Sulawesi (Celebes), was influenced and controlled by the Netherlands from 1605 until World War II. In 1669 the Dutch East India Company took control of the trade in Sulawesi. The Dutch built Fort Rotterdam in Ujung Pandang (now Makassar) in the mid 1600’s and not until 1905 they finally gained control of the whole island becoming part of the Dutch state colony of the Netherlands East Indies. TheDutch East India Company was in control of coffee production in Indonesia during most the 1700’s and introduced Arabica Coffee (Typica) to Sulawesi in 1750.
It took some time to arrive to Tana Toraja, Sulawesi from Minneapolis. Minneapolis – Tokyo – Singapore – Jakarta – Makassar and drive 8 hours north to Rantepao, Tana Toraja. It is the most beautiful place on earth. It’s green, lush, rice paddies everywhere—giving it a sense of calmness. Traditional Tongkonan Houses cover the background with fascinating Toraja Patterns decorating the structures.
Indonesian coffee has traditionally been processed with the Giling-Basah method, or wet-hulled like Sumatra. In 1976 TOARCO, a Japanese-Indonesian joint-venture, introduced to Sulawesi the traditional washed-process, similar to Central America.
TOARCO owns Pedamaran Plantation at 900 – 1250 masl and purchases wet-parchment (at 40% moisture) from small producers at 1200 – 1800 masl. Coffee is trucked to Pedamaran Plantationimmediately and coffee gets dried on patios at their mill facilities. If a producer wants to sell their parchment coffee to TOARCO they need to get certified to their standards as far as selective-picking, storage, transportation, moisture levels, etc. Farmers are issued ID cards that allow them to sell their coffee at various purchasing points in the Tana Toraja region during the market of the week. Café Imports’ coffee comes from small producers at the higher altitude areas.
Most of the coffee produced in Tana Toraja is S795 variety, a Typica hybrid. This proves once again how important the variety translates in the cup. Indonesia has a great deal of Catimor, a Robusta-heavy x Arabica hybrid, but Tana Toraja has kept high-quality varieties.
In the cup you will find a nice medium to medium-high citric lemon and grapefruit-like acidity, with a full body, sweet cups, and clean. You will also find a strawberry flavors in the finish.
In 2010 Sulawesi received double the normal amount of rain reducing the crop of 2011 down 70% making it unavailable for that season.
