KAFFEEkostBAR • Talabumi Academy Coffee Grading

Coffee Grading

At the beginning of September 2025, I, Markus, met Ms. Wine from Talabumi Coffee at Coffee Week in Yogyakarta. There, I spoke about the call for righteousness in the coffee trade.

A few months later, she contacted me and asked about green coffee. Shortly afterwards, I asked her if she knew anyone who offered certified coffee evaluation services in accordance with SCA standards. She replied that Talabumi Academy offered such a service.

After consulting with Nicolas, I arranged for this service to be prepared so that our coffee farmers could reflect on their work.

On January 19, 2026, the time had come: the coffee had dried and was shipped from Ruteng to Yogyakarta with the help of JnT Cargo – 2 kg each from the six coffee farmers in Colol.

Benediktus Rudin: 2 kg Arabica SL-795/Kartika Natural Anaerob
Rosalia Diam: 2 kg Arabica SL-795/Kartika Natural
Emilia Nanung: 2 kg Yellow Caturra Natural
Lazarus Tundu: 2 kg Robusta Natural
Marselsus Roni: 2 kg Arabica SL-795 Honey
Marsel Mardin: 2 kg Arabica SL-795 Full Washed

The coffee arrived at the Talabumi Academy in Yogyakarta on January 19, and the evaluation of the green beans began immediately.

Then, the green coffee was evaluated.

Green Bean Evaluation
"Before roasting, we examine the green beans to check their overall quality. This includes visual inspection (size, color, uniformity), sorting defects, checking moisture and density, and smelling the green coffee. This step helps us understand how clean, fresh, and stable the coffee is before it’s roasted."
Costs: IDR 150,000 per sample x 6 green bean samples = IDR 900,000

After this, the beans got roasted in a Maestro Mozart 3 kg machine.

Sample Roasting & Cupping
"The coffee is then lightly sample-roasted to show its true character. During cupping, we evaluate aroma, flavor, acidity, body, balance, and overall quality using a standardized method. We taste the coffee at different temperatures to see how the flavor develops and how clean and sweet it remains."
Costs: IDR 250,000* per sample x 6 green bean samples = IDR 1,500,000
*offer price - normal price = IDR 300,000

Total costs: IDR 2,400,000 + IDR 74,600 shipping costs

Finally, the roasted coffee was sent to Tangerang.

Result

To be honest, I had expected results of 83 or 84 points, but the reality turned out to be quite different. None of the coffees achieved a specialty rating or Q grade in the green bean assessment.

However, it is important to note that the huller process was traditionally carried out using wood, which is likely to have resulted in more broken beans. The challenging year of 2025 must also be taken into account, as the unusually high amount of rain made harvesting and processing more difficult.

We will talk to the farmers individually and then decide together where further training is needed in processing and how we can support them from our side. We do not despair, but look courageously ahead - together with Jesus.