Sugarcane Ferment

Meet the Producers

We are continuously inspired by our partner producers – especially those who are willing to take fermentation risks with us.

It takes immense courage to try out a new coffee processing technique, especially when no one else in your hamlet has done it before. That’s why we want to acknowledge and celebrate producers like Veeramma and Chikanna, who have been real movers in their community.

They were the first in their hamlet to experiment with innovative processing – starting with the Potter Wasp, our honey-processed Arabica, and now this Sugarcane Ferment Microlot. Each step has been a leap into the unknown, requiring trust, curiosity, and grit.

We’re honoured to co-create these Microlots with them – and we’re excited to share that another one is already on the way!

Producers: Veeramma & Chikanna, BR Hills

Sugarcane Ferment

Fun fact: Sugarcane has historically been used to naturally decaffeinate coffee!

For us, though, this was a flavour experiment – to explore how coffee beans absorb metabolites when sugarcane and microorganisms get to work. During fermentation, microbes produce a range of metabolites, and the extent of their activity shapes the concentration of free sugars (like glucose and fructose) and amino acids. These linger around the bean and later drive the formation of Maillard compounds and aromatic volatiles during roasting.

All coffee undergoes some level of fermentation, but we opted for anaerobic fermentation – no oxygen, just like in wine or beer – to better control the flavour profile.

The golden mixture looked like coffee beans floating in unfiltered honey. We tracked pH, controlled the temperature, and closely monitored the process. At 72 hours, we hit the sweet spot. The Brix meter confirmed a drop in sugar levels, and the pH had stabilised. That’s when we pulled the coffee out and laid it on raised beds to dry.

The smell was glorious – sweet, almost like candied apples. We formed the coffee into gentle mounds to slow down drying and used a moisture meter to keep tabs on water content.

Flavour Notes:

Cane Sugar & Citrus

Recommended Brewing:

Pour Over & French Press