Made Local: Your Cup of Coffee From Tree to Takeaway
From crop to the cup you raise to your lips, we follow the journey of Australian-produced artisanal coffee
If you want a superb cup of Australian-owned coffee, it takes a loving farmer, well-thought-out logistics, a respectful and caring coffee roaster, a well-maintained and programmed coffee machine, and a trained barista (and, if you’re on the go, a reusable cup or a paper-only compostable take-away cup, as pictured below).
A sustainable coffee-sourcing trip to India brought Pranoy Thipaiah’s Kerehaklu coffee farm into the fold.
At The Little Marionette good, sustainable coffee begins with the catuai, an arabica coffee plant that is shade-grown and produces good, clean coffee when carefully processed.
Each plant yields approximately 500 grams to one kilogram each year, depending on the growing conditions and the variety.
When it comes to the source of great artisanal coffee, mature trees are traditionally favoured over younger coffee plants.
“Four-year-old trees begin to achieve good yields, although experts in the coffee industry have been researching more sustainable, higher-yielding coffee plants with earlier maturation, and have been getting some really good results from them in as little as one year to 18 months,” says Cutcliffe.
The beans are usually harvested at the start of the dry season, when the coffee cherries turn ruby red. They are picked from the tree by hand, although mechanical harvesters are used in the wider industry (however this can lead to bruising of the coffee cherry, which affects the final flavour). Hand-picking is one of many stages that leads to The Little Marionette’s distinctive high-quality flavour.
At The Little Marionette good, sustainable coffee begins with the catuai, an arabica coffee plant that is shade-grown and produces good, clean coffee when carefully processed.
Each plant yields approximately 500 grams to one kilogram each year, depending on the growing conditions and the variety.
When it comes to the source of great artisanal coffee, mature trees are traditionally favoured over younger coffee plants.
“Four-year-old trees begin to achieve good yields, although experts in the coffee industry have been researching more sustainable, higher-yielding coffee plants with earlier maturation, and have been getting some really good results from them in as little as one year to 18 months,” says Cutcliffe.
The beans are usually harvested at the start of the dry season, when the coffee cherries turn ruby red. They are picked from the tree by hand, although mechanical harvesters are used in the wider industry (however this can lead to bruising of the coffee cherry, which affects the final flavour). Hand-picking is one of many stages that leads to The Little Marionette’s distinctive high-quality flavour.
Next is the washing stage. While there are different ways to process the coffee cherries to achieve different flavours, in the washed process harvested cherries are poured into water to clean and sort the ripe from the unripe.
The unripe cherries float to the top, while the ripe (the good cherries) sink to the bottom.
The unripe cherries float to the top, while the ripe (the good cherries) sink to the bottom.
Following this is the all-important sorting stage.
Here, workers look for both defects and the perfect coffee cherry. The cherries that aren’t up to scratch are sold as lower-grade coffee, which often ends up as instant coffee on supermarket shelves.
The next stage is de-pulping the cherry to remove the outer mucilage or fruit, which leaves… the coffee bean.
Here, workers look for both defects and the perfect coffee cherry. The cherries that aren’t up to scratch are sold as lower-grade coffee, which often ends up as instant coffee on supermarket shelves.
The next stage is de-pulping the cherry to remove the outer mucilage or fruit, which leaves… the coffee bean.
Next come the fermentation then drying stages, which occur using sub-tropical, high-altitude conditions under shade-grown farming practices.
The coffee beans’ drying time depends on the climate; the aim is to achieve the ideal moisture content: between 10 and 13 percent.
“It’s important to know that coffee production has had to reform over the past decade to improve its practices in production, sustainability and ethics,” says Cutcliffe. “In the 10-plus years we’ve been in this industry, we’ve witnessed dramatic change industry-wide.
“We work closely with our green coffee partners to help source coffee beans that improve the livelihood of smallholders (small farms that can’t produce enough to be commercially viable) and align with The Little Marionette’s values, including the Women In Coffee initiative.”
The coffee beans’ drying time depends on the climate; the aim is to achieve the ideal moisture content: between 10 and 13 percent.
“It’s important to know that coffee production has had to reform over the past decade to improve its practices in production, sustainability and ethics,” says Cutcliffe. “In the 10-plus years we’ve been in this industry, we’ve witnessed dramatic change industry-wide.
“We work closely with our green coffee partners to help source coffee beans that improve the livelihood of smallholders (small farms that can’t produce enough to be commercially viable) and align with The Little Marionette’s values, including the Women In Coffee initiative.”
The beans are packed in 60-kilogram Grainpro bags that keep the coffee fresh throughout the shipping process using an outer hessian sack, often adorned with local artwork.
Transported in shipping containers, The Little Marionette uses freight-forwarders that specify below-deck shipping and centre placement to avoid direct contact with the sun.
Transported in shipping containers, The Little Marionette uses freight-forwarders that specify below-deck shipping and centre placement to avoid direct contact with the sun.
The bags arrive at the roastery in Balmain, NSW. Here, Yeongjun Lee, The Little Marionette’s head of coffee, performs colour reading, an important stage of The Little Marionette’s quality control process.
The coffee that arrives at the roastery in Sydney’s Inner West is ‘green’, that is, unroasted.
First, it’s stored in a cool, dark place in the warehouse before being picked off the shelf.
Next, it’s loaded into the hopper above the coffee roaster, which then gravity-feeds the beans into a pre-temperature charged rotating cast-iron coffee drum.
Then, the beans are roasted, blended and packed, ready for delivery to cafe partners and for sale to the public, offering some of the best coffee in Sydney and around the country.
The coffee that arrives at the roastery in Sydney’s Inner West is ‘green’, that is, unroasted.
First, it’s stored in a cool, dark place in the warehouse before being picked off the shelf.
Next, it’s loaded into the hopper above the coffee roaster, which then gravity-feeds the beans into a pre-temperature charged rotating cast-iron coffee drum.
Then, the beans are roasted, blended and packed, ready for delivery to cafe partners and for sale to the public, offering some of the best coffee in Sydney and around the country.
The G60 1961 Probat coffee roaster.
The Little Marionette uses 1950s- and 1960s-vintage cast-iron coffee roasters for their positive thermal properties, which yield deep flavours through greater caramelisation of the coffee beans’ sugar content.
The G60 1961 Probat roasts both the inside and outside of the coffee beans.
The Little Marionette uses 1950s- and 1960s-vintage cast-iron coffee roasters for their positive thermal properties, which yield deep flavours through greater caramelisation of the coffee beans’ sugar content.
The G60 1961 Probat roasts both the inside and outside of the coffee beans.
After monitoring data from several probes that show what’s happening during the roasting process, in combination with colour visuals and smell of the beans, a decision is made when to drop the roast.
“One of the best parts about coming to work is walking into the roastery and being greeted by the distinctive smell of coffee roasting and a pre-brewed batch made by one of our expertly trained team members,” says Cutcliffe.
“One of the best parts about coming to work is walking into the roastery and being greeted by the distinctive smell of coffee roasting and a pre-brewed batch made by one of our expertly trained team members,” says Cutcliffe.
Here, the machine is cooling the freshly dropped roast.
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Browse beautiful kitchens by Australian designers
Prior to packing, the bags go through a de-stoning process to ensure no foreign objects enter the bag.
The beans are then packed and sealed in specially designed bags with one-way valves that keep the oxygen out.
The bag weight is chosen to maximise freshness in both low- and high-volume cafes and restaurants as well as people’s homes, so The Little Marionette’s coffee lovers always cut open a fresh bag.
The beans are then packed and sealed in specially designed bags with one-way valves that keep the oxygen out.
The bag weight is chosen to maximise freshness in both low- and high-volume cafes and restaurants as well as people’s homes, so The Little Marionette’s coffee lovers always cut open a fresh bag.
One of The Little Marionette workers holding more than six months of love and dedication, from farmer to roaster.
Ten years after it was founded, The Little Marionette now employs 24 people in the coffee roasting and support teams, with a further 40 people in cafe experience teams.
Ten years after it was founded, The Little Marionette now employs 24 people in the coffee roasting and support teams, with a further 40 people in cafe experience teams.
The Little Marionette coffee on display at the 2022 Melbourne International Coffee Expo fair, a meeting of all things coffee-related.
“I started The Little Marionette to share my love of coffee and had to learn how to run a business, the most important part of which is to have great people around me to strengthen my weaknesses. Unlike a bottle of wine, which a waiter can open and serve, we partner with equally passionate baristas and cafe owners who represent our products in their finished form and know exactly how to make the perfect cup of coffee,” says Cutcliffe.
“I started The Little Marionette to share my love of coffee and had to learn how to run a business, the most important part of which is to have great people around me to strengthen my weaknesses. Unlike a bottle of wine, which a waiter can open and serve, we partner with equally passionate baristas and cafe owners who represent our products in their finished form and know exactly how to make the perfect cup of coffee,” says Cutcliffe.
After three months, the perfect cup of coffee is ready to be enjoyed by coffee lovers around the country.
“We aim to maintain the distinctive, consistent quality cup of The Little Marionette coffee for our lovers of a good cup,” says Cutcliffe.
“We also aim to convert to electric roasters that run off solar power and are constantly pushing for more ethical and environmentally friendly practices, including packaging and coffee production.”
Your turn
Did you know this is what it takes to create the perfect cup of coffee? Tell us what you learnt from this story in the Comments below and share how you like your cuppa.
More
Missed our previous Made Local article? See how a classic piece of mid-century furniture is made in Australia with Houzz’s Made Local: How an Iconic Mid-Century Stool is Being Revived
“We aim to maintain the distinctive, consistent quality cup of The Little Marionette coffee for our lovers of a good cup,” says Cutcliffe.
“We also aim to convert to electric roasters that run off solar power and are constantly pushing for more ethical and environmentally friendly practices, including packaging and coffee production.”
Your turn
Did you know this is what it takes to create the perfect cup of coffee? Tell us what you learnt from this story in the Comments below and share how you like your cuppa.
More
Missed our previous Made Local article? See how a classic piece of mid-century furniture is made in Australia with Houzz’s Made Local: How an Iconic Mid-Century Stool is Being Revived
Here, we take you through the steps that culminate in the perfect cup of coffee from locally owned masters, The Little Marionette in Sydney.
Established by director and founder Ed Cutcliffe in Balmain, NSW, more than 10 years ago, it turns out that The Little Marionette is the little company that could.
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