Coffee Processing

Coffee processing is a mystery to most coffee drinkers. Gourmet coffee lovers know where their favorite coffees originate, how to brew the coffee to perfection, and how to store the beans. But they don’t know how the coffee was grown, harvested or processed.

Coffee processing begins at the time coffee cherries are picked. At that point they are called green coffee beans. The green coffee beans are fermented in water for up to 36 hours to remove any remaining pulp coverings. The beans are then dried in a variety of ways. Processing coffee at this stage can occur in one of several ways. Dry-process is the preferable method because the beans are dried in the sun naturally. Wet-processing is a newer method of removing the coffee seed layers. The other methods are called pulped natural and re-passed coffee. The method used in each coffee producing country depends on the climate where the coffee is grown.

Drying coffee is important because it reduces the moisture content in the beans. Proper drying techniques are developed through years of coffee cultivation in each region. There are varying stages of the drying process and each stage impacts the coffee bean quality. In the final stages of drying, the beans are put in coffee dryers for several hours.

The coffee roasting process results in the coffee bean changing color. The color can change from yellow or red to a very dark color. The longer you roast the beans, the darker the bean gets. As the bean gets darker and darker, the flavor shifts from the natural bean flavor to the roasting flavor. The expertise of the roaster has everything to do with the final flavor of the coffee bean. It is possible to over-roast or under-roast coffee beans. A good roaster knows how to bring out the various flavors of the bean by the length of roasting times.

There are companies such as Coffee Processing Systems, Inc. that specialize in coffee production. Big coffee companies have coffee processing equipment that is designed to improve and standardize the production process. Coffee processing equipment directories are available online. The coffee bean process procedures range from cold process coffee to the washed process coffee. Everyday, new techniques are developed to improve the flavor of coffees around the world. It is a scientific process that includes cellulase and food processing. In coffee, cellulase is a digestive enzyme that aids the digestive process.