Enjoying Life While Overloading on Caffeine at A Coffee & Tea Plantation on Bali

While visiting a temple on the island of Bali, I was approached by a man in the parking lot. At first, I was a bit defensive, as most of the time when strangers approach me while traveling they want something from me. In this particular case, I was in a very relaxed state of mind and it being daytime I felt there was no danger worth worrying about. The man went on to tell me about a coffee and tea plantation nearby that was offering free samples and snacks. He said that he had used to work at the temple and it was a place he would frequently visit due to the hospitality and high quality of the products made there.

I happened to be on my way to find lunch and had no other big plans for the afternoon, so I decided that I would take a chance and visit this plantation. It was only a few minutes up the road, so I figured it was worth taking a look.

Upon arriving at the parking lot, I was greeted by a young man who claimed it was his family that owned the plantation, and he proceeded to take us onto the grounds. He was almost a bit too helpful, showing us all of the different plants and animals that they raised there. I figured there must be some catch. He showed us these cool little animals that looked very similar to weasels but had a name I did not recognize. They were very cute, and extra sleepy as they are normally just active at night. He explained how one of their most famous coffees uses beans that are eaten and pooped out of this animal before being processed. This reminded me of the strong weasel coffee I was used to seeing sold in Vietnam.

Before long, we were meeting his grandmother, who was busy roasting coffee beans in an outdoor furnace. She had a big genuine smile, and she told us she typically drinks six coffees in a single day. Considering the vitality of the old lady in her movements and mannerisms, the six coffees a day seemed to fit.

After walking through to the back portion of the plantation, we came to a clearing with about a dozen or so tables, each with a small group of fellow travelers tasting the different coffees and teas. At this point, I felt relaxed and was ready to try the various teas and coffees they had prepared for us. As I had not yet eaten I knew that I was playing a dangerous game if I drank all of the caffeinated delights laid before me. That being said, each cup looked more delicious than the rest, and I decided to dive in.

I started tasting the teas one at a time, and to my delight, they were exactly as delicious as they looked. As I went down the line sipping each tea my body became more and more jittery, but I couldn’t bring myself to stop until I tried them all. With each sip, I would read the paper that listed the health benefits of each tea, thinking about how the caffeine overload would be worth it for the other nutritional value I was getting.

The lemon tea was tasty, and also apparently was cleaning out toxins, great! The mangosteen tea was delicious …and could prevent cancer, even better! Tumeric tea had a bit of a bite, but seeing as St. Patrick’s Day had just passed, my liver could use a boost. I had never heard of the rosella flower before, but it had a sweet pleasant taste and was apparently just what my achy joints needed after weeks of walking around in cheap flip-flops. The pandanus tea was interesting and sweet on its own, and I later learned was the only one without any of their local honey added. The lemongrass was also a top choice of mine, and apparently also cures insomnia, which I think is a claim that might be tested later after this massive caffeine overload I was sipping my way into.

When I made it to the coffees, I was already nearly jittering my way off the bench, but I tried them all just to be polite. They were pretty good, but admittedly I would choose the Vietnamese coffee I normally drink at home over any of them.

Overall, I would say this was a great little spontaneous stop during my trip to Bali, and an informative one at that. Next time I have mangosteen I will think about saving the meat around the skins to make the tea, which is something I never knew you could do. We got some rosella tea for a relative of ours with high blood pressure and joint pain. I also plan to make some turmeric tea next time I visit my more heavy-drinking family members.

I hope you enjoyed reading my post. All photos were taken by myself.