Coffee loving couple, Anjan Babu and Sanjana Sudarshan brew Liberica coffee at home, usually sourcing beans from roasters like Blue Tokai or Drip and Drop Coffee. Sanjana says the couple had their first Liberica coffee at Ground Up Café. She says, “We fell in love with it the first time we ate it. We got a packet of Liberica beans for home and we’ve been enjoying it ever since. It has a jackfruit flavor.”Bharat Raghavan, a product manager, started his journey in coffee 10 years ago. He started researching filter coffee, a popular type in Bengaluru, before exploring other coffees and beans from his friend, who runs Dialogues Café, a barista. Bharat sources beans from different parts of India and the world during his travels. He says Liberica is a little less known in Bengaluru’s coffee scene. He says, “I would say less than 5% of the beans available are Liberica. It is very rare to find these in India. I first encountered Liberica at Araku Estate.”‘Smoky’ CoffeeLiberica is the kind that polarizes interest. Bharat says there are a few things he likes about it – Liberica has a slightly smoky flavor and more body, which is very typical of it. “I like my coffee to be rich, jammy, and spicy, so I started looking for coffee at that spot.”Some of her friends, who have similar interests, like Liberica because of her body. “Other people dislike it because the smoke is too much for them. For Liberica, I personally use an origami dripper and a pour-over method on the Hario V60. I’ve found this gives me the best results for my palate. The body of Liberica is so heavy, you need a more sophisticated brewing method. I tried using a French press, but since that method adds more texture, it ended up being too thick and tough for my palate. “An over-and-over was more sophisticated and worked really well,” says Bharat. “I think Liberica will be popular in Bengaluru as people who appreciate 100% Arabica are now beginning to understand different brewing and grinding methods,” he says. Changes in temperature and grind size play a big role with Liberica as it is a sensitive bean. He adds that, unlike robusta, where you can generally get a good cup, the profile of liberica varies greatly depending on the temperature and the press you use. A green coffee wave?Talking about the growing trend of green coffee, Khayyum Khan, Sales Head, Benki Brewing Tools, says, “Compared to Arabica and Robusta, Liberica is cleaner and has its own unique characteristics. When you consume or grind Liberica, it exudes a spicy flavour. We’re not used to drinking it, so when I give you something very different, people grab it as a personal trend. In this way Liberica and Excelsa started trending.“Adi Savla, senior manager of coffee communities at Blue Tokai, says many people know about ‘climate-resilient Excelsa’. Sunalini Menon, president, CoffeeLab, Bengaluru, says Liberica and Excelsa have been cultivated not only in countries like the Philippines or Malaysia, but also in Sierra Leone, where it was first discovered. She says, “It has been around in India for decades too. It’s just that we were cultivating it not as coffee, but as a plant to separate the boundaries of one field from another.”Komal Sable, founder of South Indian Coffee Company (SICC), says that although Arabica and Robusta are the main crops for any grower in India at present, the demand for Excelsa is gradually increasing. “We definitely get requests from specialty coffee roasters who are looking at climate-resistant varieties. “As you may know, there are 133 different species of coffee.” Excelsa has a fruity profile in the cup. “It has naturally low acidity and is quite sweet, making it a great entry point for people who don’t typically enjoy very acidic coffee,” she says.Khayyum Khan says Benkey Brewing is considering closing the sale of Liberica. “The problem with Liberica is that it changes very quickly. For us, the sweet spot for a regular café is between 30 to 45 days. For coffees like Liberica, we store it in a cool environment in a single serving, but they still change every day. For a commercial setup, it is often very difficult to change recipes and train staff,” he says.