Sumatra Aceh 

Gayo

There are 363 members of the Serba Usaha Qahwah Tanoh Gayo cooperative, 105 of whom are women. The co-op is located in the Aceh Province of Indonesia. Most farms are no more than 10 years old and consistently maintain a high yield; the rich volcanic soil, desirable elevation, and proper balance of shade trees throughout the farms prove a direct positive effect on the coffee. Once harvested, all coffee is wet-hulled, sun-dried, and cupped by the co-op’s quality control team.

Fair Trade– and organic-certified coffees from Sumatra come from democratically run associations of smallholder producers who generally share a central processing unit or some point of coffee delivery and processing. The average farm size in Sumatra is less than 1 hectare up to about 3 hectares.

Sumatran coffees have long been distinct for their earthy, savory, somewhat vegetal or herbaceous characteristics, in part contributed by the climate and the mix of varieties grown, but also due to a specific post-harvest processing style called Wet-Hulling, or locally known as Giling Basah, which imparts much of the unique qualities these coffees have.