Sumatra Queen Ketiara Fair Trade Organic

Sumatra Queen Ketiara is processed using the wet hull method, which is seldom seen outside of Sumatra. While traditionally washed coffees are dried with their parchment layer intact, wet hulled coffees have their parchment removed before drying. Sumatra has notoriously unpredictable weather, and coffee producers need to be able to dry their coffee quickly so it doesn’t get rained on and have its quality compromised. This processing is one of the main contributing factors to Sumatran coffees’ earthy flavor profile. Like many other food processing methods, the wet hull process was created out of necessity and the result is a one-of-a-kind flavor profile.

In addition to being certified Fair Trade and Organic, another one of the reasons we were initially attracted to Ketiara, is the fact that it is led by a charismatic woman named Rahmah. After working in coffee for many years, she helped found Ketiara in 2009 with just 38 members and currently serves as the co-op’s chairperson. In the years since it was established, the co-op membership has expanded to nearly 2,000 smallholder farmers, over 50% of them being women. The coffee Equator purchases is exclusively from the women members of the co-op; they refer to this special selection as Queen Ketiara. We pay an additional premium for the "Queen" designation, with proceeds going to programs that benefit women.