What changed in PWN Golden Mandheling beans?

PWN Golden Mandheling has changed its green bean details: the region shifted from Lintong to Mount Gayo, the variety moved from Typica to Ateng, the local name for Catimor, and packaging went from 60 kg to 30 kg bags. The name Mandheling comes from an Indonesian tribal name rather than a growing region or variety.

Indonesian coffee is processed by wet-hulling, also called giling basah, which removes the parchment while the bean is still moist and gives the cup its heavy body and low acidity. Golden Mandheling is often chosen by drinkers who prefer a rich, full-bodied profile. Mount Gayo sits in Aceh, and Ateng performs well at that altitude, so the cup stays earthy and syrupy.

Front Street Coffee's PWN Golden Mandheling has always been a crowd favorite in the shop, and many customers who prefer a rich, full-bodied flavor make a point of ordering a cup. Recently, however, some observant friends have noticed that the green bean information for this coffee has quietly changed: the region has shifted from Lintong to Mount Gayo, the variety has changed from Typica to Ateng (the local Indonesian name for Catimor), and the packaging specification has gone from 60 kg per bag to 30 kg. What is the reasoning behind these changes? And how did the name Golden Mandheling come about? In this article, Front Street Coffee will give you a comprehensive look at this PWN Golden Mandheling that coffee connoisseurs cannot get enough of, starting from the origin of the name Mandheling, and delving into its regional characteristics, the story of its variety, the wet-hulling process, as well as Front Street's roasting approach and pour-over recommendations, so you can fully understand its charm from bean to cup.

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Friends who frequently buy Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling coffee may have noticed that the green bean information for Golden Mandheling coffee is different from before. The region has been changed from the original Lintong to Mount GAYO, and the variety has changed from Typica to Ateng (the local Indonesian name for the Catimor coffee variety). Not only that, Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling coffee beans also went from being sold in 60 kg bags at first to 30 kg bags later on. When it comes to Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling, it is definitely a regular star at Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee). Customers who prefer a relatively rich, full-bodied flavor often specifically ask for a cup of Golden Mandheling. In this article, Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) will give a comprehensive introduction to the PWN Golden Mandheling coffee beans that coffee connoisseurs cannot resist.

Mandheling—I believe everyone has heard the legend about the origin of this coffee's name:

[Mandheling originally referred to the name of an Indonesian tribe, and it became the name of a coffee bean by a series of coincidences, which also has a story behind it. After the Japanese military colonized Indonesia and returned to Japan, they could not forget the delicious local coffee, so through the connections of trade friends, they asked the locals to help collect high-quality coffee beans, among which was this Mandheling. The Japanese loved this coffee very much and asked for its name. The locals mistakenly thought they were asking where he was from, so they blurted out "Mandailing." The Japanese mistakenly pronounced "Mandailing" as "Mandehling." Because of this double misunderstanding, Mandheling accidentally became the name of a coffee bean.]

There are many types of Mandheling, and there are also many ways to classify them. Basically, Arabica coffee produced in North Sumatra can all be called Mandheling. And Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling is one of the best among them. Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling coffee beans are a selected top-grade coffee from the Indonesian green bean company Pawani. Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling is a trademark, a coffee brand built into one of Indonesia's top coffee brands. For this reason, Pawani also searches all over the island of Sumatra to find and purchase high-quality coffee beans.

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) Indonesian Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling coffee beans

Region: Mount Gayo, Aceh, North Sumatra Island

Altitude: 1100-1600m

Variety: Ateng

Processing method: Wet-hulled

Grade: G1, triple hand-sorted

Mount Gayo in Aceh is in the northernmost corner of Sumatra Island. Coffee cultivation in Mount Gayo is mainly concentrated around the town of Takegon and the hillsides by Lake Tawar. The altitude in the production area averages between 1100 and 1600 meters, and its coffee quality has always been excellent. However, due to previous political instability, coffee from this region was difficult to export. In recent years, as the situation has become more peaceful, coffee cultivation in Aceh has also developed, and its quality is also superior to that of the Lintong region. Compared with other Mandheling coffees, Golden Mandheling has a stronger sweet aftertaste and sugarcane aroma. Although everyone knows that only PWN's Mandheling is called Golden Mandheling, in reality PWN's annual output is not large, so a significant portion of large-bean selected Golden Mandheling does not come from PWN. If you are not sure, you might as well ask the seller to provide the certificate that comes with PWN beans.

The coffee variety of the new-crop Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling is "Ateng." This seems to be a very unfamiliar coffee variety. In fact, Indonesia has different local names for coffee varieties. For example, what Indonesia calls Tim Tim is what we call Timor. And Ateng is the localized Indonesian name for Catimor. The Ateng variety is very suitable for cultivation and flavor development in the Aceh region.

Indonesian Mandheling coffee generally uses the wet-hulling method to process green coffee beans. Wet hulling is also called Wet Hulling, and in the local language it is also known as Giling Basah. It is a traditional Indonesian coffee processing method. Judging from the name alone, wet hulling seems very similar to wet processing (washed processing). However, the cup flavors of these two processing methods are completely different. Coffee processed by wet hulling is usually rich and intense, with a very distinct character.

Depulping / pulping

As with washed processing, the harvested coffee cherries need to be processed as soon as possible. In Indonesia, coffee cherries are generally depulped by smallholders themselves. This step removes the skin and part of the pulp of the coffee cherries.

Washing

After depulping, the coffee beans are soaked in water for 1 to 2 hours, and the beans are rubbed against each other to remove part of the mucilage.

Drying

After soaking, the coffee beans undergo their first drying at the farmers' homes. At this point, the moisture content of the coffee beans drops to between 20% and 35%.

Collection

After the first drying, the coffee beans are taken to the market for sale. At this time, the mucilage layer of the coffee beans has not yet solidified and is in a sticky state. These coffee beans are then purchased, collected, and sent to a processing plant for the next stage of processing.

Drying

The coffee beans that have been collected and sent to the processing plant first undergo a second drying. This step brings the moisture content of the coffee beans down to about 18%.

Hulling / wet hulling

After the second drying, the coffee beans are put into a coffee hulling machine for wet hulling. This process removes the coffee's mucilage and parchment layer. What makes wet hulling different from other processing methods is that wet hulling removes the parchment layer before the coffee beans are finally dried, whereas washed processing and others keep the parchment layer during drying until just before export transportation, when the parchment layer is removed.

Drying & storage

Finally, the coffee beans are once again sent to the drying yard for final drying. This step brings the moisture content of the coffee beans down to 11%. The dried coffee beans are bagged and stored in warehouses awaiting transport for export.

The wet-hulling method can be described as Indonesia's unique coffee processing method adapted to local conditions. One reason Golden Mandheling's quality is guaranteed is that after processing is completed, it undergoes three rounds of manual sorting to ensure that the number of defects in the green beans is reduced as much as possible and that the beans are plump and uniform in size.

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) Roasting Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling Coffee Bean Analysis Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling has a high-quality herbal aroma, a stronger caramel sweetness, and a relatively steady and elegant fruity acidity, with a rich sweetness, and a full-bodied, wild spicy flavor. Generally, Lintong Mandheling is best roasted until after second crack before being discharged, which can effectively reduce off-flavors, but Golden Mandheling has excellent transparency and sweetness even when discharged before second crack, and the room for roasting interpretation is broader.

Heat the roaster to 200°C and charge the beans, set the damper to 3, and after 1 minute adjust the heat to 160°C, keep the damper unchanged, roast until 5'40'', at 148°C, when the bean surface turns yellow, the grassy smell completely disappears, and dehydration is complete, adjust the heat to 140, and change the damper to 4;

At 9'40'', ugly wrinkles and dark spots appear on the bean surface, and the toast aroma clearly turns into coffee aroma, which can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this time, you need to listen clearly to the sound of the first crack. At 9'54'', first crack begins, reduce the heat to 60, open the damper fully (adjust the heat very carefully, not so low that there is no crackling sound), and discharge at 204.5°C.

Brewing Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling Coffee Bean Recommendations

This brewing highlights the rich, clean, and aromatic characteristics of Golden Mandheling. Use a KONO dripper for brewing (this dripper was invented to imitate the rich coffee produced by flannel, and using this dripper can increase the body of the coffee). For medium-dark roasted coffee, choose a medium-coarse grind (70% passing a No. 20 standard sieve). Use a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, with 20 grams of coffee grounds, and a water temperature of 88°C. Tip: Lowering the coffee-to-water ratio can make the coffee taste richer and more intense.

Front Street recommends using freshly roasted coffee beans for brewing, as this allows you to experience the coffee's rich flavors to the greatest extent. The coffee beans shipped by Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) are all within 5 days of roasting, because Front Street deeply understands that the freshness of coffee beans has a huge impact on flavor. Front Street's roasting principle is "freshly roasted good coffee," so that every customer who places an order receives the freshest coffee when they get it. The resting period for coffee is about 4-7 days, so when customers receive it, it is exactly at its best flavor.

Brewing process: Slowly pour in the coffee grounds, and try to keep them as level as possible while pouring, avoiding shaking the dripper (because shaking will reduce the space between coffee grounds, which is not conducive to degassing during blooming). In the first stage, pour 40g of water in a small circle in the center and let it bloom for 30 seconds. The coffee bed will slowly expand and puff up into a "hamburger."

In the second stage, pour 120g of water in circles from the center outward, keeping the pouring height as close to the coffee bed as possible, and move slowly to avoid over-stirring. In the final stage, pour 100g, and wait until all the coffee liquid in the dripper has flowed into the server to end extraction. Extraction time is 2 minutes.

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