A method of collecting coffee, as well as processing, sorting and roasting. Coffee production: growing, harvesting, processing and packaging

In order for coffee lovers to fully enjoy the aroma of coffee beans, the coffee beans must first be harvested, then processed, and the resulting beans must be roasted.

When harvesting fruits of more expensive varieties, coffee trees are shaken, which is why only ripened fruits fall to the ground. Cheaper coffee varieties Harvested by picking both ripe and unripe fruits.

This is followed by a processing step, as a result of which the grains are separated from the fruit shell. There are two main ways to process harvested coffee beans: dry and wet. The choice of method depends on the availability of water, crop maturation conditions, weather and crop maturation time, as well as the availability of peeling and drying equipment.

In progress dry processing the collected coffee fruits are scattered in an even layer on a concrete surface or on special sites. Drying in the sun takes up to five weeks and depends on several factors: the thickness of the coffee fruit layer, the average daily temperature and the number of sunny days. During drying, the fruits are agitated with a rake or manually. After drying, the coffee fruits are put into bags and kept for a few more weeks so that the fruits additionally lose some of the moisture. After that, they are peeled, separating the fruit shell from the green coffee bean. In some African countries, coffee is peeled by hand, in others there are special peeling machines for this.

Wet processing more complex and is used mainly on large plantations. It allows you to get coffee beans of the best quality. Freshly picked coffee fruits are subjected to pre-cleaning, during which branches, leaves or foreign objects that have fallen along with the coffee bean are separated. Then the coffee fruits are quickly washed, after which they are cleaned of pulp in a special apparatus - a pulper, which separates the shell of the coffee fruit from the grains. After pulping, the fermentation stage begins, which allows you to get rid of the slightest remnants of pulp, fibers, films and shells of the skin. This process should last no more than 36 hours, otherwise the taste of the final product will drop sharply.

After fermentation, the grains are rinsed in cold water, folded over sieves, and then laid out on a stone floor or on racks made of metal mesh to dry. Dried coffee beans under the scorching sun in the open air. In order for the grains to dry evenly, they are periodically turned over. This final stage lasts approximately 2 weeks.

The residual moisture content of the coffee beans should be 11-12%. It is important not to overdry the beans, as excessive drying will adversely affect the quality of the coffee. For example, Arabica dried to 10% loses its characteristic bluish-green color, becomes brittle and acquires an unusual taste. In under-dried seeds, fungi and bacteria begin to develop.

In most coffee-producing countries (with the exception of some areas of Brazil and Ethiopia), wet processing is mainly Arabica. Robusta is dry-processed almost everywhere.

In order for the grains to acquire a more beautiful appearance, they are polished in specially designed drums. Sometimes coffee is placed in the drum along with sawdust, as a result of which the grains are smoothed out, but the smallest particles of sawdust remain on them, which look like a white coating. This plaque is considered a sign of a high grade coffee.

In some countries, there is a special position - a coffee bean quality inspector. These specialists control all incoming batches of coffee beans for their uniformity.

After drying, coffee beans are ready for sale and further processing.

Processed and dried coffee is packed in jute bags. Usually dried raw materials are stored for about a month. But just like expensive wine, good coffee requires aging. When raw unroasted coffee is stored for a year or more, its quality improves - the grassy taste characteristic of a drink obtained from freshly harvested coffee is lost. For example, Arabian coffee from Yemen acquires its high quality only after a three-year shelf life, and Brazilian - only after 8-10 years of storage.

Along with the traditional, there is an American technology for processing raw coffee, for which special chemicals are used. As a result of this treatment, the need to withstand coffee for several years is eliminated.

Roasting coffee beans

A very important, if not the most important stage in the production of coffee is the process bean roasting, thanks to which the whole bouquet of aroma and taste of grain is revealed. Roasting expensive coffees is still done by hand, as this process is more of an art than a technology, where much depends on the experience and skill of the roaster.

If the grains are poorly roasted, the taste of the drink will be spoiled. Properly roasted beans should have a bright sheen and look the same. If they are dull, then this indicates that the grains are either overdried, or the roasting technology has been violated.

There are different degrees of roasting, each of which is able to give a different flavor to the same type of coffee.

• Light frying only applies to high quality, delicate Arabica beans grown in the highlands. This method of roasting is also called semi-urban or New England. In the US, light roasted coffee is called cinnamon because of the similarity in color of the roasted beans to the bark of this spicy plant. Coffee brewed from lightly roasted beans has a sour, slightly watery taste.
• Scandinavian roasting- a kind of light roasting, as a result of which the grains, roasted at 220-230 ºC, acquire a light brown color. This method differs in that coffee aromas and oils do not come out, but are concentrated inside the bean. Scandinavian roasted coffee is used to make a drink in drip-type coffee makers and a French press.
• medium roast- American way. It differs in that coffee beans are roasted intensively and for a long time, but at the same time they never allow the release of oily substances on their surface. As a result of roasting, the beans acquire a dark color, and the finished coffee drink has a luxurious aroma with a bitter aftertaste.
• viennese roast- darker than Scandinavian, it is most popular in Central Europe. It is also called light French, business or urban. With this method of heat treatment, dark brown spots and oils appear on the surface of the grains, and, accordingly, the drink from them is quite fragrant. This type of roasting is especially suitable for drip coffee makers and French presses.
• french fry- a strong degree. The grains acquire a dark brown color and begin to shine from abundantly released oils. From such grains, a drink with bitterness and a smack of fire smoke is obtained. In some cases, espresso is made from this roasted coffee. Basically, it is used in French press coffee makers and coffee pots.
• Continental way- more commonly known as double or heavy roast. The grains take on the color of dark chocolate. In the United States, coffee that has undergone this treatment is called French roasted, New Orleans roasted, or European roasted.
• Italian roast- the darkest, produced at a high temperature, which allows you to maximize the taste of coffee beans. As a result, the grains become very oily, almost black in color. Italian roasted coffee is only used for espresso or moka coffee machines. By the way, in Italy itself, coffee is roasted to a lighter shade than, for example, in the USA.

By mixing roasted coffee beans of different varieties and different degrees of roasting, manufacturers achieve unique flavor combinations, and the composition of the resulting blends is kept in the strictest confidence.

Only a small part of the coffee is roasted by hand, the bulk is automated. In the industrial production of coffee, there are three main types of roasting: thermal (contact and convective), dielectric and radiation.

With the thermal contact method, the heated metal of the walls of a special drum containing two and a half hundred kilograms of green beans transfers heat to the coffee bean. But this method did not find wide application, especially after convective devices appeared in the coffee processing enterprises of Brazil and the USA in 1935. In them, a jet of air heated to 200 C stains coffee beans in a chestnut color, and different varieties of coffee are brought to varying degrees of darkening. In the drums, the beans are not completely roasted, but only give them a soft brown color, allowing the coffee beans to "reach" due to their own heat. This ensures uniform roasting, and the grains do not contain impurities and acquire a smooth, shiny surface.

Dielectric frying uses microwave energy. Since microwaves are able to evenly penetrate deep into the coffee beans, regardless of their size, the beans roasted in this way are characterized by a uniform taste. The peculiarities of microwave energy make it possible to make the roasting process continuous and faster, and the coffee obtained in this way contains the maximum amount of extractive substances.

The radiation roasting method was invented in the USA. As a rule, roasting with the help of ionizing radiation energy is used for combined production methods - first, coffee beans are translucent with gamma rays, and then roasted using standard heat treatment technologies - but in a shorter period of time.

During the heat treatment, coffee beans increase in size up to one and a half times, but at the same time lose about 20 percent in weight due to the evaporation of water, the combustion of foreign particles and the decomposition of certain substances. But at the same time, a new element is born during roasting - caffeol, which allows us to enjoy the wonderful aroma of roasted coffee.

Sometimes, to give the grains a special shine, they are covered with a very thin layer of glycerin or a sugar solution.

If in the final version coffee is delivered to the market in beans, then its processing is completed: coffee beans are packed in specialized sealed packaging and sent to their destination.

Grinding coffee beans

Everyone knows that coffee is brewed from ground coffee beans, and therefore they must first be ground. They do this in two ways: industrial and at home, and it is believed that the latter is used by true coffee lovers.

Regardless of the method, coffee is coarse grinding, medium and fine, sometimes a very fine grinding is also distinguished (like top quality flour). If coffee is ground industrially, then it is additionally sifted through sieves with cells of different sizes so that the grains in the finished product are the same. This is done because grains of different sizes will give the drink their taste, aromatic and other useful substances in different ways. The finer the grinding, the greater the solubility of these substances, the richer, and therefore the tastier and more aromatic the drink.

Solubility of aromatic substances in fine grind coffee- 1-4 minutes, medium - 4-6 minutes, and coarse 6-8 minutes. At first glance, it would seem that finely ground coffee is the best, but this is not always the case. For example, it is completely unsuitable for brewing coffee in machines where hot water is forced through the coffee powder. The finer the powder, the more difficult it is for water to flow through it. Therefore, the grind must be chosen exactly according to the way the coffee will be brewed.

Coarse grinding is universal, suitable for cooking in any coffee pot. The medium one also works with most methods, while the small one is for filter coffee makers. Ultra-fine processing powder is used only for brewing Turkish coffee according to the original recipe using Turks (cezve).

Ground coffee, prepared industrially, goes on sale in hermetically sealed bags, from which the air is pumped out or replaced with an inert gas. In such packages, coffee does not spoil for six months or even longer. Bags with vents are considered the best packaging. But an open package loses its wonderful properties, therefore, after opening it, it is desirable to tie or seal it as tightly as possible. There is such a way to store ground coffee: cut a small semicircle in the bag, bend it, quickly pour out the right amount of coffee, then close the hole. Place the package in a tightly closed metal box, which is placed in a dry, cool place.

Connoisseurs say that the most delicious drink with a rich unique bouquet is obtained only from freshly ground selected grains, ground with a manual coffee grinder. It is more difficult and longer to grind grains on it, but the coffee does not heat up much, and, accordingly, loses its aroma less.

It is easier and faster to grind coffee beans with an electric coffee grinder. Depending on how long the coffee is ground, different grinds are obtained. But there is a limit, when it is no longer possible to grind finer, and with further exposure, the coffee only heats up. If this happens, it is recommended to remove the lid of the coffee grinder and let the coffee cool down. The aroma of ground coffee dissipates quickly, so it's best to grind as much coffee as needed for one go.

On a good coffee grinder, you can make coffee of different grinding: from coarse to extra fine.

Instant coffee

Instant coffee appeared relatively recently and quickly became popular all over the world due to its ease of preparation. The taste and aroma of instant coffee is somewhat weaker compared to natural coffee, and the caffeine content, on the contrary, is much higher - sometimes four times. Instant coffee is both natural and with various additives - chicory, rye, oats and other cereals.

Instant coffee, as a rule, is made from the Robusta variety, as it retains the taste and aroma of the natural product better during processing. Sometimes there is a mixture of varieties. Such coffee is more aromatic and has better taste properties. In the production of some elite varieties, beans of the highest grade Arabica are used, but such coffee is much more expensive.

Powdered coffee has the simplest manufacturing technology: the grains are crushed to a particle size of 1.5-2 mm, then they are treated for 3-4 hours with hot water under a pressure of 15 atmospheres. The extract obtained is cooled, filtered and then dried with hot air. The resulting powdery mass is cooled.

Granulated coffee obtained by special treatment of the powder with steam, which causes it to stick together into granules.

The most expensive is the freeze-dry production method. The frozen and crushed coffee broth is fed into a vacuum tunnel, where the ice evaporates, bypassing the liquid state. The dehydrated mass breaks - as a result, uneven crystals are obtained. Coffee made using this technology is called freeze-dried coffee. Of all types of instant coffee, it has a more delicate taste and aroma.

Every year, coffee brewing technologies change and improve. But the traditions of harvesting remain more conservative. But they still differ significantly in different countries. Let's try to figure out how coffee beans are harvested.

Why is coffee harvested by hand?

Harvesting coffee is a very time-consuming process that requires careful and patient approach. Even one spoiled berry can destroy the entire crop. In Central America, Ethiopia, Kenya and India, hand-picked coffee is practiced. It is expedient, because the grains on the same tree ripen at different times. When some berries are ready for picking, others remain immature. It is believed that thanks to this method, you can get the highest quality raw materials and, accordingly, an impeccable drink.

Sometimes they resort to continuous manual collection when they are running out of time before the start of the rainy season. For example, in some countries special combs are used. Previously, burlap is spread under the trees, where the berries are “combed”. Then the fruits are additionally sorted out, sorting out the unripe ones. The mechanized method of collecting coffee has become widespread in Brazil.

How coffee is harvested in Brazil

Coffee on plantations in Brazil ripens almost simultaneously, so high-performance berry picking is possible. But you still have to sort the fruits, as well as remove knots and leaves accidentally mixed with grains. A special pneumatic tool has found wide application, which shakes the branches, as a result of which the ripe berries themselves fall off the branches.

At the next stage, the processing and drying of the fruits is carried out, which takes place directly on the plantation in one of two ways:

• dry technology.

Berries of coffee are exposed to natural drying within 20 days. Several times a day they are turned over with a wooden rake, covered overnight to protect from moisture. This method is appropriate in dry areas or during periods of drought. Less commonly used mechanized drying. After dry grains undergo mechanical exfoliation to get rid of the dried pulp of the berries, peel and parchment shell of the seeds.

• wet technology.

This technology allows you to get the highest quality raw materials. In addition, the rainy season is not a hindrance for her. First, coffee berries are placed in water and pulp is removed due to mechanical friction. Coffee beans are in the water for another 2-3 days, undergoing a fermentation process, resulting in an improvement in the taste and aroma of the final product.

Then the remnants of the pulp are removed under a strong stream of water, and the grains are left to dry for two weeks. They are dried in the sun for only a few hours a day, constantly stirring. The rest of the time, the grains are specially covered, protecting them from the sun and night moisture. Dry coffee beans move easily in the seed coat, which immediately crumbles if the bean is rubbed in the palm of your hand. It is thanks to friction that the seed coat is removed.

The grains that have undergone pre-treatment are green. Then they are sorted by size: the larger it is, the more expensive the coffee. The coffee harvest ends with packaging. Bags with grains are stored on wooden floorings in rooms with a special temperature regime and good ventilation. Further, at the enterprises, coffee is sorted, polished and various blends are made.

Only after roasting the beans are finally ready to prepare fragrant fresh coffee. Now it's not a secret for you how coffee beans are harvested. This time-consuming and difficult process allows millions of people around the world to enjoy the taste of their favorite drink every day.

P.S. We remind you that more than 25 types of original Nespresso coffee capsules are presented in our online store. Come in and choose a variety of flavors of your favorite drink.

To carry out the first harvest of coffee, you need to wait until the coffee tree reaches maturity, begins to bloom and bear fruit. Depending on climatic conditions and the botanical type of the coffee tree, the mature age occurs in different ways, often 3-4 years after planting in the ground.

There is another technique that is used less and less. The so-called natural collection method is the most ancient and consists in simply waiting for the fruits to dry and fall from the trees onto the pre-spread burlap. This technology is still used in Ethiopia and Yemen, but most often pickers do not wait for full ripening and harvest. The taste of this coffee is very far from ideal.

mechanized way

This method, as well as stripping, is used in countries where the crop ripens in a short period of time. The coffee harvest must also be very fast. Not all farmers can afford the mechanized method. The equipment is not cheap.

Depending on the units used, the mechanized method can be divided into several categories:

With vibrating combs

It is considered the cheapest method of mechanization, since the cost of vibrating combs is not high, however, the performance of such a collection leaves much to be desired. Another disadvantage is the need to hire a significant number of people who will operate these ridges.

Watch a video about how coffee is harvested in Brazil. The coffee harvest in the video starts at the 6th minute.

With the use of combines

Coffee harvesters are aggregates with vibrating devices. They carry out coffee harvesting as if passing through a row of coffee trees, and cylindrical brushes located in the front part, the rods of which vibrate, knocking the fruits off the trees. Next, the coffee berries go through the conveyor to the hopper car, which runs parallel to the combine, but in the next row.

Brazil is the world's largest coffee harvester. It accounts for about 32 to 35% of the coffee market. Here, a significant part of the crop is harvested by combines. The disadvantages of this method include a high degree of damage to trees, a huge amount of unripe and overripe fruits, branches, insects, and flowers getting into the assembly bin. This method can only be applied on a relatively flat surface, where trees are planted in a straight line with a large row spacing. Therefore, most of the coffee in the world is still harvested by hand.

Yes, and judge for yourself, who, let's say, in Ethiopia 50 years ago, thought about the mechanization of harvesting? Here, the maintenance of coffee plantations is often a family affair and skill is passed down from generation to generation. Trees were planted on the slopes of the mountains. Naturally, no one guessed that it was necessary to plant coffee bushes in perfectly even rows, and even on flat terrain, in order to mechanize labor in the future. Therefore, as they were collected by hand, they are still being collected.

It is important to understand that the taste characteristics of coffee are affected by all stages of the production of the product, but undoubtedly harvesting is a very important process.

After harvesting, the stage follows.

There is hardly a person in our country who has never heard of such a drink as coffee. At the same time, many of our compatriots do not even know how coffee is harvested. Today we will talk about this in more detail.

In order to get good quality coffee beans, they need to be harvested at a certain time. In addition, it is necessary to take into account the fact that on the same branch, along with ripened fruits, there may also be green ones, which are not necessary to pick. This greatly affects the quality of the coffee itself.

At the moment, there are several main methods of harvesting. Let's start with perhaps the most popular.

In Brazil and many other countries, it is very popular mechanical harvesting. For this, special machines are used that allow you to shake the grains from the tree without causing any injury to those. Grains are collected in special tanks, after which they are manually sorted. It is clear that along with ripe grains, both unripe and damaged ones fall off.

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It should be noted that the cost of coffee is not at all due to the fact that these fruits were obtained manually, while others were mechanized. No. It really depends on the size of the harvest. For example, if it is possible to collect all 8 kg of grains from one tree in a mechanized way, then by hand - no more than 2 kg. Of course, a number of other factors are included in the cost, but the volume of the crop plays almost the main role.

By the way, the coffee harvest, depending on the country, can last up to 10 months. One hectare can produce up to two tons of crop. The able-bodied population gathers the harvest, although often children who seek to earn extra money also do this.

When NESCAFE suggested that I fly to Brazil to watch coffee being harvested, the first thing I thought was"Ну и на фига мне всё это?", на второй мысли я согласился. В конце концов смотреть как работают другие - очень приятное занятие.!}

From Moscow to Paris, from Paris to Sao Paulo, from Sao Paulo to the town of Vitoria, where people walk along the runway from the gangway to the airport. I am in Brazil for the second time - from the first I remember only the meeting with Ronaldo, the constant rain in Rio and the most important acquaintance for me.

Vitoria is sad and depressed. Especially in the rain. But how I missed so many South American gestures: the eyelid being pulled down, meaning danger and caution, and the thumb up, which in Brazilians means almost everything.

In the morning the weather returned to normal and we moved towards the plantations. Three hours to the God-forgotten semi-Polish settlement of Agva Branca, lost among the "sleeping elephants" - that's how I call these stone hills. Here appeared a character named Carlos, a man with the appearance of Richard Gere and Dan Petrescu, a descendant of Polish settlers, a planter and landowner. Carlos went to show us his land. Together with Carlos, his whole family went, a personal photographer (for some reason!), an English teacher from a local school and a couple of her students who wanted to see foreigners.

The show lasted three hours - Carlos has so much land. 140 hectares and 130,000 coffee trees on them. Each tree needs up to 10 liters of water per day. In each row of coffee plantations, someone was moving frantically, harvesting. One could stop and ask: "And whose land is this?" "Marquis de Carlos!" - would have answered in the bushes.

Carlos explained something for a long time about irrigation technology and careful selection of grains, but for you, my beautiful readers, I will not go into details, but will tell you "on the fingers and in a nutshell." For in-depth technologies are not the format of my LiveJournal. I love when "tyap-blunder and you are recognized."

So, for example, ripe coffee beans look like just taken from a branch. If you remove the husk from them, then they will even taste sweet. Each tree produces 5 kg of coffee - and only 20 mugs of coffee.

I would have climbed the mountain a long time ago and painted the eyes, ears of the "elephants", ... Well, or at least I would have written some kind of curse or a declaration of love.
I remember seeing a similar Stone in Colombia: between the settlement of El Peñol and Guatape. Huge letters GI are displayed on its side. It turns out that Guatape and El Penol argued for a long time to whom this work of nature belongs, until finally the Guatapins climbed onto the Stone and began to display the name of their settlement on it. The El Peñols saw this through a spyglass and sharpened their knives in the direction of the Stone, drove the Guatapes from it - but one and a half initial letters from the word Guatape remained on its surface.

This is a coffee bush nursery. Very small trees are grown here. Ridges with cylinders of soil and seedlings tightly fitted to each other are crowned by the upturned butt of a Brazilian peasant woman. She did not enter the frame, sorry.

In the evening we dined at the ex-mayor of Agva Branca. All his guests called me Neymar because of the hairstyle in honor of the now super popular football player. The translator confused me and called me Niemeyer after the famous Brazilian architect. I drank cachaça - and I didn't care if I was Neymar or Niemeyer.

In the morning we arrived at the grain dryer. They are brought to plantations and loaded into huge cylinders, which are spun from the inside by specially trained Brazilian squirrels. How proteins do not burn inside there is still unknown to science. Then the grains are packed in bags and sweaty muchachos load them on transport to the warehouse.