From the resurgence of hand-poured and hand-brewed coffee to the growing demand for tea, the specialty coffee and tea industries have undergone many changes in the past two years. Among those developments has emerged a new beverage: cascara, also known as coffee cherry tea. While the beverage has slowly been appearing in cafes around the world, it can still be difficult to find. As such, those who have yet to encounter the elusive cascara may be curious to know what the beverage really is.
Cascara is made from the skin of the coffee fruit. It's sold as a dried product to be infused with boiling water, like a herbal tea or coffee tea. Cascara has flavors ranging from raisins and berries to floral and even tobacco notes.
When the coffee cherry fruit is picked from the plant, it undergoes a process called pulping to extract the seeds, and the outer skin is a byproduct of this process. When the outer skin is dried in the sun, it is called cascara. After the seeds are extracted from the coffee cherry, most of the skins are discarded or composted and used as fertilizer on the coffee farm.
Few coffee producers process cherries into husks for consumption. For those who do, the process can be as laborious as producing coffee, which is why so few coffee farms produce and export husks.
What does the shell taste like?
This coffee fruit can be made into a dietary supplement or cascara tea, also known as cascara sagrada. (Although both cascara and cascara sagrada may have health benefits, you may want to contact your healthcare provider first, as it may not be healthy for everyone.)
The shell is considered tea.
When brewed, it has fruity and herbal tones. It can also be made into teas, syrups, sodas, beer, or even infused into vodka.
When made into simple syrup, the peel becomes sweet. It tends to taste like a mix of fruits and herbs, such as rosehip, hibiscus flower, red currant, mango, and sometimes even a hint of tobacco. It's also described as having a taste similar to cherry brown sugar.
Does the shell have caffeine?
Coffee cherry pulp is said to contain considerable amounts of phenolic compounds and caffeine. This means it not only contains caffeine, but also functions as a rich source of antioxidants.
Where does the shell come from?
Coffee beans originated in Ethiopia, the original homeland of coffee.
In Ethiopia, coffee husks are made into a tea called Geshar or Hashara and dark-roasted until almost black. The husks are then infused in water for a longer period to create an intensely fruity flavor.
Later, coffee beans migrated to South America, where a different approach was adopted to preparing cascara. It is commonly consumed in Bolivia, where Bolivians refer to it as Sultana. The cascara cherry fruit is first sun-dried and then lightly roasted like coffee by coffee roasters. From there, the dried fruit shells are ground into a loose-leaf tea ready to be brewed.
Few coffee producers produce cascara, and even fewer countries export it. Cascara beverage partners with renowned specialty coffee producer Aida Battle, a fifth-generation coffee farmer and the first cascara producer in Latin America, to source single-origin, single-varietal cascara directly from Finca Kilimanjaro, a Cup of Excellence award-winning farm in Santa Ana, El Salvador. Aida began drying coffee cherries over 10 years ago and continues to produce some of the most coveted cascara in the world.
At the farm level, cascara requires the same attention to detail in processing as coffee, and there is a spectrum of quality that varies among the farmers who produce it. Coffee cherries that have been meticulously grown, harvested, produced, and dried will ultimately lead to a better beverage when prepared correctly.
Traditionally, cascara was used for various medicinal purposes. It was known to cure headaches, sores, swelling, and internal tension. But overall, cascara was most popular for its laxative properties and as an over-the-counter remedy for constipation.
Now that you know a little about the history of cascara, what it is, where it comes from, and how to use it, do you think you'll give it a try? Whether you're looking to add some antioxidants, health benefits, or even a little cherry flavor to your life, you'd surely love to try it.