Clear Lake Coffee Roasters: Coffee Origins Series- Sulawesi - March 11, 2022
Although green coffee was first planted successfully on Java around 1700, cultivation spread slowly throughout what would become the great archipelagic state of Indonesia, and did not arrive on Sulawesi, then called Celebes, until 1750, after the coffee of Java had performed its role as progenitor to the coffees of Central America and begun its ascent to being considered, alongside Arabian Mocha, as one of the best coffees in the world. In 1822, annual production on Celebes amounted to only 10,000 pounds; but by 1889, production had reached nearly 3 million pounds.
History of Coffee in Sulawesi
Although coffee was first planted successfully on Java around 1700, cultivation spread slowly throughout what would become the great archipelagic state of Indonesia, and did not arrive on Sulawesi, then called Celebes, until 1750, after the coffee of Java had performed its role as progenitor to the coffees of Central America and begun its ascent to being considered, alongside Arabian Mocha, as one of the best coffees in the world. Somewhat parenthetically, it should be noted that nearly all coffee from any island in the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) was considered “Java” until the early 20th century, so Celebes/Sulawesi has no real history on the consumption side of coffee prior to that time.
Growing Coffee in Sulawesi
For a long time, Sulawesi was little more than a footnote as far as the coffee trade was concerned, but with the emergence of the specialty coffee industry, this coffee, grown at higher altitudes than most Indonesian coffee, gained more attention and with more attention came improvements in processing and refinement to wet-hulling. Today, Sulawesi coffees deliver the good body and herbal notes expected from Indonesian coffee, but also some unexpected brightness and fruit.
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