At Blue Tokai’s Play Bar, in Jubilee Hills, I am introduced to sensory cups — a set of three, each designed for a different purpose: aroma, body, and flavour. The cups are meant to help coffee connoisseurs explore some of India’s microlots.Microlots are small, intentionally separated batches of coffee. They are set apart not because they are flawed, but because of their unique growing conditions, processing methods, and distinct flavour profiles. Unlike commercial blends, these coffees are not a mix of beans from multiple regions or harvest days.Microlot is a third-wave coffee term — part of a movement that treats coffee like fine wine, with a focus on high-quality beans, single-origin sourcing, lighter roasts that highlight flavour, and direct relationships with farmers. Key details to look out for while purchasing microlot coffee include elevation, processing technique, cultivar, farm name, region, farm size, and producer name.How is it different from single-origin coffee?
The Strabucks Reserve, first reserve outlet in South India
| Photo Credit:
Prabalika M Borah
Ashok Patre of Ratnagiri Estate, a 117-hectare, Rainforest Alliance-certified coffee plantation nestled in the Western Ghats near Bababudangiri, Karnataka, which produces one of the largest numbers of microlots in India, explains, “It is the treatment of the coffee beans right after they are harvested. Special processes like fermentation and washing either add or enhance certain flavours in the coffee, setting it apart from commercially harvested beans.”Ashok first experimented with fermentation in 2015 using honey. The results, he says, were something of a eureka moment for the estate. “We found some sweetness in the coffee, though it wasn’t very pronounced. Friends from Costa Rica, Colombia and El Salvador suggested I try anaerobic fermentation, where freshly picked coffee cherries ferment in airtight tanks. They told me it would not only enhance sweetness but also add more complexity to the cup. In 2016, I built my first stainless steel fermenters,” he says.
