Traditional Grades of Indian Coffee
As in most countries, India processes coffee by the wet (or washed) and dry (natural or unwashed) methods. Washed Arabica beans are known in India as Plantation (not to be confused with estate coffees), while washed Robusta beans are referred to as Parchment (not to be confused with coffee in Pergamino). Unwashed Arabica and Robusta beans are both known as Cherry (not to be confused with the fruit on a coffee tree). Grade designations are as follows, from top grades to bottom grades:
Arabica
Washed
Plantation-PB
Plantation-A
Plantation-B
Plantation-C
Plantation-BBB
Plantation-Bulk
|
Unwashed
Cherry-PB
Cherry-AB
Cherry-C
Cherry-BBB
Cherry-Bulk
|
Robusta
Washed
Parchment-PB
Parchment-AB
Parchment-C
Parchment-BBB
Parchment-Bulk
|
Unwashed
Cherry-PB
Cherry-AB
Cherry-C
Cherry-BBB
Cherry-Bulk
|
These grade designations are based on the size of beans (each bean fits into certain sieves during grading) and the percentage of imperfections.