This is the second part of a series of how coffee becomes coffee. The first part looked at coffee from seed to processing the cherries. Today we continue.....
4) Drying the Beans - Assuming the beans have been through the wet method of processing, the beans must be dried to get them to that 11% moisture level. Once at that level they can be stored. Because wet processed beans still have parchment on them, the beans are typically laid out in the sun. This is done on floors or drying tables and are turned regularly. Of course there could also be a machine drying process used. Once they are dry, the beans are bagged and ready for export.
5) Milling the Beans - Before the coffee beans can be exported there is a multi-step process to get them ready.
a) Hulling - This is when the last of the parchment is removed from wet processed beans. For the
dry processed coffee this involves removing all of the dried husk.
b) Polishing - This optional process which removes any silver skin which may be on the bean. As I
said this is an optional process, but polished beans are typically preferred to unpolished, as they are
seen as a superior bean.
c) Grading and Sorting - This is the last hurdle coffee jumps before it's exported. The beans are
weighed and sorted by size. The beans are reviewed for color and any other imperfections. Bean
size is represented on a scale of 10-20. That number represents the size of a round hole's diameter
in terms of 1/64's of an inch. The heavier and lighter beans are separated.
Also during this process defective beans are removed. If beans are oddly colored, sized, or
otherwise viewed as defective - out they go. This can be done by machine or hand.
Next in the series - exporting and the final steps to sipping the coffee.
Charlie
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