindly follows new developments. I see myself as a bystander in this discussion, because:
Is it up to us roasters to decide what coffee producers should produce and ferment?
Would someone dictate to the winemaker which profile to expand and which to abandon?
I don't think so.
I rather believe that for once, the "free market" of sensory preferences will decide. What catches on will be decided by coffee drinkers, and that includes roasters and coffee drinkers alike. We should simply refrain from dismissing these new developments as a "trend" – that would probably be too narrow-minded.
Are these coffees healthy?
Intense fermentation notes come from intense fermentation. Countless microbes and yeasts degrade sugars, raise acids, and lower pH. Yeasts eventually recede and bacteria take over. In some cases, mold envelops the semi-dried cherry before it is dried in the shade for over 30 days.
It is a collection of life.
I am neither a biologist nor a health expert. And precisely for that reason, I have to ask this question – are these coffees safe for health? If so, are there any studies on this?
Roasting kills harmful bacteria in coffee. However, if coffees are affected by mold, the risk increases – aflatoxins, mycotoxins found in mold, cannot be completely eliminated by roasting and remain potentially carcinogenic.
Who can help here? Who knows someone who knows whether intensely fermented coffees can pose a potential health risk?
Conclusion
It's far too early for me to draw a conclusion. We are just at the beginning of this new era, in which coffees from Colombia taste like Flores, in which coffees remind us of heavy old-lady perfumes in their aroma, in which we have to reorient our sensory standards once again.
What are your experiences with these coffees? We look forward to your feedback and are open to learning much more.
