{"product_id":"tropical-wildcard-excelsa-natural-medium-roast","title":"Tropical Wildcard - Excelsa Natural (Medium Roast)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTropical Wildcard is a single origin Excelsa natural coffee from Bella Bean India - one of the only Excelsa lots in India processed as a sequential anaerobic natural. Grown at 1200 MASL, roasted medium, with tasting notes of ripe papaya, black cherry and caramelised pineapple. SCA score: 85.5. Available whole bean or ground. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eExcelsa is one of coffee’s rarest cultivated species - genetically distinct from both Arabica and Robusta, and almost never seen outside blends. This microlot from Bella Bean India, grown at 1200 MASL, is processed as a sequential anaerobic natural: a multi-stage fermentation technique that pushes the variety’s naturally tropical character to its peak. Expect an explosion of ripe papaya, black cherry and caramelised pineapple, with a juicy, medium-bodied sweetness and a soft, tropical-fruit acidity. An unusual, genuinely exciting cup for drinkers who’ve tasted their way through the usual Arabica lineup and are ready for something new.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eOverview\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMost coffee drinkers have never knowingly tasted Excelsa. While Arabica and Robusta account for well over 99% of global coffee production, Excelsa is a genuinely rare cultivated species - taxonomically closer to Liberica than to either of the two mainstream species - grown in only a handful of pockets worldwide, most notably in parts of Southeast Asia and, increasingly, in experimental plots across India. Its trees are larger, its cherries oddly shaped, and its flavour potential almost entirely undocumented by the mainstream specialty coffee world. That makes a lot like this one, from Bella Bean India, a genuine rarity on any retail shelf.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGrown at 1200 metres above sea level, this lot has been processed as a sequential anaerobic natural - a technique that layers multiple controlled fermentation stages on top of one another before the cherry is dried. Where a standard anaerobic natural involves a single sealed fermentation period, a sequential process introduces cherry to more than one fermentation environment in succession, intensifying flavour development at each stage. It’s a labour- and time-intensive approach, more commonly seen on competition-grade Arabica lots, applied here to a species that’s almost never given this level of processing attention.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe result is a cup that leans hard into tropical fruit: ripe papaya and black cherry dominate the front of the palate, with a caramelised pineapple note that gives the acidity a rounded, almost dessert-like quality rather than the sharp brightness you’d expect from a washed high-altitude Arabica. The body sits in the medium-to-full range, syrupy enough to carry the fruit character through a long, juicy finish.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor Bean By Nation, this lot fits naturally into an ‘Outliners’ or unusual-origins category: it’s not a coffee for someone looking for a reliable daily drinker, but exactly the coffee for a customer who wants to taste something most of the specialty world has never offered them.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eProducer Story\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBella Bean India represents a small but growing movement within Indian specialty coffee: producers willing to treat overlooked coffee species with the same care and processing investment typically reserved for premium Arabica lots. Excelsa - sometimes still labelled commercially as a Liberica relative, though botanists now generally classify it as its own species - has historically been grown as a minor, low-value crop, often blended anonymously into commodity-grade coffee for body and bulk rather than showcased on its own merits. Bella Bean India’s decision to isolate and process Excelsa as a standalone specialty lot is, in that context, a genuinely unusual bet.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGrown at 1200 metres above sea level, Excelsa trees are notably larger and hardier than Arabica, with a natural tolerance for heat and drought stress that has made the species attractive as climate pressures increase on traditional coffee-growing regions. The processing choice here is just as significant as the growing decision. A sequential anaerobic natural is a demanding, multi-stage fermentation process: cherries move through more than one controlled fermentation environment before drying, with each stage building on the flavour compounds developed in the last. It’s a technique more commonly reserved for Central American or Ethiopian competition lots, rarely applied to Excelsa.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor Bean By Nation, that intent is a large part of the story worth telling. This lot represents both a rare botanical curiosity - a coffee species most drinkers have never knowingly tasted - and a bet on processing innovation applied somewhere it’s almost never been tried.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eBrew Guide\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis \u003cstrong\u003eExcelsa natural coffee\u003c\/strong\u003e performs best as a \u003cstrong\u003eV60 or Kalita Wave pour-over\u003c\/strong\u003e - the open brew method gives its papaya and black cherry character room to fully express as the cup cools. It is equally exceptional as a \u003cstrong\u003ecold brew\u003c\/strong\u003e, where the tropical fruit notes carry beautifully over ice. Best enjoyed black, without milk.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eV60 \/ Kalita Wave:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1:16 ratio · 90–92°C · medium-fine grind\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAeroPress:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1:15 ratio · 88–90°C · medium grind\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eChemex:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1:17 ratio · 90–92°C · medium-coarse grind\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCold Brew:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1:8 ratio · cold water · coarse grind · 12–16 hrs steep\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSpecifications\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003ctable\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCoffee Type\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eExcelsa (rare, distinct coffee species)\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCountry of Origin\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eIndia\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRegion \/ Estate\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBella Bean India\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAltitude\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e1200 MASL\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProcessing Method\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eNatural — Sequential Anaerobic\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRoast Level\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMedium\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTasting Notes\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eRipe Papaya, Black Cherry, Caramelised Pineapple\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBody\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMedium-Full, Syrupy\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSweetness\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMedium\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAcidity\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMedium, tropical-fruit\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAftertaste\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eJuicy, lingering tropical fruit sweetness\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRecommended Brew Methods\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eV60 \/ Kalita · AeroPress · Chemex · Cold Brew\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBest Enjoyed\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWithout Milk \/ Black\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eQuality Score (SCA)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e85.5\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCertifications\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e—\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBrew Ratio\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eV60\/Kalita: 1:16 · AeroPress: 1:15 · Cold Brew: 1:8\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWater Temperature\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e90–92°C\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShelf Life\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e12 months from roast 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