No matter how many times I visit Aroma Coffee in Bandung, it's never boring. Yes, I'm a coffee freak, and the Robusta and Arabica that this coffee factory produces are truly fine, but there's another reason – the owner, Widyapratama, is so friendly.
One morning before six, I was outside photographing the shop, which was still closed. Suddenly the owner opened the door and greeted me. He'd never met me before, but he invited me in. "Come on in," he said, "We're just doing a roast."
First he took me into his coffee warehouse, packed full of sacks of coffee reaching nearly to the ceiling. He stores the Robusta coffees for five years before roasting, and the Arabica for eight years, "to lower the acidity," he explains. He says that by storing the coffee for these periods, its acidity is reduced by 20 percent, which makes it much mellower. However, this flavor-enhancing treatment also reduces the weight by one kilogram per sack per year of storage.
Widya, aged 58 and the father of two daughters, inherited the factory from his father, Tan Houw Sian, who founded it in 1930. Each day, he roasts around 200 kilograms of coffee. Aided by his two assistants, Widya himself does the roasting, with a German-made Probat roasting machine that is as old as the factory. The fuel is rubber wood, which he uses because it does not produce much smoke and does not affect the flavor or aroma of the coffee.
The best part of the process is when the coffee is done and the roasting
machine is opened. It's shaped like a giant Roman helmet; inside is
an iron ball full of coffee beans, which is rotated over the coals.
When the roast is finished, the beans are poured out into a zinc vessel
to cool.
After they are sorted again and any remaining bits of skin are removed, the coffee beans are stored in large cans and taken to the front of the store. He grinds coffee only as requested by his customers.
The shop is open from 8 am to 3 pm every day except Sunday. A 250-gram pack of Robusta costs only Rp 10,000, while the mocha Arabica is Rp 12,500.
He doesn't recommend buying too much at once. "Just buy one pack of each," advises Widya, who also teaches economics at Pajajaran University. "When you run out, come back and get some more, so you always have fresh coffee on hand."
And when I ordered two packs of coffee for my wife, who also likes
coffee, he wouldn't even take my money. "No need, no need. Just
consider it a present for your wife," he said with a warm smile.
Incredible....
Koffie Fabriek Aroma
Jl. Banceuy No. 51
Bandung 40111
Tel: 022-4230473
Fax: 022-4232648
