What is Washed Coffee?

A coffee cherry to a cup of coffee is a complex journey of multiple steps. Processing is
the first step taken once the coffee cherries have been picked and sorted. Processing
transforms this wonderful ripe fruit into the seeds that will be shipped to roasters
around the world to be roasted creating the final product, coffee beans. Processing can
be done in a multitude of ways with Washed and Natural being the most common. Over
the last decade there have been new and experimental processing methods creating a
vast range of new flavours just think of ice wine.

Washed or Wet Process

The term is a bit of a misnomer because depending on the Country and the
environment, water is not necessarily always used. If water is used, the ripe cherries are
floated in water where the denser coffees will sink and the floaters staying on top are
removed. The cherries are then pulped mechanically to remove either the outer cherry
and or the mucilage surrounding the coffee seeds. The coffees that have only the outer
skin removed are then moved to fermentation tanks for a period of 1-3 days and
constantly monitored before removing them to the drying stage. The coffees that have
both the outer skin and the mucilage removed are moved directly to the drying stage.
The drying can be done on raised wooden platforms allowing for air circulation or on
cement patios and even in dryers on larger farms. The drying stage reduces the
moisture content of the seeds from approximately 50% to about 11%, which is
considered optimal.
The purpose of this process is to retain as much as possible the traits of the terroir and
the Country of origin.