Sumatra Jasmine Coferment

If you have ever found yourself wondering if/when we would ever bring back this crazy, nerdy, wild, etc. coffee onto our menu: she's back! This cofermentation features the beans being mixed with jasmine flower powder and yeast during fermentation in order to enhance their flavor. This outstanding coffee was grown and processed in Aceh, Sumatra by an organization called Central Sumatera Coffee (CSC). Aceh is known for having one of the most distinct coffee terroirs in the world; previously conjuring images of thick, syrupy, muddy dark roast coffee. The producers behind this lot, however, are trying to change public perception of their country’s coffee.

Coffee in Aceh works like in much of the world: tens of hundreds of smallholder farmers grow coffee on their land and everyone sells to a central mill or exporter who then turn everyone’s amassed coffee around for sale to local and international markets. CSC, however, operates their own 100-hectare estate where they can control their growing practices, harvesting, lot separation, post-harvest technique, and more. Formed in 2015 by urban university student Enzo Sauqi Hutabarat, CSC was started in recognition of the rise in demand for higher quality Sumatran coffee across greater Indonesia and later the world. CSC only sold domestically until 2020 when they branched out to the Middle East, Europe, and Asia. It wasn’t until 2024 that they started selling to the US market!

The majority of coffee processed by CSC at their Bener Meriah estate goes through traditional Indonesian wet-hulling. Critically though, this microlot has two additional steps to create an outstandingly unique coffee. After being picked, the cherries are macerated in nylon bags for a brief anaerobic fermentation to soften the fruit and maximize internal sugar content. The coffee is then depulped and moved into fermentation tanks for mixing with the aforementioned yeast and jasmine powder. Finally, as it's drying the coffee gets perfumed with just a little more jasmine essence from flowers picked around the farm. The result is a powerful punch of jasmine mixed with lovely, silky milk chocolates which are all brought together by a rich, earthy, floral body making this not only super complex, but extremely versatile in brewing methods. We’ve been having so much fun experimenting with different brewing methods and ratios at the roastery. We’ve found this coffee makes an outstanding cold brew; a tasty, delicate drip coffee; a fun, funky espresso; or a delicious cappuccino reminiscent of a jasmine milk tea.

We also want to highlight Itzél Rios-Ellis, a Mission-based artist and current barista at Grand Coffee Too who gratefully agreed to collaborate with us on the artwork for this coffee.