By Siti Oktorina

From the late 1500's until the late 1800's, coffee was the most highly traded crop in Indonesia. Indonesia has a rich history of coffee. Coffee has been part of the Indonesian culture for centuries and is still an integral part today. It is believed that this national drink was even mentioned in one of the oldest written texts in Indonesian history, Coffee Garden (Coffee River). It records that there was a king in ancient Java who was killed by his subjects when he refused to stop drinking coffee and then tried to ban it.

Instant coffee is very common in households because it is easy to prepare. Ground coffee is more labor-intensive. Instant coffee is a type of brewing where the coffee grounds are heated with water over a short period of time and then poured into a cup or other receptacle which filters out the sediment, oils, and solids that usually form in the process of making drip-brewed coffee. Instant coffee has become very popular due to its convenience; however, this convenience comes at a cost, as instant coffee is often made with cheaper ingredients like sugar or artificial flavorings.

The first cup of coffee in Indonesia was brewed from a blend of Semenanjung and Sumatra beans. This story is the first piece of evidence to suggest that Java coffee was not originally one specific variety or region, but rather an amalgamation of them. Today, the coffee industry in Indonesia is experiencing a boom. The country has already become one of the world's most important coffee producers and exporters with its $5 billion turnover in 2015.

This is not surprising considering that Indonesia's climate and its long-standing coffee culture provide a perfect environment for producing high-quality beans. Therefore, it is no wonder that coffee production has been on the rise in recent years, with exports reaching more than $6 billion in 2016. The Indonesian government has been promoting this trend by investing heavily in agricultural research and development to make sure that the country will stay ahead of international competitors.