India

Many know India as the land of fine teas, but few are aware that this extraordinary country has been producing and exporting high-quality coffee for over 150 years. The legend of Indian coffee begins with Baba Budan, a Muslim pilgrim who, upon returning from a journey to Mecca, brought back seven coffee seeds and planted them near his cave on the mountains of Chikmagalur, in the state of Karnataka. That simple gesture marked the beginning of one of the most fascinating coffee traditions in the world.

The cultivation of coffee in India truly took off in the 19th century, when British colonists discovered that the southern Indian highlands offered ideal conditions for the Coffea Arabica plant: altitudes between 1,000 and 1,200 meters, a tropical climate, abundant rainfall, and humus-rich soil. Since then, the regions of Karnataka and Kerala have become the beating heart of Indian coffee production.

Among all Indian coffees, the most famous is undoubtedly the India Monsooned Malabar AA, a “monsooned coffee” with a truly unique and unmistakable aromatic profile. This coffee owes its distinctive characteristics to a natural process that was discovered by chance. In the 19th century, when Indian coffee was shipped to Europe on sailing vessels, the beans spent months in the damp holds of ships as they rounded the Cape of Good Hope. During the long voyage, the sea humidity and monsoon winds deeply transformed the beans, which arrived at their destination swollen, golden in color, and with a smooth, mellow taste.

Over time, as modern ships reduced transport time, this “natural” transformation disappeared. Yet, the demand for that special flavor remained so strong that Indian producers began to recreate the monsooning process artificially. Today, the coffee is exposed to moist monsoon winds from the Arabian Sea for over three months in ventilated warehouses along India’s western coast. The beans are spread out, regularly turned, and allowed to slowly absorb the moisture from the air until they acquire their characteristic golden hue and distinctive spicy aroma.

The result is an Indian coffee with an intense aroma and a spicy, woody flavor, complemented by sweet tobacco notes. In the cup, it shows a creamy body, balanced acidity, and a dense, persistent crema, making it ideal for espresso and moka brewing.

The India Monsooned Malabar AA perfectly embodies the soul of Indian coffee: rich in history, deeply connected to nature and its rhythms, and capable of surprising the palate with its aromatic depth and unmistakable character. It is a monsooned coffee with ancient charm, perfect for those who love full-bodied, aromatic, and velvety cups—and for anyone wishing to travel, in a single sip, through the evocative scents of the Indian Ocean.