The process of turning coffee berries into freeze-dried instant coffee involves several steps. Overall, the process of turning coffee berries into freeze-dried instant coffee is a complex and multi-step process that requires careful attention to detail at every stage to produce a high-quality and flavourful product.
Harvesting: Coffee berries are picked from coffee trees by hand or machine when they are ripe and red.
Cleaning and sorting: The coffee berries are cleaned and sorted to remove any leaves, twigs, or other debris.
Depulping: The outer layer of the coffee berry, called the pulp, is removed using a machine.
Fermentation: The depulped coffee beans are fermented in water for a period of time to remove the mucilage (sticky substance) that still covers them.
Washing: The fermented coffee beans are washed to remove any remaining mucilage and then dried in the sun or by machine.
Roasting: The dried coffee beans are roasted to develop their flavor and aroma.
Grinding: The roasted coffee beans are ground into a fine powder.
Extraction & Concentration: The ground coffee is mixed with hot water to extract the flavor and aroma. The coffee extract is concentrated by removing water using a vacuum distillation process.
Freeze Drying: The concentrated coffee extract is frozen to a very low temperature. The frozen coffee extract is dried using a freeze-drying process, which removes the water without damaging the coffee’s flavor or aroma.
