Arabica Producing Regions of Indonesia

The name “Bali” evokes tropical breezes and beautiful beaches.   This predominately Hindu Island is the first stop for many tourists coming to Indonesia. They enjoy the stunning white and black sand beaches that characterize the coast of Bali. Inland, the volcanoes of Batukaru and Agung dominate the landscape. Between these peaks, the highland plateau of Kintamani is the main coffee growing area.

Many coffee farmers on Bali are members of a traditional farming system called Subak Abian, which is based on the Hindu philosophy of "Tri Hita Karana”. According to this philosophy, the three causes of happiness are good relations with God, other people and the environment. The Subak Abian system is ideally suited to the production of fair trade and organic coffee production.

Generally, Balinese coffee is carefully processed, using the wet method. This results in a sweet, soft coffee with good consistency. Typical flavors include lemon and other citrus notes. To create a more distinctive flavor, some exporters from Kintamani area have begun to use “wet hulling”. In this process, the beans are washed and then partially dried with some of the mucilage intact, before milling. This process imparts rich, caramel flavors to the beans, reminiscent of coffee from Sumatra or Sulawesi.