Nepal coffee

1000–1600 m · picked December to March · Arabica

A young origin on the Himalayan foothills, planted mostly since the 1980s by farmers with a few hundred trees each. Production is tiny and most of it is drunk in Kathmandu's cafés.

Grown in: Gulmi, Palpa, Kaski, Sindhupalchok, Lalitpur
Varieties: Bourbon, Typica, Caturra, Pacamara
Processing: Washed, on small farms and cooperatives

In the cup: Mild, sweet, nutty, with gentle citrus. Clean rather than complex.

Next to Indian coffee: Grown at Indian altitudes in a Himalayan climate, Nepali coffee sits between a Northeast Indian lot and a Nilgiris washed. The few bags that reach India are usually sold on novelty; the best are honestly good.