# Coffee Berries



## dubbel_entendre (24/1/10)

I doubt it's been tried before, but I'm investigating the feasibility of fermenting something drinkable from coffee berries.

My girlfriend's family grows coffee, and they're looking for something constructive and creative to do with the berries that contain the coffee beans. Currently the berries get turfed after the beans are extracted.

Seeking help devising a recipe - mainly finding a suitable yeast - but I also think it will need to be mixed with something that will dilute the caffeine content (the berries themselves are full of caffeine and I don't want to give myself a heart attack by drinking the stuff) and also bulk up the fermentable sugars. Ideas appreciated.


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## Rodolphe01 (24/1/10)

May I suggest something in a clear bottle, low carb and market it like an energy drink 

Seriously, I have no idea. I've no idea what coffee berries taste like so I have no other suggestion apart from my bad joke


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## jonocarroll (24/1/10)

dubbel_entendre said:


> I doubt it's been tried before, but


 Everything's been done before, but continue...



dubbel_entendre said:


> I'm investigating the feasibility of fermenting something drinkable from coffee berries.


My first question is what do coffee berries taste like? I can't say I've had the privilege of tasting one.



dubbel_entendre said:


> Currently the berries get turfed after the beans are extracted.


Is this perhaps the answer to my question above - why aren't they used for anything? Edit: just looked up the methods of separating the beans from the cherries - looks like it's not so much a matter of turfing the flesh but rather it's unusable after processing.



dubbel_entendre said:


> Seeking help devising a recipe - mainly finding a suitable yeast -


What are you looking for in a yeast? In terms of fermenting, as long as there are sugars and sufficient nutrients they'll go to town. As for what qualities a specific yeast will add to this concoction, I think you need to figure out the 'what does coffee berry water taste like?' question



dubbel_entendre said:


> but I also think it will need to be mixed with something that will dilute the caffeine content (the berries themselves are full of caffeine and I don't want to give myself a heart attack by drinking the stuff)


Diute? How about 20L of water? Need it more dilute? ... add less berries.

The first step in attempting any 'flavoured' beer drink is to get a beer along the lines of what you intend to start with (i.e. a pale ale or a stout, depending on what you want to make) and add some of the 'flavour' that you are trying to add. i.e. Get a bottle of pale ale and add a small amount of berry. Taste it. Then add some more berry. Is it foul? It's probably not going to get a lot better by fermenting it. The fermented product won't taste exactly the same as this, but it's a reasonable first approximation.


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## HarryB (28/1/10)

According to this website, which sells coffee berry products, the flavour is "pleasant and mild" which is often a euphemism for not having much taste at all. Sounds like the main benefits come from them being very rich in anti-oxidants.


http://www.coffeeberry.org/index.htm


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## brettprevans (28/1/10)

im with QB.

although dont let that stop you. 

he's right about the berry's flavour though. the rest will be dependant on that.

also the actual sugar content will determine its fermantability., by the sounds of it, the taste is very mild and will be overpowered easily. so a coffeberry kolsch?

try some of the berries and let us know how they taste


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