The Fermentation Project - James Hoffmann x Lucia Solis

We’re excited to take part in The Fermentation Project, a collaborative initiative by Lucia Solis, James Hoffmann and Caravela Coffee exploring how fermentation shapes the flavour of coffee.

This limited tasting kit contains four coffees produced from the same lot from Finca San Miguel Urias in Guatemala. By keeping the coffee, origin and other variables constant, the project isolates one key factor: fermentation.

Taste them side by side and discover just how dramatically processing can influence sweetness, acidity, body and complexity.

Four expressions of the same coffee

Mechanically Demucilaged washed — Control
The control coffee, with the mucilage removed mechanically and no fermentation. It offers a reference point for understanding the coffee’s natural character, shaped by variety, terroir and cultivation.

Wild Fermentation — 48 hours
A submerged fermentation using naturally occurring microorganisms. A more traditional approach that allows the local microbial population to influence the final cup.

Lactobacillus Inoculated — 48 hours
A controlled fermentation using Lactobacillus bacteria, designed to encourage organic acid production and bring greater brightness, acidity and complexity.

Yeast Inoculated — 48 hours
A controlled fermentation using Saccharomyces yeast. This process can enhance sweetness, body and aromatic complexity.

Each kit contains 100 grams of each process. The whole box is 400g of roasted coffee. 

Join the global live tasting stream hosted by James Hoffmann on October 3, 2026, at 15:00 (GMT+1) on his YouTube channel.