Carbonic Maceration

Delicate, aromatic, and wine-like. Red fruit, rose, jasmine, and cinnamon notes. Often described as 'transparent' — the fruit influence is present but refined rather than overwhelming.

Borrowed from Beaujolais winemaking, this method places whole, intact coffee cherries in sealed tanks flushed with CO₂. Intracellular fermentation occurs inside each cherry without the fruit being broken, producing delicate esters and fruity aromatics. After 24-72 hours of carbonic maceration, the cherries are depulped and dried normally. Popularized by Sasa Sestic's 2015 World Barista Championship win using this technique on a Sudanese Rume variety from Colombia. Now widely experimented with in specialty coffee, though the technique requires precise temperature control.