Sulawesi Toraja Sapan Minanga

Sulawesi is one of my favorites, and one of the nicest looking Indonesians. The beans in this lots are bright blue, well sorted, nicely large sized. There's quite a bit of spiciness in the taste, and it mostly reminds me of a Sumatra with less earthiness and more complexity.

This is a semi-washed process (wet-hulled) coffee just like most Indonesians. Sapan Minanga has long been recognized for growing some of the best coffees on the island. The beans are very dense and can handle anything you do to them. I roast them right to the start of the second cracks to get a medium bodied, slightly earthy and citrusy coffee with a hint of orange rind undertone, chocolate, and subtle spicy black pepper.  That makes for a good cup of coffee, and especially so in a french press. 

But the darker you go, it hides the fruit, but the spiciness hangs in there.  I always enjoy dark Indonesians, and Sulawesi can particularly hold up to high heat.  30 to 40 seconds into the rolling 2nd cracks is a treat because the syrupy sweet body with a hint of spice is a joy -- it is a dark coffee that you can drink black.  I have a weakness for dark roasted Sulawesi in a hario pourover or a french press.  You can also Italian roast it by taking it 75 seconds into the rolling 2nd cracks (be careful not to start a fire) you have an even darker smoky powerful coffee but it holds up exceptionally well to the heat without the body becoming too thin.  It's an ideal choice for Italian Roast.  

Pull it out 20-30 seconds after the 1st cracks end for a light roast, and it's still good, although the earthiness can be off-putting, and there's hints of Sulawesien pepper.  The body is thick and the aftertaste pleasant; the coffee is smooth and just spicy enough to make it interesting and keep you going back for more.  Sometimes we'll roast it light like this and blend it with the dark roast to have a single origin bean as two roasts blended together.

You get the idea -- you can't go wrong with this one.

US Arrival November 2024