Mandheling is the finest growing region in Sumatra, which itself is the second largest of the 13,500+ islands that comprise the Republic of Indonesia. Many of the islands of Indonesia were formed by volcanoes and are, therefore, mountainous and have rich soil that is ideal for growing coffee. It is, therefore, no wonder that some of the worlds most famous coffees are grown on the islands of the Malay Archipelago of Indonesia: Sumatra, Sulawesi, and Java.

Sumatra is a relatively rare, though famous, coffee that is considered by connoisseurs to be one of the worlds finest. The natural drying method used in its production results in a very full body with a concentrated flavor, garnished with herbal nuances and a spicy finish. The coffee has a low acidity and a richness that lingers on the back corners on your tongue. Notes of chocolate are evident in the finish. Mandheling is grown on the lofty volcanic slopes of Mount Leuser near the port of Padang in the Balak region of west-central Sumatra, at altitudes of 2,500 to 5,000 feet. It is ideal for cultivating one of the world's finest gourmet coffees. Approximately 15% of all the coffee grown in Indonesia is Arabica – like the Sumatra Mandheling coffee bean – which meets the standards of gourmet quality coffee. The other 85% is the Robusta species, a commonly used coffee for commercial blending.

Interestingly, coffee trees were originally brought to Indonesia in the early 19th century by Dutch planters who sought to break the world-wide Arabic monopoly on the cultivation of coffee. Within a few years, Indonesian coffee dominated the world's coffee market. Yet by the end of the century disease completely destroyed the crop. Coffee trees were successfully replanted and quickly gained a large share of the world market until the plantations were ravaged again during World War II. Mandailing, spelled here "correctly," is technically an ethnic group in Indonesia, not a region, as is Batak.

The coffee is called Mandheling from tradition, based on a perhaps mythical encounter between occupying Japanese soldiers and Mandailing coffee shop owners. When asking what the excellent coffee the were being served was, the owner misunderstood and thought they were asking what HE was. His reply was, of course "Mandailing". Later a former Japanese soldier contacted a businessperson in Sumatra after the war, and asked if the excellent coffee "Mandheling" was commercially available. The broker was the famed Pwani, and they shipped 15 tons of coffee to Japan that year.