How do We Make Natural Coffee

Natural coffee or mucilage coffee, is made at Selva Negra by special request from some of our
buyers. This is a special process and separate from what we have detailed in previous
newsletters. We hope to explain how this special process works. First of all it is important to point
out that it is more labor and cost intensive that the washed process since it requires additional
manpower and segregation from the washed coffee to prevent cross-contamination.

Lets start at the beginning, as with the washed coffee we receive the ripe coffee in the funnel and
from there to the depulpers, water is used only to push the coffee berries from the funnel to the
depulpers, it is depulp without the use of water. The water goes around the depulping machines
to a canal, where the coffee comes out and then it pushes the coffee beans from this canal to a
"criba", a kind of a coffee sorter, where the floaters or over ripen coffee is separated and used
seconds and thirds quality coffees.

We collect the first quality coffee from this separator, and instead of letting that coffee go to a
fermentation bin, which is where washed coffee goes, we collect it on a 4" pipe and direct it
straight outside. The coffee must then be transported to the drying trays on the patio, it is hard to
collect since it is sticky with all the mucilage, or gelatin, that covers the coffee bean. This transfer
must be done in a hurry, 4 to 6 men move quickly transporting the coffee to the trays.

It will take about 3 to 4 days to dry sufficiently to transport it safely to the drying facility, were they
will place it to dry on patios for another 4 to 5 days. In preparation for transport, the coffee must
be removed from the trays and bagged and this process must be performed manually.

The problems:
Due to the high sugar content, the coffee ruins the screens on the drying trays very easily and
they have to be replaced every other year.

It is much more labor intensive than the washed coffee. The washed coffee process is automated
moving the coffee with submersible pumps from fermentation bin to re-washing and once again
via submersible pump to the transport to the drying facility. Many steps performed mechanically in
the washed process must be done by hand in the natural process.

Another problem is at the drying mill. Don Marciano has to place this coffee on a separate patio,
the natural coffee stains the patio floor and he needs to prevent transfer to the other coffees.
Currently the stain disappears during the year with the sun, but eventually it might stay from year
to year.