Whole arabica beans from the first picking of the season in the Araku Valley, Eastern Ghats, Andhra Pradesh.
What "first harvest" means
Coffee is not picked all at once. A coffee tree carries cherries at different stages of ripeness on the same branch, and a well-run farm goes through the same trees several times over a season, taking only what is ready. Those successive passes are the harvest.
The first pass takes the cherries that ripened earliest — usually the most exposed and best-developed fruit on the tree. Lots kept separate from that first picking tend to be more uniform than the season's blend, because they come from a narrow window rather than from months of accumulated pickings.
It is also, straightforwardly, a seasonal coffee: this is what the valley produced at the start of the year, and when it is gone it is gone.
Where it comes from
The valley sits between 900 and 1,400 metres. Cold nights at that altitude slow the ripening of the cherry, and slower ripening concentrates sugars and acids in the bean instead of bulking it out with starch — which is where definition in the cup comes from.
It is grown by thousands of Adivasi smallholder families working with the Naandi Foundation since 1999, organically and biodynamically, with no middlemen between grower and roaster. The whole Araku crop scores above 90 on the 100-point scale, where specialty grade begins at 80 — a first for Indian coffee.
Brewing it
Grind fresh; water at 92–96 °C, just off the boil; about 60 g per litre; bloom for thirty seconds before the main pour. A filter or pour-over will show a seasonal lot more clearly than a cafetière will.
Let it cool a little before judging it — acidity and sweetness are far more legible at 60 °C than straight off the boil.
Storage
Airtight, cool, dark, and not in the fridge. Buy what you will drink within a few weeks.
Araku Coffee
Araku Coffee
Araku Coffee
Araku Coffee
