Our friends at Rosetta Roastery have a long history of sourcing and perfectly roasting top-quality Indonesian coffees. Historically this has included quite a few delicious examples from Sumatra, which featured many of those bold earthy flavours that the region is known for. Recently, they've switched things up a bit and have focused more on the equally famous Java region. Specifically, they have sourced several coffees from the Frinsa Estate on the island of Java, and with all the recent releases, they've found some particularly interesting flavours to share.

Unlike other Indonesian coffees, the lots that Rosetta has sourced from Frinsa Estate do not use the Giling Bisah (semi-washed or wet-hulled) processing method. Instead, the estate employs the more sophisticated fully washed method, as well as some more experimental processes. This provides a unique opportunity to better appreciate the Javan terroir, as well as the impact of processing on those flavours.

The coffees from Frinsa Estate are comprised, at least in part, of Sigarar Utang, a relatively new variety that is the product of a natural mutation. Combined with the adventures in coffee processing mentioned above, the results are often flavours in the cup not quite like any others we've experienced from Indonesian coffees. We're always excited to try a new Frinsa lot.

This particular lot, although a washed process, underwent some pre-drying and dry fermentation, to help ensure uniformity. We're looking forward to tasting the cup profile that these efforts have yielded.

Phaedon's tasting notes

Ah but this is really a classic Frinsa if there ever was one. It has all the trappings of the lots from that estate that I have enjoyed over the years. It's big and bold. It's sweet and earthy. It has a herbal type of quality, but yet, there's some kind of cooked fruit in there too. It will make lovely espresso and espresso-like coffees, but it's also delicious in percolation and immersion brew methods, if you want something unapologetically classic in profile.

Rosetta Roastery's notes

Style: Classic
Flavour profile: Full & Rounded, Stewed Rhubarb, Lime Leaf

To avoid the pitfall of under or over-roasting that can occur more frequently during roasting collective coffee lots, our strategy involves longer ramp times coupled with moderate heat application throughout. This guarantees more consistent heat absorption throughout the beans.

Our main objective? Safeguarding the integrity of this wonderfully clean and complex flavour profile, characterised by notes of melon, cooked rhubarb and plum, while maximising sweetness! The extended roast time and high level caramelisation play their role in this coffee’s rounded, textured mouthfeel.

Coffee details from Rosetta

For more than 15 years, Wildan has been the guiding force behind Frinsa Estate. His wife, Atieq, handles administration and finances, while their son, Fikri, is deeply involved in the processing side of production. Equipped with their wet mill, dry mill, and well-ventilated storage, Frinsa Estate oversees every step - right from harvest to grading, sorting, and shipping. Beyond their own coffees, Wildan maintains strong community ties by processing coffee from nearby smallholder farms in West Java.

The coffees making up this collective lot were dry-fermented between 12 - 14 hours. To combat the humid climate, a significant portion of the coffee underwent preliminary drying in their greenhouse, ensuring consistent and uniform drying before completing the drying process on the ground or in parabolic dryers. This pre-drying step is still an uncommon practice with many farms within the Indonesian market.

This coffee exemplifies how the extra attention throughout processing and drying results is stunning, nuanced coffee lots and keeps us coming back year after year!

• Producer(s): Wildan Mustofa and Atieq Mustikaningtyas of Frinsa Estate
• Estate: Frinsa
• Region: West Bandung Regency, Pangalengan, West Java, Java
• Country: Indonesia
• Altitude: 1,300m  - 1,500m ASL
• Variety: Sigarar Utang & others
• Processing: Washed
• Harvest: 2023/24