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Ethnic Gayo farmers primarily grow Gayo 1 and Gayo 2 varietals. Although their origins are not well-
documented, many believe that Gayo 1 is a strain of the Timor variety, while Gayo 2 shares similar
characteristics to Timor and Bourbon. Both are commonly found throughout the highlands of this
popular coffee region. The cup profile tends to be lighter-bodied than Mandheling coffees from further
east.
Sumatra coffee production has a long history, extending to the 17th century when the Dutch East India
Company imported coffee plants to Indonesia. Sumatra is home to a wide range of tropical flora, fauna,
and microclimates. Farms on Sumatra are typically 0.5 to 2.5 hectares scattered across remote regions,
connected by a network of collectors, processors, traders, and exporters to the global market.
The wet-hulled coffee process, locally known as Giling Basah, is the method of choice in Indonesia due to
the humid climate. The wet-hulled process has become synonymous with Indonesian coffees and
contributes to its unique cup profile.
In the wet-hulled process, coffee cherries are generally depulped at the farm level using hand-cranked
machines. The cherries are then fermented overnight to help break down the mucilage, which is
subsequently washed off. Afterwards, the coffee is quick-dried to 30-50% moisture and dried to between
11%-13% as it makes its way through the supply chain into an exporter’s mill.
Green coffee from Sumatra is classified into different grades depending on the number of defects present
in an unroasted coffee sample of 300 grams. The highest, Grade 1 TP, signifies that the coffee was triple-
picked, referring to how many times the beans were hand-sorted, and less than five defects were found
per sample. Similarly, Grade 1 DP (double-picked) signifies less than nine defects were present in the
sample. For a Grade 1 Indonesia green coffee without a TP or DP mark, less than 11 defects were found
per sample. The grading system spans grades 1 to 6. The key Indonesian green coffee regions are Aceh,
North Sumatra, South Sulawesi, West Java, Bali, and Flores. Green coffee from Java is exceptionally well-
known for its role in disseminating Indonesian coffee production throughout the archipelago. In contrast
to the long history of coffee from regions like Sulawesi and Sumatra, green coffee from Bali, a relatively
newer coffee region in Indonesia, mainly produces small-batch, limited-scale coffee quantities.