About this coffee…

Mysore, in the south western state of Karnataka, has a reputation for coffee tracing its roots back to Bababudan, who is the historical figure credited with introducing coffee to India.

The coffee is taken to a dry mill as a whole cherry for drying and processing rather than just in parchment. The quality department do the work to ensure that washed Arabicas grown in the regions of Chikmagalur, Coorg, Biligiris, Bababudangiris and Shevaroys are expertly blended to maintain a taste profile throughout the year.

Coffee is commonly intercropped with pepper and/or cardamom, allowing farms to manage a balanced cashflow throughout the year. Basic amenities are provided to both full time and seasonal workers, with the former being more involved in pruning, fertilising and general upkeep of the farm infrastructure during non harvesting times.

This is a mixed varietal coffee, though the more commonly found Arabicas in the Mysore region are S795, Sln5B, Sln6, Sln9, Chandigiri and Cauvery. Many of these selections have a Kent heritage, though Sln5B is a cross between robusta and Devamanchy, with Devamnchy itself being the Indian version of Hibido de Timor (HDT) – a spontaneous wild crossing between Arabica and Robusta.

The Central Coffee Research Institute was behind a lot of these, and is based near Balehonnur in the Chikmagalur district of Karnataka. Founded in 1925 it now has around 130 hectares of land with 80 hectares growing coffee for further development and research. Chandigiri in particular is favoured for its yield. Processing in India is commonly done with no fermentation to remove the mucilage. The cherries are picked, pulped, and sorted straight away, drying on patios under the sun unless weather or volume dictates the additional use of mechanical driers.

As India is an unusual origin we have included some more information for you…

India has a long history with coffee dating back to the late 1800’s. Today, most coffee is produced in the hills of South India. The state of Karnataka produces almost three quarters of all Indian Coffee. Over 250,000 producers grow over 5 million bags of coffee. The vast majority of coffee farmers in India are small holders, with a number of very large plantations producing much of the volume. Roughly two thirds of the coffee produced in India are robust varietals. A large exporting nation, roughly 80% of Indian production is exported, given the local propensity for Tea. Traditionally Indian coffee has been known as one of lower quality, driven by the typical lower varietals and lower altitudes that coffee is produced. However in recent years huge strides have been made to improve the quality of production. Washed Robusta’s from Kaapi Royale have become the first R graded estates in the world, and areas such as Araku Valley have focussed on producing uniquely specialty quality coffee.

Origin: Indian Mysore A

Estate: Plantation A

Altitude: 1100 - 1300 masl

Varietal: Caeuvery

Grade: A

Processing: Wet Processed