Coffee roasters are pretty spoilt for choice when it comes down to choosing a quality bean to work with.
Ethiopia, Colombia, Uganda, you name it. Different origins make for different results; to say that one producer is superior to another would be a difficult and probably untrue statement.
With all this coffee out there for the taking, why stick to Timorese coffee, you ask?
Even though the decision was initially fuelled by a desire to repay Australia’s debt of honour to Timor-Leste, it didn’t take long for Wild Timor Coffee founders to realise that they had stumbled upon something special.
Shannon French puts it this way.
“It comes straight from the bush, nothing fancy, no gloss. The taste of the hybrid beans is bold, it’s unique. It stands up against any other coffee.”
We’ve found Timorese coffee to be great for espresso, French press and pour over methods alike, but especially fantastic brewed in a stovetop Moka pot.
As well as boasting a wonderful flavour, Timorese coffee plants have an amazing resiliency, due to the Robusta qualities the hybrid plants retain. They grow wild in the mountains, and require little encouragement to be cultivated. The Timorese people have a near-endless supply of product.
“Coffee is their main export,” says Cameron. “A lot of love and time goes into it.”
Now nearing our 8th year as coffee wholesalers, we still handle our coffee beans with a sense of reverence and wonder. They are symbols of fair trading, of community development, of brotherhood and respect.