Washed coffees have lengthy been the bedrock of specialty espresso. Clear, crisp, and vibrant, these coffees are usually thought of an expression of “pure” terroir and flavour, reinforcing their recognition.

Along with their strong presence in espresso outlets, roasters typically take washed coffees to occasions, showcasing balanced flavour profiles that provide consistency and readability. Nonetheless, at World of Espresso Geneva, and different current main commerce reveals, extra exhibitors have been serving high-end fermentations or categorised blends within the Roasters Villages.

This follows related developments within the wider trade, the place “funkier” coffees and versatile blends have gotten more and more outstanding – however washed coffees nonetheless preserve their presence.

I spoke with the 2025 World Espresso Roasting Champion Mikaël Portannier and Dajo Aertssen at Cafés MUDA to learn how washed coffees are enduring in a brand new period of innovation in specialty espresso.

You may additionally like our article on why specialty espresso shouldn’t have a favorite processing technique.

Experimentally processed and deliberately fermented heaps have gained recognition in specialty espresso over the past 5 years. Providing distinctive and thrilling flavour profiles, these coffees are invaluable dialog starters – and that is very true at main world occasions.

The sheer scope of promoting and branding alternatives at expos is invaluable. Guests from all around the world attend commerce reveals like World of Espresso, Expo, and HostMilano, offering roasters the possibility to broaden their shopper attain on a stage they will’t attain of their brick-and-mortar shops, or could battle to realize on-line.

By showcasing their “finest” choices, together with high-end fermentations and high-scoring heaps, exhibitors improve their possibilities of grabbing the eye of extra attendees on an more and more aggressive commerce present flooring.

“You primarily see actually high-end coffees at occasions,” says Dajo Aertssen, the CEO and head of espresso at Cafés MUDA, a specialty espresso roaster in Lille, France. “Attendees go to those occasions to strive as many coffees as potential, and these high-end heaps are costlier for them to purchase. They’re crowd-pleasing coffees.”

Roasters can create extra memorable experiences for potential purchasers and trade friends with their “showstopping” coffees. The aim is to face out among the many quite a few different exhibitors who’re more and more including unconventional processing strategies or high-scoring heaps to their providing lists, and be one of many few roasters that guests will proceed to purchase espresso from past the exhibition corridor.

However because of this, there’s a definite lack of “basic” mid-80-point washed coffees at occasions, and this has change into more and more frequent in recent times. At WoC Geneva, held in late June 2025, for instance, extra roasters than ever provided distinctive fermentations and superior processing strategies.

“Many roasters don’t showcase their 80-point washed coffees at occasions, however somewhat preserve them to bulk up quantity and cut back prices,” says Mikaël Portannier, the 2025 World Espresso Roasting Champion and the founding father of Parcel, a brand new specialty espresso roaster in Normandy, France. 

“Commerce reveals like WoC Geneva are used to showcase what everyone seems to be doing at their finest, and no person desires to current a mean cup.”

Why roasters are diversifying their coffees at commerce reveals

Creating a way of exclusivity is among the handiest methods for roasters to market their most distinctive coffees. Status and rarity can drive up model enchantment and value, generally to outstanding ranges.

“Occasions or subscriptions might be nice platforms to showcase any new product, particularly by way of processing or every other innovation,” says Mikaël. 

The restricted availability of high-end espresso at commerce reveals or via subscriptions reaffirms its premium positioning. Roasters can then set increased costs {that a} small however regular variety of customers are keen to pay.

Concurrently, nonetheless, completely showcasing these coffees at occasions can obscure the realities of the broader market.

“Stylish specialty roasters current fermented and competitors heaps at occasions, however they don’t showcase their second-crack blends, which make up their precise enterprise,” Mikaël tells me.

Mid-80-point coffees, together with constant and “basic” washed heaps, comprise the majority of the worldwide specialty espresso trade. The marketplace for high-end or funky fermented coffees, in the meantime, stays comparatively small.

Furthermore, rising and providing these coffees isn’t economically viable for many producers and roasters, particularly in a interval of sustained excessive market costs.

That is main some roasters to diversify the coffees they take to occasions to draw a wider vary of consumers.

“We’ve been to the Paris Café Pageant twice now, and we have now provided three completely different ranges of espresso each instances,” says Dajo. “We’ve got an 82-85 level espresso that we have now all 12 months spherical, a seasonal 85-87 single origin espresso that adjustments on a regular basis, and an 88-plus espresso.

“The 88+ plus espresso is the largest vendor and gauges essentially the most curiosity at occasions, however our extra ‘primary’ coffees are extra invaluable from a enterprise perspective.”

Why washed coffees will prevail

Innovation in espresso processing has accelerated considerably over the previous few years. Yr after 12 months, new processing strategies, reminiscent of anoxic fermentation and fruit co-ferments, seem at trade occasions and on espresso store cabinets. 

Sensing monetary alternative, extra producers are experimenting with processing methods, together with in international locations related to extra washed coffees.

Roasters and importers like Onyx Espresso Lab and Covoya Espresso are more and more providing pure or anaerobic fermented Kenyan coffees, for example. This demonstrates noticeable shifts away from conventional processing strategies and flavour profiles in favour of catering to extra area of interest, premium markets.

The overexposure to distinctive or fermented coffees at commerce reveals, nonetheless, can mislead some into pondering that the marketplace for superior processing strategies is larger and extra profitable than it truly is.

“The high-end heaps solely account for the highest 1% of the world’s espresso,” says Dajo. “Nearly all specialty espresso producers develop 80 to 85-point coffees, which make up their greatest volumes. If we solely give attention to the high quality, we are able to’t have a sustainable enterprise.”

Whatever the scale of their world market share, the rising prevalence of high-scoring and modern processed coffees may result in a extra clearly outlined market. 

“We’re seeing extra espresso outlets and roasters changing into specialised in tremendous high-end coffees, however many are opening with out providing any of those coffees,” Dajo says. 

As extra roasters place themselves as high-end with fascinating yeast inoculations and funky flavour profiles, others are specializing in approachability and accessibility with cost-effective blends that work throughout a spread of roast profiles and brewing strategies. 

“With the C market as excessive as we have now seen for the previous few months, extra roasters have created blends to handle prices whereas sustaining the identical stage of high quality over their provide checklist,” Mikaël tells me. 

Washed coffees will inevitably account for the majority of those choices. Their reliable, constant, and basic flavour profiles are versatile and cater to the vast majority of shopper preferences.

“Common washed coffees are coming again and can take an even bigger share of the market that they’ve misplaced over the previous couple of years,” Mikaël provides. “We simply created a roasting firm, Parcel, and we didn’t choose any fermented or infused coffees – solely basic washed and pure processes.”

Specialty espresso was constructed on reliable, glorious washed coffees, and they’re going to stay a staple of roasters’ choices for years to come back.

The rising prevalence of high-end and experimentally processed coffees at occasions displays wider developments within the trade. Nonetheless, the marketplace for these heaps will proceed to stay small – particularly whereas the C value hovers round US $3/lb.

Loved this? Then learn our article on how producers can drive high quality in specialty espresso.

Picture credit: Specialty Espresso Affiliation

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