India Kerehaklu Estate Washed Espresso - Single Origin.

Kerehaklu Estate is run by father and Son duo Ajoy and Pranoy Thipaiah; with each gravitating instinctively towards the areas where their experience and instincts best serve the farm. Mr. Ajoy oversees the plantation itself, focusing on plant health and overall agronomy, while Pranoy leads the post-harvest processing efforts.

Pranoy is deeply curious about how processing can add nuance and character to coffee, but he’s equally committed to allowing plant genetics and the native microbiome to remain the dominant forces shaping flavour. As a young, new-generation producer; we do believe that Pranoy's fresh vision & innovation will play a part in shaping the future of coffee.

One detail that makes this lot unique; it was produced using a starter culture that Pranoy developed from coffee blossoms. This is not a ‘co-ferment’ in coffee processing terms. Instead, Pranoy uses the blossoms to cultivate a starter culture; capturing the native microbes present on the flowers and subsequently utilising the starter to inoculate the fermentation.

A typical Kerehaklu lot is processed as follows; freshly harvested cherry is floated the same day it’s picked, then placed in open-air fermentation tanks from approximately 6:00pm to 9:00am the following morning. After this overnight fermentation in cherry, the coffee is pulped and transferred to lidded plastic barrels containing fresh water and a measured amount of the previously mentioned starter culture. The coffee is stirred every few hours to introduce oxygen and to ensure a uniform fermentation. After 35–37 hours, it is mechanically washed and then moved to drying. Drying begins under heavy shade for the first two days, after which the coffee is transferred to a polyhouse for continued drying.

PROCESS: SEQUENTIAL WASHED

REGION: KARNATAKA STATE, CHIKMAGALUR

ELEVATION: 1200

VARIETAL: SELECTION 9

CUP: ORANGE BLOSSOM, CRANBERRY, PLUM, DATE

ROAST: ESPRESSO