Brazil is a well known coffee producing giant. They source around one-third of the world's coffee, making them the largest coffee producer in the globe! Of course, most of this is lower grade Arabica. However, this country is capable of producing specialty coffees.
This particular type is a standard specialty quality coffee. It is dry-processed, meaning the beans are patio-dried while they are still in the cherry. Since the coffees are dried in contact with the sweet mucilage, the coffee's cup profile will be heavy in body, sweet, smooth, and complex. The 17/18 screen size has a more consistent flavor without the pungent fruit notes that can turn up in smaller screen sized beans, which is an indication of varying bean maturity.
This type carries three quality classifications:
NY (New York) 2/3; specifies the quality is standard to the Green Coffee Association of New York. 2/3 refers to the amount of defects permitted in the lot; a maximum of nine secondary defects, and no primary defects.
SSFC (Strictly Soft Fine Cup); Strictly Soft beans are grown at relatively low altitudes (under 1200 meters). Beans grown at lower altitudes mature quickly and produce a lighter, less dense bean. This term also means the beans are free of hard rioy taints. Fine Cup means it is a specialty grade coffee.
17/18 refers to the screen size. These beans are one screen size larger than 14/16, denoting a larger bean. Larger bean size is generally linked to higher quality.
The Swiss Water Process
The Swiss Water Process (SWP) is a non-solvent method for decaffeinating unroasted coffee beans. It was introduced by Coffex in 1979,[1] and was, at that time, the only commercial decaffeination method that did not use solvents. The Swiss Water Process has quickly become one of the most popular methods of decaffeinating specialty coffee. It is not named this because the water itself is Swiss, but instead because the process was developed in Switzerland.
BASICS
THE PROCESS
In this process, the coffee beans are soaked in caffeine-free green coffee extract, allowing the caffeine to be extracted from the bean and into the solution while the flavor components are retained in the beans. The now caffeine-saturated green coffee extract is then processed through activated charcoal to remove the caffeine, thus becoming caffeine-free again and ready to extract caffeine from a new batch of coffee. The coffee beans are then dried to their originating moisture level and re-bagged. The Swiss Water Process results in coffee that is 99.9% caffeine free.
NO USABLE BY-PRODUCTS
In other methods of decaffeination, the caffeine is recovered from the mixture and sold separately from the coffee. Typically, caffeine is caputured through the introduction of a volatile solvent (such as methylene chloride or ethyl acetate), which allows the caffeine to attach to the solvent and then be recovered through dehydration. However, in the Swiss Water Process, no chemical solvents are used. The cost of this process is usually slightly higher than solvent-based processes.
CRITICISM
One criticism of this process of decaffeinating coffee beans is that different batches of coffee are processed in the same solution, resulting in a less distinctive flavor for each origin. Often, the liquid extracted from one batch of coffee beans is mixed with the liquid from another batch. The result being that the decaffeinated liquid returned to that first batch will still contain oils and flavors from the other batch. This practice will blend the flavors of the coffees, muting the more subtle notes of each batch.
Cupping Notes are gathered by using the cupping method to get a general idea of what natural flavor notes a coffee contains.
Flavor profile will vary between different brewing methods and roast profiles.
For Best Results it might be necessary for the coffee to degas 24 - 48 Hours when it arrives at your location to release trapped gases from within the beans which is a result from the roasting process.
As always if you Have any Questions or Concerns Feel free to Reach out to us.