Coffee Processing

Coffee is a beloved beverage all over the world. There are many ways to brew it, many bean varieties, roasts and things you can do to make coffee different. There are also coffee processing differences that can affect the outcome as well.

The coffee roasting process and coffee processing equipment do have an impact on the outcome. Coffee starts as a cherry and inside that cherry are the beans. The green bean goes through processing and roasting before it’s consumed as coffee.

Whether you buy coffee green and roast it yourself at home with a home roaster or buy pre roasted whole coffee beans or ground coffee, the process does impact the flavor of that coffee. The coffee’s processing and equipment also have a big impact as does the climate in which the coffee was grown and the variety of plant as well as elevation of the plantation.

Processing coffee happens through wet process, dry process and semi-dry. Wet process washes the coffee and the selection of the best beans happens. Dry process has the beans sit in the sun for several days. Semi-dry process is not as popular as the others but does happen and in this coffee processing, the cherry goes through a screen where skin and pulp are removed.

A lot of other things happen through the coffee bean process and procedures including bean aging, storage, roasting, decaffeinating of the coffee through a Swiss water process or chemical procedure and packaging of the coffee and cellulase and food processing in coffee to aid in processing. Some coffees are said to be better when they are aged whereas others are not. Because there are so many variables depending on where the coffee is grown, there is no definition of specific processes overall. There are even other techniques such as cold process coffee makers that help remove the bitterness.

Most coffee is Arabica or Robusta. Different areas produce different coffees and some countries have generally practiced coffee processing techniques depending on their local conditions.

The web provides a lot of coffee processing information including: coffee processing equipment directories, coffee-processing systems, inc. There is a real science to coffee beyond roasting, brewing and packaging. The growth of the plant, the soil conditions, the processing and storage as well as aging all make for a difference in the output of that plant.

Learning about the science of coffee can help you appreciate your favorite beverage even more.