Intense, bitter-sweet, full-bodied — grown in volcanic soil on the rim of a living crater.
Dark Chocolate · Molasses · CloveThe Ijen plateau sits between two active volcanoes in East Java. Sulphur drifts across the ridgelines at dawn; by mid-morning the mist burns off and the coffee gardens appear — planted in dark, mineral-heavy ash under a canopy of shade trees planted three generations ago.
That volcanic ground is what gives this lot its weight. Cherries ripen slowly at altitude, and the wet-hulled processing common across Java pulls the cup toward depth rather than brightness: dense body, low acidity, a long bitter-sweet finish that lingers like cocoa nibs and clove.
Dark chocolate first, then molasses — and clove holding the finish long after the cup is empty.
This lot is gathered from smallholder families farming half-hectare plots along the plateau's eastern slope. Most tend trees their grandparents planted; the knowledge of when a cherry is ready travels down the same line as the land.
Cherries are picked in selective passes, pulped the same evening, then wet-hulled and finished on raised beds in the courtyard of the village mill. We buy at the mill and pay above the regional collection price — the difference is what keeps a young generation choosing to stay with the trees.