Papua New Guinea Sigri Estate A

About Papua New Guinea Sigri Estate A

New crop arrived late October 2019.

A very nice, vibrant lot. Papua New Guinea Sigri A is back by popular request. This year the quality is high and we are glad to have it back for the fan base that it built. Reminiscent of the better Jamaica Blue Mountain offerings, this year's coffee seems particularly striking with its ethereal hickory notes; a unique but not over-the-top flavor profile.

The Sigri plantation, situated in the Wahgi Valley, in the Western Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea, was established in the 1950s and rapidly gained a reputation that has continued to grow with Sigri being internationally recognized as producing a gourmet coffee equal to the world's best for more than 20 years. All plantings are exclusively Arabica, concentrating on the Typica varieties which originate from seed introduced to Papua New Guinea from Jamaica Blue Mountain Typica rootstock. The farm sits at 5000 feet above sea level, with the main crop harvested from May to July. All growing and processing practices follow a system which has been throughly proven over many years, and insists on the highest standards and quality at every stage.

Sigri coffee undergoes a rigorous wet factory process. Quality control begins in the field; coffee cherry is hand-picked and carefully checked for uniformity; it must be red and fully ripe which allows for the correct balance of sugar and acid within the cherry. This selected cherry is then pulped on the day of picking. The fermentation process stretches through a period of three days, broken every 24 hours by washing. Unlike other washed processed coffees, however, Sigri's process follows this by a total immersion in water for a further day, which creates a unique flavor profile.

All Sigri coffee is sun dried to further enhance flavor. Careful conditioning, hulling, grading and hand sorting follows. Soil and water conservation as a priority, and the plantation is bird and eco friendly. They employ a "medium density shade" strategy, which uses two types of shade trees to protect the coffee plants and fields. This promotes not only the even ripening of coffee cherries, but also provides habitat for at least 90 species of birds.

Cup Characteristics: Unique flavor profile has smoky, hickory background note reminiscent of better Jamaica coffees. Layered, refined sweetness. This is an example of PNG coffee at its best.

Roasting Notes: We've been stopping this roast just before the start of second crack. We find this roast level has significant body but the notable hickory notes are present as is the acidity. The coffee is capable of being roasted slightly darker as well, into second crack. On a Behmor try P2 or P3.