Coffee Fermentation: What Is It & How Can It Improve

Coffee Quality?
perfectdailygrind.com/2018/06/coffee-fermentation-what-is-it-how-can-it-improve-coffee-quality

26 June 2018

Some people hate coffee fermentation. Some people love it. But one thing’s for sure: it’s the
new trend in coffee processing.

So, what actually is fermentation? How can it be used to improve coffee quality? And is it even
possible to process coffee without it?

To answer these questions, I spoke to Carlos Guiraldeli, Post-Harvest Coordinator at O’Coffee,

a Brazilian farm that produces direct trade specialty coffees. He’s heading an experimental
program that explores how fermentation can affect coffee quality.

Lee este artículo en español Fermentación: Qué es & Cómo Mejora la Calidad
del Café

Coffee dries outside on raised beds at Fazenda Nossa Senhora Aparecida, Pedregulho, São
Paulo, Brazil. Credit: O’Coffee

What Is Fermentation?
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Let’s take a trip back to our high school science class: fermentation is a chemical reaction.
The combination of yeast, bacteria, and other microorganisms causes a substance to break
down into other simpler substances. Normally, the substances that get broken down are
sugars. As this happens, they tend to release heat. Also, different kinds of enzymes can
catalyze this event.

Or, to put it more simply, fermentation is a natural change that happens when you put sugar
and water together – and coffee cherries are full of both. And so, just after the cherries are
picked (or sometimes before, depending on the humidity), the fermentation process will start.

The thing is, fermentation can improve a coffee’s flavor or ruin it. It’s just a matter of how you
deal with it.

Workers rake drying coffee at Fazenda Nossa Senhora Aparecida, Pedregulho, São Paulo, Brazil.
Credit: O’Coffee

What Does Fermentation Have to Do With Coffee?

Fermentation is a key part of post-harvest coffee processing. It can happen in one of two ways:

Aerobic: This is what happens when oxygen is available. Engineering this kind of
fermentation is simple: just leave the recently picked cherries in a tank or a container
and let the microorganisms work. Monitor the time and temperature to help you
control and analyze it.

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 Anaerobic: In this case, coffee cherries are laid in a tank (before or after pulping) and
covered in water. That allows different microorganisms to work.

So, what’s the difference? Well, Carlos tells me, “The anaerobic processes are more
homogeneous and easier to monitor, and the aerobics are more heterogeneous and more
complex to monitor”.

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But you don’t have to just pick one or the other. Carlos explains that, at O’Coffee, they
experiment with both aerobic and anaerobic processing and sometimes they even “start with
the aerobic process and finish with the anaerobic process.”

There are many approaches to fermentation and the more we experiment, the more we learn
about coffee quality.

Coffee dries under the sun at Fazenda Nossa Senhora Aparecida, Pedregulho, São Paulo, Brazil .
Credit: O’Coffee

How Does Fermentation Affect Coffee Quality?

Since fermentation is so complex, there are many different potential outcomes. Poor,
uncontrolled fermentation can lead to moldy or even chemical flavors in coffee – which is why
it’s so important that the producer understands the process, monitors it, and works according
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to best practices.

Because when fermentation is successful, it can enhance a coffee’s best attributes.

Carlos tells me that O’Coffee experiments with fermentation to “amplify [their] range of
products and be able to provide [their] clients with coffees with distinct flavors, exotic
coffees… Basically refining the sweetness, acidity, and body of these coffees, and also adding
distinguished sensorial notes, like fruits, caramel, chocolate, and others.”

And as Dr. Britta Folmer writes in The Craft and Science of Coffee, “[Removing mucilage via]
underwater fermentation is said to emphasize acidity and aroma and to dismiss some
astringency. Pulped naturals or honey processed coffee consists of a process combining the
wet and dry methods. Mucilage is not or only partially removed that may allow for some
degree of limited fermentation at the drying stage. This can generate some special sweet
flavors, closer to a natural process.”

But producers have to be careful. As Carlos tells me, “An over-extended fermentation time can
be linked to a substantial loss of sensory quality… attributes like acidity, body and sweetness
can be significantly diminished.”

Fermentation tanks at Fazenda Nossa Senhora Aparecida, Pedregulho, São Paulo, Brazil . Credit:
O’Coffee

How Exactly Does Fermentation in Coffee Happen?

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Producers can choose many different ways to ferment their coffee. As a newly trending topic,
there is still plenty to learn and experimentation can help improve quality.

At O’Coffee, Carlos tells me that they follow these processes:

“For the natural processed coffees… Those coffees are sent to fermentation tanks with
a capacity for 5,000 liters, made out of masonry and coated in tiles.” And this is when
aerobic fermentation takes place.

“For the pulped coffees, they pass through ecological depulpers, without the presence of
water, preserving the maximum amount of mucilage attached to the parchment. They
are also driven to these tanks and remain there for variable amounts of time – it varies
according to the environment temperature.”

So once the cherries are in the tanks, what next?

Carlos explains, “For all fermentation conditions, aerobic, anaerobic, and mixed, the time can
vary from 16 to 25 hours, in which we consider the process done when we have a brix reading
[indication of probable sugar content] of 8°Bx (8 grams of sucrose per 100 grams of sample)
and controlling the pH to approximately 4.5, not allowing this value to be lower than that.”

And, of course, every difference in the method produces a different result. “The results are, on
average, better for the natural processed coffees, if compared to the pulped ones. We are able
to raise these coffees’ scores by about three [cupping] points, on average,” Carlos says.

“It’s important to highlight that it’s not only about the grade; the complexity of these coffees is
also enhanced. The sensorial description of these coffees become richer and more complex.”

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Anaerobic fermentation at Fazenda Nossa Senhora Aparecida, Pedregulho, São Paulo, Brazil.
Credit: O’Coffee

Consistency & Fermentation: Friends or Enemies?

But great coffee isn’t just high-quality: it’s also consistently high-quality. This adds security for
coffee buyers and roasters as well as for producers.

Carlos tells me that you cannot always predict the results of experiments with coffee
fermentation. However, there are ways to improve repeatability.

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Producers should understand the processes behind fermentation, so that they can make
informed decisions. They should be trained in quality analysis, such as cupping, so that they
can evaluate the impact of their experiments – and change them, if they need to.

They should know their processes and follow them precisely; this will help ensure both quality
and consistency. They should make sure equipment is clean. And they should record data
both during and after fermentation, so that they can understand, control, and repeat the
processes.

Carlos underscores the importance of being aware of brix, pH, fermentation time, temperature,
and more – and then, finally, cupping the coffees. The more information they have, the easier it
is to use fermentation to achieve consistently high-quality coffee.
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Because done badly, fermentation can spell disaster for producers. But done well, it can lead
to delicious, distinctive coffees that consumers love.

And after all, fermentation is inevitable. It’s simply a matter of choosing whether to limit it or
embrace it.

Enjoyed this? Check out How Does Coffee Fermentation Affect Flavour
Development?

Written by Ivan Petrich. Feature photo: Anaerobic fermentation at Fazenda Nossa Senhora
Aparecida, Pedregulho, São Paulo, Brazil. Feature photo credit: O’Coffee

Please note: This article has been sponsored by O’Coffee.

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