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Sumatra Island sits on the golden
belt of coffee origins. Gayo

Highlands is a famous growing area

for Arabica coffee.

Verdure of Pristine Wilderness

Locals call this special coffee “green beans” because
the crops are organically grown without fertilizers. Our
understanding of this was especially consolidated on the
cupping table, where we saw green beans placed next to
the corresponding roasted beans. Beautifully shaped, the
green beans had a verdant coat. They are not just blessed
by the natural conditions, but also by the unique wet-hull-
ing method, known by locals as Giling Basah.
Coffee beans have four layers of body protection: pulp,
mucilage, parchment, and silver skin. The washing method
only removed the first two layers, and the remaining two
were preserved for drying in the sun. But drying is no easy
task on Sumatra Island, where scorching sunshine takes
turns with heavy raindrops. During our three days in the
Sumatra Gayo Highlands, we encountered rain on two af-
ternoons. In response to the changeable weather, the
parchment will be shaved off when the beans are dried to
about 30% moisture content. This strategy maximizes
sunlight absorption to shorten the drying time, granting
On a rainy and sunny day,
we walked deep into the Sumatra Gayo Kopi Gayo a green coat as well as a rich, bright flavor. The
Highlands to have coffee here. sweet and sour cherry tone comes with the aroma of cedar,
presenting a mouthful of rainforest freshness.
The whole wet-hulling process consists of: mechani-
cal removal of the pulp from the hand-picked coffee berries;
fermentation to remove the mucilage; the first drying to
reduce the moisture content to about 30%; mechanical
removal of the parchment; and the second drying to reduce
the moisture content to 12%-13%.

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