Primeiro - Timor Coffee Fest #1

About the Producers

Primeiro comes from a collection of farms around Letefoho in Ermera, in the western highlands of Timor-Leste. Coffee here is grown using traditional methods without chemical fertilisers or pesticides, in a country with a fascinating coffee heritage stretching back to the development of the Hybrid of Timor in the 1920s.

The cherries are processed through the Railaco Mill, which has operated since 2008 and works with around 800 farmers through 25 local agents. The mill employs more than 230 people and also returns organic waste from coffee processing to producers for use as fertiliser.

About the Lot

This award-winning micro-lot goes through a particularly interesting Double Anaerobic Natural process.

After harvesting, the cherries are washed and density-sorted before undergoing an initial 24-hour anaerobic fermentation. They're then slowly dried for three days before being returned to an anaerobic environment for a further 48 hours.

The cherries then complete a long 20-22 day drying period, finishing at around 12% moisture. Final preparation includes air-density separation, electronic colour sorting and hand sorting to ensure only the highest-quality coffee makes it through.

It's an exciting process, but even more exciting is what ends up in the cup: layers of Blueberry Crumble and Purple Grapes, followed by ripe tropical Papaya.