Onyx Coffee - Ratnagiri Estate Thermal Shock Catuai | India

India — Ashok Patre Ratnagiri Estate Catuaí (Thermal-Shock)

Tastes Like — 🌺 Hibiscus • 🍑 Peach • 🍷 Winey • 🍪 Chocolate Cookie

DETAILS

• Producer: Ashok Patre
• Farm: Ratnagiri Estate
• Region: Chikmagalur, India
• Varietal: Catuaí
• Process: Thermal-Shock, Raised-Bed Dried
• Elevation: 1,340 masl
• Harvest: December
• Cup Score: 86.5

INTRO
Located in the rolling hills of Chikmagalur, Ratnagiri Estate is one of the premiere coffee estates producing specialty coffee in India. Within its gates, Ashok Patre strives to develop processing methods that exceed the expectations of coffees from India. Hibiscus and peach lead, with a winey complexity and a chocolate cookie finish — exceedingly balanced and clean, reflected in this inaugural offering from India. In the cup: hibiscus, peach, winey, and chocolate cookie.

THE PRODUCER
First met in Chicago at a forum on post-harvest processing, Ashok Patre has taken a different path from the intensely fruit-forward carbonic maceration trend, instead developing methods that preserve the integrity of India's native varieties and express his specific soils and microclimate. His approach is both methodical and visionary — with a deep understanding of Indian terroir and its varietal limitations, he's engineered fermentation protocols that shape flavour with intention and precision. Over the past year, he partnered with a leading food scientist to design custom, purpose-built fermentation equipment, giving his facility near-total control over fermentation parameters. At its heart is a small team of specialists, including two microbiologists (one with a PhD), who monitor microbial populations, plate cultures, and conduct titratable acidity testing to make data-driven decisions on batch completion — a meticulous, science-led process more akin to enology or craft brewing than conventional coffee production. This sourcing partnership was established through Osito Coffee.

THE PROCESS
This coffee undergoes a mixed oxidation four-day fermentation, followed by depulping and channel washing. The steps include a sixty-hour tank fermentation, along with an additional long fermentation within a sealed, pressurised tank with inoculates. The parchment then dries for approximately sixteen days on patios.

The data-driven, microbiologist-monitored fermentation is the defining step — it's what builds the fruit-forward complexity behind the hibiscus and peach character while keeping the cup clean and balanced rather than muddied by over-processing.

THE CUP
Balanced and clean, with noticeable fermentation-driven complexity — hibiscus and peach lead, with a winey depth and a chocolate cookie finish.

Flavour Notes
🌺 Hibiscus 🍑 Peach 🍷 Winey 🍪 Chocolate Cookie