CAFETIERE

I was born in this country, this the world's largest archipelago that sprawls across 5,000 km /  3,107 miles and within 13,677 islands which lies with three different time zones, though it is now this country suffer a great economic crisis since 1998, many public and political issues and corruptions. It is say it is one of the world's worst country for corruptions issues. But still, there are five millions people depending lives by coffee industry in this country. With many volcanos in different altitudes and soil conditions across this archipelago, it is therefore not surprising that its arabicas, which far more scope for individuality than robustas, cover an amazing range of sometimes quirky but always interesting differences. A general description of most of the Indonesia arabicas would contain the words rich, full bodied, lowish acidity, and a prolonged aftertaste, in addition to terms more specific to the individual coffees.   There are three major regions in Indonesia that produce good quality coffee, the three regions are :

Sumatera 

The western most large island, grows 68 percent, from Lampung, South Sumatera, Jambi, Padang, Riau, North Sumatera, through Aceh; the province which have newly peace treaty between the Indonesia government and GAM (Gerakan Aceh Merdeka, which fighting for they own freedom to set free from Indonesia and build thier own country).  Much of the arabicas is sold simply as Sumateran or Blue Sumateran, many of the Sumateran trees are newly planted in virgin, highly organic, volcanic soil, which is very fertile, and the coffees, which are only partly wet processed, are strong and assertive. One of the few washed coffees in the gourmet quality Gayo mountain, sweetly spicy and exotically herbal in character, named for its area of origin in the extreme north western province of Aceh. An area from North Sumatera, Lintong, is similar to, but generally not quite as consistently good as, Mandheling, from the north and the west central regions. Mandheling, with deep rich flavor and smoothness of a low acidity coffee, merits the the title world's heaviest coffee. Ankola, also from the west central region near the port of Padang, may not have quite the body of a Mandheling, but it is regarded by some connoisseurs as the world's finest unwashed arabica. 

 

Java 

It is say that Brendan Eich once having a cup of coffee which had inspiring him to created computer scripts that world wide use in the internet right now, it is not close to another applications, the JavaScripts. And the cup was full of coffee from Java, which inspiring him also to named his program, the JavaScripts (I'm still asking the truth about it to Brendan Eich, I will make an update if the statement is mistaken). Java (Jawa in Indonesian right now used to write) grow 12 percent of Indonesia's coffee, was there the Dutch began the first coffee growing in Indonesia. About 300 years of intensive cultivation has left Java's soil a bit depleted. It is now a wet processed coffee, with more acidity, and less body, flavor and finish than the original Java arabicas, which had been known for rich smoothness, heavy body, and an earthy, mushroomy sort of flavor obtained only in unwashed coffees. 

Sulawesi 

Grows 9 percent of all Indonesian coffee. Under the Dutch, the island was called Celebes, the name under which much of the arabica coffee is today exported fro the port of Makassar. The Unwashed Kalosi coffee from the south western region of Toraja are the true aristocrats of all Indonesian coffee (which it is an everyday coffee that I drink, though sometimes other coffee for variations). They have heavy body and smooth texture associated with Indonesian coffees, as well as the deep earthy, mushroomy, sweetness, slightly increased acidity, a hint of fruit. Overall, the best and most distinctive range of Indonesian coffees are those which have been aged. The aging process carried out in the damp and warm climate. Lower acidity there may have been, enhances the sweetness and gives the already smooth, dense liquid and even heavier body. An interesting suggestion is to replace the after dinner liqueur with a small black cup of an aged Indonesia Kalosi, as its concentrated, sweet, syrupy consistency is virtually liqueur without the alcohol, and the cost is probably about the same. 

Sadly, the Indonesian people themselves lack of knowledge about coffee. Today many coffee is sold in Indonesia are blended, to fit the taste of Indonesian people. Many of them are blended with corn or soy, to make the price cheeper. Of course, the taste would be lighter than pure coffee, it is can be say with the word awful. It is hard to find a good quality coffee in Indonesia now days, with a reasonable price of course (which many other foreign countries brand that sell Indonesia coffee with high price which way too many profits from the original price in the origin place). Many coffee were over roasted, to make the acidity as less as possible, in turns, it gets bitter. In makassar for example, there is a famous coffee shop that sell Torajan roasted coffee bean which you could have them grind when you buy them, but they roast the coffee way to over. Despite it is one of my favorite coffee (the Toraja coffee), it is very disappointing for good quality green bean of arabica Toraja been roasted that way. The crazy thing is, that the local Makassarian people love that way (despite of that I am a Makassarian), they say "it is not a coffee if not strong in taste". But I think it is not strong, it is bitter. 

     

One of the famous brand (it is an old store, very old, established in the Dutch colony age) in Indonesia of aged coffees is "Aroma". It is located in one of the famous city from Indonesia, Bandung, used to call by the Dutch "Parish van Java", which mean "Paris in Java". They aged the green bean before they roast and sell it in three years for robusta, and seven years for  arabica. And the "Aroma" have quiet astonishing collection of aged coffees from all regions of Indonesia. And more amazingly, they only roast 50 kg of all coffees in one day, thats why the buyers are limited to buy only about 2 kg a day, which mostly cafe owner all around Indonesia.  

Other Growing area

Indonesia have other coffee growing area across the county. Each area have their own characteristics. Those areas which known for growing excellent arabica coffee are Bali which smooth in taste, Flores, Timor, Timour Leste (a new country which divided from Indonesia), and Wamena which heavy in body. And there is still one more coffee from Indonesia, which is written state as the most expensive coffee in the world, it even once shown up in Oprah, coffee Luwak (a little weasel like animal particularly pond of coffee cherries). The villagers collect the "droppings" and remove the hard coffee beans, then washed and further processed by less natural means. The flavor is exceptional!