Welcome back! :P

chuan gao 07.October.2023

Welcome back!

The weather is warming, spring is certainly in the air and it is time for all of ‘us coffee roasters’ to start releasing coffees that taste of beaches and holidays, that is; coffees that taste of tropical fruits. We are pleased to bring you a coffee that tastes of peach iced tea, lychee and florals. It is a Catimor varietal with an altitude of 1500 meters above sea level.

We sourced this coffee through our close friends at Singularity coffee. It hails from Yuan Yi Yuan Estate, which is located in Mangshi, Yunnan province. This, of course, is one of China’s regions famous for producing tea. It was produced by Yihong Duan, who has a reputation of being an industry leader in pioneering coffee processing in China, having worked as the head of production for the largest coffee company in China (Hogood Coffee) and for over a decade in coffee processing more broadly.

Notably, Duan’s estate has been flourishing in recent times, boasting an array of coffee varietals like Eugenioides and Geisha, along with improved strains of the classic varietal found in China, Catimor. Duan also works closely with the Dehong Tropical Agriculture Research Institute (DTARI) and the Coffee Engineering Research Centre of China.

The processing of this coffee we bring you involves the following steps: The coffee is picked at its ripest, floated and then left to soak with enzymes that help digest the pulp of the cherries. It is then semi-pulped and fermented with yeast in two stages. Initially, under a controlled temperature with oxygen and then without oxygen for the middle and late stages of its fermentation. The beans are then dried at a low temperature to reduce their exposure to moisture before being hulled.

This is a very special coffee for us as it was one of the coffees that helped us gain traction shortly after opening our flagship store in October last year. We believe it is best enjoyed as a hot filter but has proven to taste remarkable even when iced. Coffee is full of trends all unfolding at once and the increasing popularity of coffee beans that have been grown and processed in China is one of them. This Yuan Yi Yuan estate coffee is what we currently consider to be an excellent example of what is to come from this promising region that is still in the very early stages of establishing itself.

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