Coffee from India

India proudly takes the place as the sixth largest coffee producer in the world, following Brazil, Vietnam, Indonesia, Columbia, and Ethiopia. Everything started in the late seventeenth century when people say an Indian pilgrim, known as Baba Budan, brought back to India seven beans of coffee, from Yemen. It is important to note that back then, taking coffee seeds out of Arabia was illegal. Well, it turns out that it was a risk worth taking because the beans ended up being planted in the Chandragiri hills of Karnataka and from there on, the cultivation kept expanding. This ended up evolving at an even greater rate when the British Raj arrived, in the mid-nineteenth century, and coffee farming became an industry.

The best regions

The traditional growing regions can be found in the southern states, like Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Here, most of the coffee grown is Robusta, as there have been trials of growing Arabica, but huge infestations of leaf rust tore that dream apart. Instead, the plantations turned to either Robusta or Arabica and Liberica hybrids. 

Other regions like Andra Pradesh, Orissa, or the ”Seven Sister” states Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh are more recently developed. We say developed because in India, coffee is usually grown under a two-tier mixed shade canopy of evergreen leguminous trees and is also interspersed with spices and fruit crops, like pepper, cardamom, vanilla, orange and banana trees. The best altitudes are between 700 and 1.200 meters. 

Types of coffee

The main coffee varietals grown in India are:

• Cauvery: a subvariety of Catimor, also a Bourbon descendant
• Kent: dating from the 1920, it was widely planted by Indian growers, and it is a mutation of Typica
• S795: bred by Indian botanists in the 1940s, it is a hybrid between S228 (which is itself a hybrid between Arabica and Liberica) and Kent; it is highly known in Indonesia, where it’s got a new name: Jember
• SL 9: the result of a cross between the Ethiopian Arabica varietal ”Tafarikela” and ”Hybrido-de-Timor”, which is a natural combination of Arabica and Canephora

Types of processing

There are two main methods of processing the beans: the traditional way, and the originally Indian one. For the traditional way, it is already widely known: it is either natural or washed. Locally, these methods are known as ”Cherry” and ”Parchment”. Also, the coffee is usually dried on patios, tables, or, where the space allows it, mechanical dryers. 

Now, let's talk about their original method. It is called ”monsoon malabar” and it dates back from when Indian coffee farming was under British Colonial rule. Back then, when green coffee beans needed to be transported  overseas, they would end up swelled and aged, mostly because of the humidity and sea winds. When this problem was ”solved” and transport began to be faster, the Europeans started to notice that the coffee was no longer as bold as they knew it, before the conditions improved.

Therefore, the Indians came up with an innovative process that gave the same results as the old transportation issue gave. First, the natural, sun-dried green beans are stored in open-sided warehouses which are located on the coast. This assures that the moist tropical air from the monsoon can circulate in the warehouse. This is done for about 2 to 3 months, a time period in which the beans absorb moisture, lose a little bit of their natural acidity and also double in size. The process usually occurs from June/July and ends in October and results in an earthy, pungent, low-acidity cup, which is mostly used to add just the right amount of body and weight to fine espresso blends. 

We don't know about you, but we were left impressed by the great story of Indian coffee. To be even more specific, their innovative nature. This could only come from a place of dedication, and we strongly believe that anything that is made using a lot of work and passion can result only in greatness. This is why we strongly advise you to give a try to this type of coffee if you haven't already, and let us know what you think. We guarantee you will not be disappointed!