Process

Comparing processes — reading the steps and flavor tendencies in diagrams

2026-10-20

Coffee processing methods divide along three broad questions. How is the fruit removed? What kind of fermentation happens while it dries? And how is the environment of that fermentation controlled?

Names like Washed, Natural and Honey answer the first question; Anaerobic and Carbonic Maceration answer the second and third. In other words, they are not options lined up on a single scale, but things that are used in combination. This article separates the base processes from the design of fermentation, and lays out the differences in diagrams. Each name links to a detailed article.

Index

The processes compared here (tap a name for its article)

Base processes

How the fruit comes off, and what the bean dries wearing

Fermentation design

Layered on a base process to set the environment and time of fermentation

Fermentation and special processes

Gathered in one article

What the bean dries wearing

The difference between the base processes can be restated as what remains on the outside of the seed when drying begins. Drying with the skin and fruit still on is Natural; leaving only the mucilage is Honey; drying once only the parchment remains is Washed. Removing even the parchment partway through drying is Wet-Hulled.

The longer a sugar-rich layer stays on the outside of the seed, the more room there is for fermentation, and the more strongly fruit tends to come through. At the same time, the swing when management goes wrong also grows.

Cross-section

What the bean is wearing when it starts to dry

skinkept
pulpkept
mucilagekept
parchmentkept
silver skinkept
seedkept

The whole cherry dries with its skin and fruit on. Once fully dry, the skin, fruit and parchment come off at once.

Moisture when the parchment comes off

11–12%

Read about Natural →

A schematic with layer thickness drawn for legibility. Moisture values are general guides and vary with origin and drying conditions.

In order of the steps

Laid out in the order of the steps, the same differences look like this. Sealed fermentation such as Anaerobic is less an independent process than an "extra step" inserted somewhere in this flow.

Flow

In order of the steps (top to bottom)

Harvest & sort

Remove fruit

Ferment & wash

Dry

Remove parchment

Final drying

Where sealed fermentation goes in: Anaerobic, Carbonic Maceration and others (sometimes after the fruit is removed)

Fermentation times and moisture values are general guides. Even under the same name, the details of each step differ from farm to farm.

Mapping flavor tendencies

Arrange the flavor tendencies of each process along two axes, the clarity of the cup and the sense of fermentation, and they fall roughly into the positions below. They are drawn as areas rather than points because even the same process varies widely. Lots with designed fermentation in particular move a great deal across the map depending on which base process they are combined with, and on the time and temperature of fermentation.

Map

Mapping flavor tendencies (clarity × fermentation)

Base processFermentation design (layered on a base process)

Designing fermentation

Washed

Double Fermentation is close

Honey

Pulped Natural

Natural

Wet-Hulled

Aged rather than fermented

Designed fermentation

Wide range

Fermentation design:Anaerobic Carbonic Maceration Mosto Natural Co-fermented / Infused

Hover over a name to see that process's tendencies here. Click a name to open its article. The table below has the same information.

Positions and spreads are rough guides to general tendencies, not measurements. They change a great deal with variety, altitude, ripeness, drying and roast, and process alone does not decide quality or cupping score.

Table

Processes and flavor tendencies

Process	Flavor	Clarity	Ferment
Washed	Citrus, floral, clear acidity	Tends high	Tends low
Honey	Sweetness, nuts, fruit	Medium–high	Low–medium
Pulped Natural	Sweetness, nuts, chocolate, round mouthfeel	Medium–high	Low–medium
Natural	Berries, ripe fruit, sweetness	Wide range	Medium–high
Wet-Hulled	Herbs, earth, spice, heavy mouthfeel	Tends low–medium	A distinctive aged character
Anaerobic	Tropical, wine, spice	Wide range	Medium–high
Carbonic Maceration	Vivid fruit aromas, distinctive fermented notes	Wide range	Medium–high
Double Fermentation	Clean, sometimes with pronounced acidity	Tends high	Low–medium
Mosto Natural	Ripe fruit, clearly outlined sweetness	Wide range	Medium–high
Co-fermented / Infused	Varies greatly with the added ingredients and fermentation design	Wide range	Can be medium–high

Washed
Flavor
Citrus, floral, clear acidity
Clarity
Tends high
Ferment
Tends low
Honey
Flavor
Sweetness, nuts, fruit
Clarity
Medium–high
Ferment
Low–medium
Pulped Natural
Flavor
Sweetness, nuts, chocolate, round mouthfeel
Clarity
Medium–high
Ferment
Low–medium
Natural
Flavor
Berries, ripe fruit, sweetness
Clarity
Wide range
Ferment
Medium–high
Wet-Hulled
Flavor
Herbs, earth, spice, heavy mouthfeel
Clarity
Tends low–medium
Ferment
A distinctive aged character
Anaerobic
Flavor
Tropical, wine, spice
Clarity
Wide range
Ferment
Medium–high
Carbonic Maceration
Flavor
Vivid fruit aromas, distinctive fermented notes
Clarity
Wide range
Ferment
Medium–high
Double Fermentation
Flavor
Clean, sometimes with pronounced acidity
Clarity
Tends high
Ferment
Low–medium
Mosto Natural
Flavor
Ripe fruit, clearly outlined sweetness
Clarity
Wide range
Ferment
Medium–high
Co-fermented / Infused
Flavor
Varies greatly with the added ingredients and fermentation design
Clarity
Wide range
Ferment
Can be medium–high

Flavors are general tendencies and change a great deal with variety, altitude, ripeness, drying and roast. Quality and cupping score cannot be judged from the process alone.

Flavors that come through easily

Looked at by flavor family, the differences between processes become a little more concrete. But this is only the direction when the process alone is changed. In a real cup it is not unusual for variety, altitude, ripeness and roast to have a bigger effect.

Flavor

Flavor families that come through

OftenSometimesRarely

Flavor families that come through, by process
Process	Citrus / Floral	Berry / Fruit	Sweet / Nutty	Tropical / Wine	Spice / Earth
Washed	Often	Rarely	Sometimes	Rarely	Rarely
Double Fermentation	Often	Sometimes	Rarely	Rarely	Rarely
Honey	Sometimes	Sometimes	Often	Rarely	Rarely
Pulped Natural	Rarely	Sometimes	Often	Rarely	Rarely
Natural	Rarely	Often	Sometimes	Sometimes	Rarely
Mosto Natural	Rarely	Often	Sometimes	Sometimes	Rarely
Anaerobic	Rarely	Sometimes	Rarely	Often	Sometimes
Carbonic Maceration	Sometimes	Often	Rarely	Often	Rarely
Wet-Hulled	Rarely	Rarely	Sometimes	Rarely	Often
Co-fermented / Infused	Varies greatly with the added ingredients and fermentation design

A rough guide to general tendencies. It changes a great deal with variety, altitude, ripeness, drying and roast. Even with the same process, flavors not listed here often appear.

How to read the names

Sometimes two or more process names are joined, as in "Anaerobic Natural". This is not a contradiction: it combines a base process, Natural or Honey, with a fermentation condition, Anaerobic. The design of the fermentation often comes first and the base process second, but the order is sometimes reversed.

Reading labels

A label name combines two pieces of information

AnaerobicFermentation designNaturalBase process
→ Whole cherries fermented in a sealed tank, then dried as they are
Carbonic MacerationFermentation designWashedBase process
→ Fermented in a tank filled with carbon dioxide, then pulped and washed
AnaerobicFermentation designHoneyBase process
→ Sealed fermentation, then dried with the mucilage left on

Actual steps differ by producer. The combination of names is only a clue; the time, temperature and timing of fermentation need to be checked case by case.

Vietnamese Robusta

For the Vietnamese Robusta we handle, process names and their aims correspond roughly as follows.

Washed Robusta: when you want cleanness, or to see the character of the origin
Honey Robusta: when sweetness, a chocolate-like impression and a round mouthfeel matter most
Natural Robusta: when you want to make the most of fruit and body
Anaerobic Robusta: for the specialty market seeking distinctive flavors, or for cafés and restaurants that want a signature character

Note that "Fine Robusta" is not a process name alongside these. It is a quality framework for evaluating excellent Robusta, and lots of any process can qualify.

What to check when sourcing

Even with the same name, the steps differ from producer to producer. When comparing several lots or suppliers, checking the following makes comparison easier.

Variety and harvest period
The base process: Washed, Natural, Honey and so on
Whether there was fermentation, and its time, temperature and oxygen conditions
Whether any yeast was inoculated or ingredients added
The drying method and the final moisture content
Cupping results, defect rate and traceability

A name is only a starting point

A process name is not a label that promises a taste. A wide range of steps sits under the same name, and even the same steps give very different results depending on the standard of management. Once a name gives you a lead, ask about the steps beyond it. Use the diagrams in this article as a plan for doing that.