We love really good coffee! But what steps are necessary to enjoy it? This week, we're exploring the question: How is coffee made? Of course, coffee itself can't simply be "made." We need coffee farmers, traders, shipping, and roasters. So, get ready for the journey "from plant to cup"!
Coffee botany
The coffee plant is correctly called Coffea. It only grows productively on coffee plantations with careful cultivation. The coffee plant can reach a height of up to 4 meters, and its roots can reach a depth of 1 to 2.5 meters. The leaves are oblong-oval, and the cherries grow in clusters on the branches.
Coffee cultivation
Coffee only grows in the so-called coffee belt . Coffee cultivation therefore depends on geographical location, a balanced climate without extreme heat or cold, protection from wind and sun, sufficient rainfall, and good soil. We explain exactly what this means below:
From seedlings to plants:
The coffee plant seeds are sown directly into special beds without a parchment covering. After approximately six weeks, the seedlings are transplanted into individual containers, where, after eight months of intensive care, they are transferred to a coffee plantation. Depending on the variety and cultivation method, the plants are spaced one to three meters apart.
The young plants on the coffee plantations are regularly pruned, as this leads to higher yields later on. Coffee plants only become productive after 3 to 4 years. Some varieties even take 6 to 7 years! After 20 years at the latest, the coffee bushes are replaced with new plants, as they no longer produce any cherries.
Flowering and harvest season:
Coffee plants usually bloom immediately after the first rains of the rainy season. The blossoms wither very quickly and are therefore only receptive to pollination for a short time. Arabica coffee does not require cross-pollination, while Robusta does!
Arabica cherries can be harvested after 7 to 9 months, Robusta cherries after 9 to 11 months. Ripe cherries are red, unripe ones green or yellow. Inside each coffee cherry are two coffee seeds, which will later become beans.
Cultivation requirements:
Arabica coffee grows best at altitudes between 600 and 2,000 meters. Above 1,000 meters, it is considered "highland coffee," which is regarded as particularly high quality. Robusta coffee is somewhat more delicate and grows at lower altitudes, up to 900 meters. Temperatures for both Arabica and Robusta should be above 13 degrees Celsius. Below this temperature, the plants quickly die. Arabica thrives best at temperatures between 18 and 25 degrees Celsius, while Robusta coffee flourishes at a humid 26 degrees Celsius.
Water requirements:
Arabica coffee is rather sensitive to very humid temperatures. Nevertheless, both Arabica and Robusta require rainfall of 1,500 to 2,000 millimeters per year! Robusta coffee tends to be at the lower end of this scale, as it tolerates wetter regions better.
Soil quality:
Optimal growing conditions are becoming increasingly rare due to the exploitation of our soils and monocultures. The presence of phosphoric acid, potassium, nitrogen, and a high humus content in the topsoil are crucial. This soil must also be loose, permeable, and well-aerated. These qualities can be enhanced by cultivating crops in mixed stands with native plant species and other productive plants such as fruit trees.
Coffee harvest
In principle, the harvest season extends over ten to twelve weeks. The main harvest takes place in six to eight weeks. Accurate timing of the harvests is also important for everyone involved with coffee. The coffee year is defined as beginning on October 1st and ending on September 30th of the following year. However, different harvest periods still exist: north of the equator, harvesting usually takes place from September to December, while south of Apfil, it typically occurs from May to August.
Harvesting methods:
Depending on the type of plantation, the harvest varies! Large coffee plantations often use heavy machinery that "shakes" the cherries off the branch, regardless of their individual ripeness. On smaller coffee farms, the cherries are usually picked by hand in several passes every eight to ten days. This gives the unripe cherries the necessary time to ripen. It also improves the quality, as unripe beans negatively affect the taste. Another picking method is "strip picking," where all the cherries are stripped from the branch in one go and fall onto spread-out cloths. These are later collected, sorted, and processed.
Coffee preparation
The harvested coffee cherries should be processed as soon as possible after harvesting, as otherwise unwanted rotting processes can set in. Most Arabica beans are wet-processed. In this process, the beans are separated from the pulp using a pulper. After a fermentation period in a water tank, the beans are rinsed again and then dried on designated areas. In dry-processing, the cherries are dried directly in the sun until the beans can be easily removed from the skin without leaving any residue. There are various other methods as well – read more about them here !
Coffee further processing
The dried kernels must then be separated from the parchment and silverskin. Usually, the beans are then cleaned again by manually checking them for residues. Finally, the beans are sorted according to quality and packed into sacks.
From here, the coffee sacks are packed into containers and loaded onto transport ships, destined for destinations all over the world. Upon arrival at their destination port, the sacks are distributed among other logistics companies and delivered to roasteries. There, they are roasted, and that's how the coffee bean ultimately ends up in your cup!
We hope we were able to answer the question "How is coffee made?" in detail and that you learned something! See you next week.
Your SIMON&BEARNS Team
How is coffee made?
We love really good coffee! But what steps are necessary to enjoy it? This week, we're exploring the question: How is coffee made? Of course, coffee itself can't simply be "made." We need coffee farmers, traders, shipping, and roasters. So, get ready for the journey "from plant to cup"!
Coffee botany
The coffee plant is correctly called Coffea. It only grows productively on coffee plantations with careful cultivation. The coffee plant can reach a height of up to 4 meters, and its roots can reach a depth of 1 to 2.5 meters. The leaves are oblong-oval, and the cherries grow in clusters on the branches.
Coffee cultivation
Coffee only grows in the so-called coffee belt . Coffee cultivation therefore depends on geographical location, a balanced climate without extreme heat or cold, protection from wind and sun, sufficient rainfall, and good soil. We explain exactly what this means below:
From seedlings to plants:
The coffee plant seeds are sown directly into special beds without a parchment covering. After approximately six weeks, the seedlings are transplanted into individual containers, where, after eight months of intensive care, they are transferred to a coffee plantation. Depending on the variety and cultivation method, the plants are spaced one to three meters apart.
The young plants on the coffee plantations are regularly pruned, as this leads to higher yields later on. Coffee plants only become productive after 3 to 4 years. Some varieties even take 6 to 7 years! After 20 years at the latest, the coffee bushes are replaced with new plants, as they no longer produce any cherries.
Flowering and harvest season:
Coffee plants usually bloom immediately after the first rains of the rainy season. The blossoms wither very quickly and are therefore only receptive to pollination for a short time. Arabica coffee does not require cross-pollination, while Robusta does!
Arabica cherries can be harvested after 7 to 9 months, Robusta cherries after 9 to 11 months. Ripe cherries are red, unripe ones green or yellow. Inside each coffee cherry are two coffee seeds, which will later become beans.
Cultivation requirements:
Arabica coffee grows best at altitudes between 600 and 2,000 meters. Above 1,000 meters, it is considered "highland coffee," which is regarded as particularly high quality. Robusta coffee is somewhat more delicate and grows at lower altitudes, up to 900 meters. Temperatures for both Arabica and Robusta should be above 13 degrees Celsius. Below this temperature, the plants quickly die. Arabica thrives best at temperatures between 18 and 25 degrees Celsius, while Robusta coffee flourishes at a humid 26 degrees Celsius.
Water requirements:
Arabica coffee is rather sensitive to very humid temperatures. Nevertheless, both Arabica and Robusta require rainfall of 1,500 to 2,000 millimeters per year! Robusta coffee tends to be at the lower end of this scale, as it tolerates wetter regions better.
Soil quality:
Optimal growing conditions are becoming increasingly rare due to the exploitation of our soils and monocultures. The presence of phosphoric acid, potassium, nitrogen, and a high humus content in the topsoil are crucial. This soil must also be loose, permeable, and well-aerated. These qualities can be enhanced by cultivating crops in mixed stands with native plant species and other productive plants such as fruit trees.
Coffee harvest
In principle, the harvest season extends over ten to twelve weeks. The main harvest takes place in six to eight weeks. Accurate timing of the harvests is also important for everyone involved with coffee. The coffee year is defined as beginning on October 1st and ending on September 30th of the following year. However, different harvest periods still exist: north of the equator, harvesting usually takes place from September to December, while south of Apfil, it typically occurs from May to August.
Harvesting methods:
Depending on the type of plantation, the harvest varies! Large coffee plantations often use heavy machinery that "shakes" the cherries off the branch, regardless of their individual ripeness. On smaller coffee farms, the cherries are usually picked by hand in several passes every eight to ten days. This gives the unripe cherries the necessary time to ripen. It also improves the quality, as unripe beans negatively affect the taste. Another picking method is "strip picking," where all the cherries are stripped from the branch in one go and fall onto spread-out cloths. These are later collected, sorted, and processed.
Coffee preparation
The harvested coffee cherries should be processed as soon as possible after harvesting, as otherwise unwanted rotting processes can set in. Most Arabica beans are wet-processed. In this process, the beans are separated from the pulp using a pulper. After a fermentation period in a water tank, the beans are rinsed again and then dried on designated areas. In dry-processing, the cherries are dried directly in the sun until the beans can be easily removed from the skin without leaving any residue. There are various other methods as well – read more about them here !
Coffee further processing
The dried kernels must then be separated from the parchment and silverskin. Usually, the beans are then cleaned again by manually checking them for residues. Finally, the beans are sorted according to quality and packed into sacks.
From here, the coffee sacks are packed into containers and loaded onto transport ships, destined for destinations all over the world. Upon arrival at their destination port, the sacks are distributed among other logistics companies and delivered to roasteries. There, they are roasted, and that's how the coffee bean ultimately ends up in your cup!
We hope we were able to answer the question "How is coffee made?" in detail and that you learned something! See you next week.
Your SIMON&BEARNS Team