When I started Redeye Roasters just over 3 years ago Sumatra Iskandar was one of the first coffees that I purchased. Since that time , in my opinion the coffee started taking a nose dive and went from great to only average. This recent lot of Iskandar is however everything it used to be when it was great. It’s like seeing an old friend. Sumatra’s rich volcanic soil contributes to it’s earthiness which in many bad cases can taste very funky, like dirt. Not so with Iskandar, it is more refined and extremely well prepared.

Sumatra is the 3rd largest producer of coffee in the world. Iskandar comes from the area surrounding Lintongnihuta with most of the coffee coming from the markets at Doloksanggul and Lintongnihuta. The coffee is picked and depulped on the farm, most farmers do it all by hand using manual depulpers. Coffee is depulped the the same day it is picked and the farmers will let the coffee ferment for 24 hours prior to washing. Washing is done by hand and farmers agitate the coffee in basins until it is clean. After washing, the parchment coffee will be set out on tarps or patios to dry for about 30 minutes to an hour. After drying, the coffee is bagged and sells it to a local coffee collector. The local collector brings their purchased coffee to the local markets where it is sold to producers who are responsible for further drying and hulling the coffee. Iskandar is brought to a testing lab in Medan. Here the coffee is tested for initial quality and then cupped where it will need to meet stringent requirements for approval. The results are a thick and bold body with a distinct hint of butterscotch. An exceptionally clean cup with a woody spice finish.