India Monsoon Malabar - Baloo Brand Monsooned

Cupping notes: Spicy, earthy, smoky, tobacco notes, wood notes, medium body, medium acidity.

Monsoon Malabar coffee is for people who enjoy rich coffee with a gentle "bite" and a long, lingering complex finish. A rich, syrupy body and extremely low acidity with notes of chocolate, spices and dark molasses.

• Region: Southern India—Karnataka, Western Ghats
• Growing Altitude: 1,100–1,200 Metres Above Sea Level
• Arabica Variety: Kents, S.795, Catimor, Selection 9
• Harvest Period: October–February
• Milling Process: Monsooned
• Aroma: Spicy
• Flavour: Earthy, Spicy, Smoky
• Body: Medium
• Acidity: Medium

FREE delivery within the UK! Contact us for discounted prices for 6kg+.

Choose green beans for home roasting, roasted-to-order whole beans or freshly roasted ground coffee. Roasted within 48-hours of placing your order and posted the following day. Heat-sealed In a one-way valved bag, our 250g and 500g bags are resealable for lasting freshness.

While many people know India as a producer of fine teas, it has been growing and exporting exceptional coffees for more than 150 years. Today, India is the fifth-largest producer of Arabica coffee globally, after Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and Ethiopia.

Legend credits Muslim pilgrim Baba Budan for introducing coffee to India. He returned from the Holy Land with seven coffee seeds. He planted them near his mountain cave in Chikmahlur, Karnataka State - now considered the cradle of coffee in India.

The commercial cultivation of coffee in India began in 1840 when the British established coffee plantations throughout the mountains of Southern India, where the tropical climate, high altitude, sunny slopes, ample rainfall and soil abundant in humus content proved ideal for coffee cultivation.

Monsooning
The colour, shape, and size of these beans from India and their aroma and taste result from special post-harvest processing. Historically, coffee was shipped to Europe in wooden sailing vessels that took up to six months to sail around the Cape of Good Hope, then north to Europe. Stowed below the water line in a humid atmosphere with the seawater seeping through the hull, the coffee beans transformed on their long journey. Bright-green beans would arrive pale gold, doubled in size and with an entirely new cup profile.

This "monsooning" process was later replicated in India to provide European customers with the cup profile they'd first become accustomed to from India and continued to demand.

The modern monsooning process consists of exposing natural coffee beans in 4- to 6-inch-thick piles to moisture-laden monsoon winds in a well-ventilated brick or concrete-floored warehouse. This process is carried out on the West Coast of India, making use of the winds from the Arabian Sea during the Southwest Monsoon months of June through September.

The processing begins with top-grade beans, Arabica cherry AB, that has already been processed by the dry method. The beans are raked frequently to equalise moisture absorption, followed by bulking and re-bagging at regular intervals. During this 12- to 16-week process, the beans absorb moisture in stages, swelling to nearly twice their original size and developing colours ranging from pale gold to light brown. After several weeks, the coffee is re-bulked, graded again, bagged and moved to a drier region for longer-term storage.

The end result is a unique flavour that, like liquorice or cilantro appeals to ardent fans. It adds exciting notes to a blend and a rich crema to espresso.

When you buy your speciality coffee from Lalico Coffee, you support small farms producing high-quality coffees. Many benefit from Fairtrade Federation and Rainforest Alliance initiatives that protect workers’ rights and the environment.

Our coffee is hand-roasted to order for you. I guarantee it hasn't been sitting on a supermarket shelf for weeks getting stale! Every batch is individually profile roasted with care. Every coffee has different characteristics, and therefore its individual profile is replicated, keeping high quality consistent.

Kessy and I would like you to experiment with new flavours from different countries, so we often send free samples with your order for you to enjoy.

Lalico Coffee supplies artisan coffees to individuals, cafés, restaurants and hotels. Please contact us directly for our discounted prices for 6kg and more.