Honey processing is a very particular way to process coffee. Once the coffee is harvested, the skin of the fruit is removed, this is called “depulping”. Unlike the washed process method, where the fruit is completely removed, or the natural/dry process, where none of the fruit is removed, honey processing leaves a bit of the mucilage on the seed while it dries. This allows for meticulous components from the washed and natural processing methods.
Many different flavors can developed through honey processing. Black honey has the most fruit mucilage left on the seed which means it takes the longest to dry but ends up having a sweet syrup note to the coffee. Red honey has a little less mucilage left on it, still giving it a full body with fruit flavors. The last one is yellow honey. Yellow honey has the least mucilage left on the seed giving this coffee a clean sweet taste.
Surprisingly there is no actual honey involved in the process but sometimes you can catch a honey note in certain roast. Besides the sweetness benefit these coffee beans have, another bonus is the environmental benefit of honey processing. The honey process uses little to no water. The point is to leave the stickiness from the fruit on the beans so washing them is not necessary.
If you have yet to experience a cup of honey processed coffee, we highly recommend giving the unique cup of joe a try!
You can grab a bag of our most popular Friedrichs Limited Reserve Honduras Honey process here.
