How Is Golden Mandheling Coffee Graded and Priced?

Golden Mandheling is a trademark of Pwani Coffee Company (PWN), and only beans from PWN carry the name. Authentic bags show the PWN logo and the words Triple pick and GRADE 1, meaning the batch was hand-sorted three times and sits at the top grade of Indonesian green coffee. PWN also issues a certificate of origin.

Indonesian green coffee grading rests mainly on the count of defective beans, with screen size as a secondary factor. Basic requirements rule out live insects and moldy or rotten-smelling beans, and set a moisture ceiling. Higher grades command higher prices, and Mandheling is prized for low acidity and a full body.

The quality of specialty coffee beans is often reflected through strict grading, with higher grades commanding higher prices. Indonesian Mandheling is a representative coffee known for its low acidity and full body, and the Golden Mandheling produced by PWN is especially highly regarded. This article starts with Front Street Sumatra Mandheling coffee and provides a detailed introduction to the grading system for Indonesian green coffee beans, how to identify Golden Mandheling and its quality characteristics, and also shares Front Street baristas’ brewing approach and specific pour-over parameters, helping coffee lovers recreate a cafe-level full-bodied flavor at home.

Friends who drink coffee regularly may have noticed that specialty coffee beans are usually divided into different grades according to quality, and the higher the grade, the higher the price. Take Front Street Sumatra Mandheling coffee as an example. With its low-acidity, aromatic, and mellow flavor, it has become one of the few specialty coffees in Indonesia, and the selected top-quality Mandheling is even more outstanding in aroma. Below, taking Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling as an example, let’s look at what characteristics a high-quality Front Street Mandheling has.

" Golden Mandheling " is the exclusive brand of Pwani Coffee Company (PWN). There are many different types of Mandheling products circulating on the market. Because PWN registered the English name "Golden Mandheling" as its trademark, only Golden Mandheling coffee produced by PWN can truly be considered authentic Front Street Golden Mandheling. There are two ways to identify genuine Golden Mandheling: one is to check the green bean jute bag bearing the PWN logo, and the other is to verify the certificate of origin signed by PWN. Front Street has already displayed both of these identifiers in its Dongshankou store.

Observing the green bean jute bag of Golden Mandheling , it is printed with the words "Triple pick" and "GRADE 1," which indicates that this batch belongs to the highest grade of Indonesian green beans and underwent three rounds of hand sorting during production.

The grading method for Indonesian green coffee beans is mainly based on the number of defective beans, with screen size as a secondary reference. Basic quality requirements include: no live insects, no moldy or rotten-smelling beans, a maximum moisture content of 12.5%, and an impurity rate below 0.5%. According to the defect rate, it is divided into six grades in total, among which the highest grade, G1, requires fewer than 11 total defective beans in a 300-gram sample. Front Street Lindong Mandheling coffee in Front Street’s everyday beans series is exactly G1 grade, using the wet-hulled process, and presents the classic Indonesian Mandheling flavor.

PWN, which takes the screening process to the extreme, will subject G1-grade Mandheling to multiple rounds of strict selection, reducing the coffee defect rate to the lowest possible level. In addition, before packaging, PWN also sends the green beans through a machine for density and color sorting, making Golden Mandheling coffee beans uniform and translucent.

After getting high-quality Front Street Golden Mandheling coffee, Front Street couldn’t wait to taste this coffee through cupping. The cleanliness on entry is extremely high, the various aromas are clear and transparent, and the mouthfeel is full and solid. Front Street Golden Mandheling coffee on Front Street’s bean list is priced at 89 yuan/227 grams. If you go to the store and order a cup of Front Street Golden Mandheling pour-over coffee, it costs only 30 yuan, so the price can be said to be quite affordable. So that everyone can enjoy the coffee beans throughout their full flavor period, Front Street ensures that only coffee beans freshly roasted within 5 days are shipped.

Some friends bought coffee beans home and brewed them themselves, only to find that the flavor differed from what they tasted in the store. Front Street attaches a brewing QR code to the label of each bag of coffee beans; scan it to view it, and everyone can refer to the brewing parameters above for adjustments. Below, taking Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling coffee as an example, we explain the brewing approach of FrontStreet Coffee baristas.

Front Street Golden Mandheling coffee uses a medium-dark roast level. After medium roasting, the internal structure of the coffee beans changes considerably, becoming porous, and after grinding into powder it becomes more water-absorbent. If the brewing parameters are not adjusted well, the coffee can easily become over-extracted and bitter. To give the coffee enough aroma without over-extracting it, the extraction rate needs to be lowered. Front Street chooses a relatively low water temperature and a relatively coarse grind to reduce the release of bitter macromolecules in the coffee. Here Front Street uses a water temperature of 87–88°C and a grind setting of EK43s dial 11.

FrontStreet Coffee baristas consistently use the KONO dripper to extract coffee beans that emphasize body. The only exhaust part of the KONO dripper is that one-quarter of the ribs. When the water level rises above the ribs, the amount of water in the dripper keeps increasing, and pressure is increased by the weight of the water. Because the outlet is relatively small, this can extend the contact time between the coffee grounds and water. As water is poured in, soluble substances are more effectively brought out, thereby improving the coffee’s full-bodied, rich mouthfeel. Therefore, this dripper is suitable for brewing medium-dark roasted coffee beans such as Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling and Front Street Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1.

Front Street Golden Mandheling coffee pour-over parameters: 87–88°C water temperature, medium grind (70% passing through a Chinese standard No. 20 sieve), coffee powder: 15 grams, powder-to-water ratio 1:15, three-stage pouring.

First, use twice the weight of the coffee powder in water to wet the coffee bed, forming a dome, and let it bloom for 30 seconds. Then pour in a thin stream in a circular motion from the inside out until it reaches 125 grams, pausing in stages. When the coffee bed drops to half the height of the dripper, continue pouring the third stage with the same thin stream until 225 grams, and wait until all the coffee liquid has finished filtering. Remove the dripper; the time is about 2 minutes. Finally, swirl the coffee liquid in the server to even it out and enjoy~

The pour-over Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling coffee is full-bodied and rich overall, with a clean mouthfeel, and its flavor changes in layers as the temperature changes. Nutty and caramel aromas, with spice notes of chocolate and cinnamon, a long finish, and a high sense of balance.

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.