Considering that the Papua New Guinea country shares the Western half of the Papua island with Indonesia, you would think that the coffees and stories are at least similar, if not almost identical. Well, in this case, this logic does not apply, and you will see why in the following paragraphs. Not only does Papua New Guinea differentiates from Indonesia, but also from all of the surrounding islands. How could this be possible?
First, a short history lesson
This part of the Papua island was not colonized by the German and British up until the year of 1885, which is nearly two centuries after the surrounding islands. The colonizers preferred to bring forward the Blue Mountain arabica plants which originated from Jamaica, rather than the usual robusta plants which could have been found all over Asia and the Pacific.
Moving forward, in the 1930s, an Australian prospector discovered how fertile the soil of the island was, and the coffee production simply exploded. By the 1950s, the government created stable relationships with the previously unknown inland tribes and encouraged them to create family coffee gardens. Now, 95% of coffee producers are such small holders with just a few hectares of land, where they also grow bananas, papaya, and legumes.
Now, the taste…
In the beginning, we mentioned that PNG coffee is different from the one found in its surrounding areas, and we are sure you would like to know how and why. Well, if the typical flavour profile is earthy and spicy, the fertile soil in PNG creates a rather citrusy acidity and chocolate and tropical fruits flavours. Sounds delicious!
Here, the beans are wet-processed and the harvest period is between April and September. They also have more oils and are usually enhanced best by a medium roast. This is why PNG coffee is best brewed by a French Press, or a steel-filter drip coffee maker. Of course, this coffee also comes in various forms, depending on the growth area.
One of the main characteristics of PNG coffee is inconsistency. This is because the cherries are harvested from many different, small patches. Therefore, they can be quite inconsistent, and there is a risk of off-taste, such as beef-broth. Even so, putting this aside, a good batch will definitely turn your world upside down.
Types of PNG coffee
Generally, the coffees grown in Papua New Guinea include Catimor (which is an Arabica varietal), Mundo Novo (a hybrid between Arabica and Catimor), the original Blue Mountain (an Arabica varietal), and Arusha (a Typica, or French Mission varietal).
New Guinea Kimel Coffee
Found on the Eastern highlands, this coffee is wet-processed, with a full body and a medium bright acidity. The main trait of this coffee is the powerful aroma, from which you can distinguish chocolate and currant notes. Sometimes, this coffee can surprise you with wild, forestry and herbal notes. For the best enhancement, the recommended roast is a medium to medium-dark.
For a better understanding, we can compare it with the Jamaica Blue Mountain, but with a heavier body, similar to Indonesian coffee.
New Guinea Aroma Coffee
Another wet-processed coffee, it is grown on the mountain of Papua New Guinea. As for the taste, you will be able to notice a rich, but comfortable, well-balanced fruity aroma. Also, it has a full body, but not as full as Sumatran, as aromatic as Sulawesi Toraja, or as acidic as Toraja.
What are the challenges PNG suffers from?
Well, there are a few. First off, lack of proper infrastructure and the constant threat of coffee bean thieves. They steal them before they hit the market, so the economic impact is imminent. Something that does help the situation of Papua New Guinea are the constant efforts to fund and educate the farmers.
Have you tried this coffee before? If not, we highly advise you to do so, and you can find it mostly on specialised sites, like Cafendo, or Driven Coffee Roasters. We guarantee that it will leave your taste buds happier than ever. If this isn’t enough, think about how you can help the economic development of a country, simply by enjoying your daily morning coffee. Everybody wins here!
