Washed Coffee vs Natural Coffee
There is far more to coffee than initially appears.
And one of the differentiating factors is the processing method.
So this may have you wondering what is the difference between each processing method and what is washed or natural coffee anyway?
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What is the coffee processing method (washed or natural coffee)?
So you may have seen printed on the back of your coffee bag (next to the varietal of the coffee or the altitude of where it was grown) the ‘processing method’.
There is a good chance you would have seen in this case either washed or natural printed underneath.
The processing method of the coffee refers to the way in which the coffee is processed from a coffee cherry into a dry ‘green’ coffee bean.
Coffee is grown all over the world and specialty arabica coffee is grown within 20 degrees of the equator.
Like most other crops, coffee is grown on a farm where there is a yearly harvest.
Coffee cherries are usually red in colour and can be hand or machine picked.
The majority of coffee cherries have two coffee seeds that sit next to each other which are surrounded by various layers of the fruity outer layer of the coffee cherry.
The aim of the game once the coffee cherries have been harvested and collected is to finally end up with the two seeds (which we refer to as beans once they have been roasted) separated, stripped from the cherry and dried to around 10% moisture.
This procedure is the processing method of coffee.
What is a washed coffee?
Washed coffee makes up the majority of the coffee that is produced in the world.
It is certainly the most common coffee processing method as it is the most consistent and scalable method to strip the cherry from the coffee seeds.
You may also see variations of washed coffee like semi-washed which all will have an aspect of washed.
So the processing of washing coffee does involve water (which is why some coffee producing countries that don’t a have consistent water source struggle to produce washed coffee), however the initial part of the washing process is the physical removal of the outer layer of the coffee cherry which is normally carried out via a mechanical machine called a de-pulper which squeezes the coffee beans out of the cherry.
After this process the individual coffee seeds are still covered in a sort of slimy mucilage.
Washed coffees are then subjected to a series of baths and flowing water to remove all of this mucilage before drying for a significant amount of time on patios or beds.
Washed coffees range in flavour and profile, they typically produce cleaner tastes and can really reflect the terroir and varietal of the coffee plant.
What is a natural coffee?
Natural coffee starts life exactly how washed coffee does.
Coffee is picked and harvested in the same way.
As the name suggests however, there is a little less processing when it comes to natural coffee and rather than a sometimes lengthy washing procedure, naturals are dried with the cherry still intact.
So essentially when the coffee is picked and harvested, the cherries are then dried straight away on patios or drying beds.
When the coffee beans are at a certain moisture level, the dried cherries are removed ready for export.
Although natural coffee may sometimes be the only way farmers can process the coffee if there isn’t a reliable water source, many coffee farmers choose to process the coffee like this as the end cup can have some weird and wonderful flavour notes.
Natural coffee is not without its risks though and can cause a lot of deformities because of the decaying coffee cherry.
What is a honey processed coffee?
Honey processing is almost a mixture of washed coffee and natural coffee.
The coffee cherries are passed through the same processes as a washed coffee until the coffee beans are left in the mucilage.
At this point instead of washing and drying, the slimy coffee beans are laid out on drying beds and carefully dried.
The end product is again somewhere in between natural and washed coffee when it comes to flavour and the coffee can take on an added sweetness of the mucilage.
Is washed coffee better than natural?
Like with any specialty coffee related question like this one, it really does come down to taste and preference alongside all of the other factors involved as both processing methods can produce a huge range of profiles so there is certainly no way to say one is better than the other.
However, as a rule of thumb. If you have a natural coffee I would recommend you taste this coffee brewed through a couple of different methods.
Naturals can produce some unusual flavours and probably isn’t the best coffee for beginners as notes may be misinterpreted as sour ‘off’ tasting coffee.
What is the taste difference between natural and washed coffee?
Typically speaking, natural coffees can have a fermented taste to them because of the fact that they are processed with the skin still intact.
You may find that natural coffee has dark fruit notes such as cherry or plum.
Washed coffees can range hugely in flavour as much of the taste profile is down to the varietal, altitude and roast profile.
You may find that a full bodied espresso with notes of dark chocolate is a washed as well as a floral pour over with citrus notes is a washed coffee.
Having said this, although not all washed coffees are bright and acidic, most bright and acidic flavour coffees are washed.
All of the above is also to be taken as a broad suggestion of flavour as there are many other factors involved in specialty coffee.
Are natural coffees sweeter than washed coffee?
In general, naturals are sweeter than washed coffees.
The coffee cherry is dried with the fruit still intact so the sweetness of the cherry can pass into the coffee bean.
Washed coffees can also be sweet though.
This is mainly down to the varietal and the roast profile of the coffee as well as the brew method.
Is washed coffee less acidic?
Washed coffee can taste acidic compared to natural coffee, however this is certainly not always the case as the roast profile makes a huge difference to the levels of acidity in the coffee.
Generally speaking, lighter roasts are deemed more acidic than dark roast coffee.
Does washed coffee have less caffeine?
No, there is the same amount of caffeine in washed coffee compared to natural coffee.
Caffeine content can vary slightly in varietal of arabica coffee but most coffees have a similar amount of caffeine.
The processing of coffee doesn’t have any impact on the amount of caffeine in the beans.
Is washed coffee organic?
Not necessarily.
You will find some organic washed coffee and some that aren’t certified organic.
Having visited many coffee farms I am aware of how expensive organic certification can be and that many farmers only have the means to organically produce coffee anyway.
Are washed coffee beans roasted?
Yes, washed or natural coffee beans are roasted.
The ‘washed’ label just refers to the processing method that happens at origin.
