Sumatra coffee and French press cover equal rich taste

Today, guest blogger CoffeeMan1 talks about his favorite coffee: Sumatra dark roast.  

I've always enjoyed Sumatra coffee but recently have read it's becoming less popular as young people new to specialty coffees enter the market. The prevalence of lighter roasts at chains--such as Starbucks, Peet's or Tully's--favors dry processing from Central America or East Africa.

Why is Sumatran coffee tougher for some people to love? It's traditionally processed using a method called Giling Basah, or wet-hulling. In this technique, farmers remove the outer skin from the cherries mechanically, using rustic pulping machines, called "luwak."  

Then they store the coffee beans, still coated with mucilage, for up to a day before washing off the mucilage and partly drying the coffee to 30-35% moisture for sale. Processors hull the coffee in a semi-wet state, which gives the beans a unique bluish green appearance.

This much higher moisture content produces a flavor that many describe as herbaceous, spicy, wild, mushroomy, funky, or earthy--which may not sound appetizing to everyone. Truth is, though, Sumatran coffees are typically smoother and fuller-bodied after brewing in a French press, especially when the beans are roasted darker to produce a sweetness or a sense of richness. They're usually lower in acidity, as well. I love that combination!

Using our french press insulated cover, the Koffee Kozee, to keep Sumatran coffee hot during and after brewing enhances your enjoyment of its full-bodied flavor. Adding a Kup Kap to continue keeping Sumatra hot in the cup as you sip tops off your pleasure.

Traveling in your fun RV with your Thinsulate insulated Music for French Press Koffee Kozee and Music Krescendo Kup Kaps on souvenir mugs!

As commenter Kenneth Fanyo recently said on food website SeriousEats.com: "Sumatra keeps the quality of its flavor better than any other I've tried. This is important to me because I much prefer to sip over a long period of time. Any feeling of having to finish the cup before it cools--or having to recover the temp with a top-off or a quickie in the microwave--tends, for me, to spoil the experience."

If you haven't tried Sumatran coffee yet, check it out at your local roaster or coffee shop. You can brew it a little less strong than usual in your french press, use our french press cover to keep it hot, and sip it while enjoying your latest great read!