#34: Robusta, Tropical Fruits and Mechanical Drying. Visiting India w/ Pranoy of Kerehaklu.

05/06/21 • 55 min

Today's episode is another in a series hearing from coffee producers from all parts of the world.

I think one of the common traps we can get into is thinking and talking about "The" coffee farmer. Or "The Average Coffee Farmer." As if coffee farmers are a monolith. The average doesn’t exist. The people who grow and produce coffee are a very diverse group who do it for different reasons in very different conditions.

It’s our nature, that when we learn something new, to compare it to what we already know, we learn by grouping and recognizing patterns and assigning categories. We take large amounts of information and shrink it, and distill it until it’s a small enough unit that we can attach a label.

My hope with these episodes is to take a microscope to the group, get to know the individuals, how they think and what they think about.

Today we get to visit India through the eyes of Pranoy, a 5th generation coffee grower. His family got into the business in 1953 where they have grown different produce in biodiverse, multi-cropped conditions.
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Cover Art by: Nick Hafner
Intro song: Elijah Bisbee
Mentioned in the Episode:
Pranoy's InstagramKerehaklu Website
ECRE Podcast

Today's episode is another in a series hearing from coffee producers from all parts of the world.

My hope with these episodes is to take a microscope to the group, get to know the individuals, how they think and what they think about.

Previous Episode

#33: Listener Q&A: Learning from Thailand, Avoiding Mold Growth in Honey and Dry/Natural Processing in Humid Locations

Today’s questions all come from Dr. Mack in Bangkok, Thailand. Even though he is asking the question on behalf of coffee producers in Thailand, I wanted to answer them on the podcast because they are relevant to all of the newer coffee producing regions.
Thailand didn’t export coffee until 1976!
This is very recent and not a lot of time for coffee growers and producers to develop their craft and catch up with older coffee growing regions like Colombia, where I am living. Colombia was already exporting coffee in 1835.
As new regions begin to grow coffee, the questions in this podcast will become more and more relevant.
Dr. Mack's questions allow me to address a few things like:

How to avoid fermentation during transportation from the farm to mill
How to use yeast with rust resistant varieties
How to do a honey or a natural process while avoiding mold growth (a common problem in humid tropical countries)

Support the show on Patreon and get access to research papers.
Sign up for the newsletter for behind the scenes pictures.
Cover Art by: Nick Hafner
Intro song: Elijah Bisbee
Mentioned in the Episode:
Short videos:
4 Things I don't like about Carbonic MacerationThe Fundamental Problem with Carbonic Maceration

Next Episode

#35: Acetic Acid 101—Kombucha & Making a Washed Coffee Taste Like a Natural

Do you drink kombucha? Coming from California, kombucha is about as normal as orange juice. But I imagine it might not be as popular in other parts of the world. Kombucha is probably more popular in North America and Europe (coffee importing countries) and probably very rare in coffee producing countries.
I can imagine a near future where buyers are drawn to or supportive of kombucha process without understanding what they may be asking producers to do. Or similarly, producers wanting to be ahead of the curve and differentiate their coffee in a new way borrowing methods from beer and wine.

My hope is that this episode helps coffee producers experiment intelligently and with intention, to maximize positive results.

If you’re a coffee buyer or consumer, I hope you’ll be curious and critical if you see these words pop up on a label. I hope the information in this episode helps you be a better consumer by questioning what you read on labels or websites.
Support the show on Patreon
And if you don't want to commit, show your support here: PayPal
Sign up for the newsletter for behind the scenes pictures.
Cover Art by: Nick Hafner
Intro song: Elijah Bisbee
Mentioned in the Episode:
Watch my processing fundamentals video here
High Acetic Acid producing yeast:
wild yeasts like Hansenula, Kloekera Dekkera and Brettanomyces
Where to buy a SCOBY