Collection: Single Origins: Far East

Far East coffee origins include all of Indonesia, India, China, Thailand & Vietnam.  Some of the heaviest bodied varieties hail from Indonesia, including Sumatra, Sulawesi, Java, Bali, and Timor.  Most of these origins use a wet process called "Giling Basah" in which the producers sort their cherries, de-pulps, ferments overnight, washes, then lays out the parchment to shed excess water.  Then the coffee takes a detour from the norm of most processes at other origins:  the parchment is removed while the coffee still has a high moisture content and laid out on patios to complete the drying process, but with no parchment to protect it, in order to facilitate quicker drying in the humid, rainy environment.  This results in a blueish color and the classic Indonesian profile: heavy body, earthy, tobacco, juniper, peat, dark cocoa.   

The exception to the wet hulled process in Indonesia, aside from a few washed coffees now being processed in Sumatra, Sulawesi, and Timor, are coffees from Papua New Guinea.  These coffees show more fruit forward, but maintain the buttery body, and tend to be balanced and very drinkable.

At the other end of the spectrum lies the Yemen and Indian coffees, which exhibit much differently than the Indonesians.  Indian coffees can show spices, herbal qualities with smooth big body and go well with milk.  While Yemen coffees bring forth a bright and complex acidity, with flavors that range from candied fruit & wine to dark chocolate.  While Yemen isn't really Far East, it also isn't Africa, so I have grouped it into this category.