BY TREMOR CHRIST

Sadly best known the world over for the devastating Tsunami on Dec 26th 2004, Banda Aceh lost a large percentage of its population, along with thousands of buildings. Twenty long years have passed since that fateful day, and the people have bandied together to rebuild and reinvigorate a part of the world almost literally washed off the face of the planet.

Little known to many is that Sumatra is home to a few different coffee varieties, and one is Aceh Gayo. A bean grown in the highlands about 8 hour drive from Banda Aceh, yet roasted and sold in small cafes the city over. You can barely walk 100 meters without seeing a coffee shop in these parts, the local being that obsessed with caffeine. The issue for visitors will be filtering out the local robusta spots from the specialty arabica places which tend to be a bit outside the downtown.

As usual The Mouth sent Tremor Christ, our coffee addicted vagabond, to test the waters and write a report for the intrepid soul who happens to land in these parts with a thirst for the shakes.

Below are the places that served the best coffee, offered micro-roasted beans, used V60 methods and also a dark roast espresso shop for good measure, since that's the way most of the locals like their coffee.

GAYO BEST

Run by the inimitible Nick, an American who has lived in Aceh for almost 15 years, this small roaster/coffee shop serves Gayo coffee, plus handpicks and champions beans from micro-roasters in Sumatra and Indonesia. They do both pour-over and espresso and Nick is a veritable encyclopedia of knowledge of the local coffee scene.

MANYOGOT.MA

Located at a smaller open container style spot, plus a residential house set-up a few blocks away, these cats know their coffee and they have some light roasts to offer a discerning drinker with a lust for pour-over.

KOPIKAR

More pour-over magic can be found at Kopikar tho their beans tend to delve into Light/Medium territory, they do have a few rotating local beans on offer so you can justify return visits to get through the whole list.

BERTAUT SPACE

Even the Grab driver didn't know where this coffee shop was, but in the end we found it. Located in a high ceilinged house with a small roastery adjacent, the baristas here have a ton of beans to tempt you with and even ask you which dripper you prefer your coffee brewed in.

Aceh Gayo pour-overs can be tasted here, and it's the coffee shop closest to most of the downtown attractions. Quiet, hidden in a small alleyway, the coffee here is good but wasn't the best we tasted in Banda Aceh.

Still worth hitting if you are a pilgrim, like us.

KUTA ALAM

Darker roast fiends can find their salvation here, wrapped in the chocolately/ caramel embrace of tar coloured beans. Wildly popular with the locals who love their coffee laden with milk and sugar, the espresso is actually a decent nod to the classic Italian counter-bar drink, and the local beans give it a different vibe than what most Asian countries serve.