Farm Info

Producer: Various smallholder farmers
Region: Keffa

Background Information

This exceptional fully washed coffee was grown by smallholder farmers living around the Kebele (town) of Bonga in Keffa Zone, SNNPR Region. The coffee is collected from farmers by Home Land Organic Coffee Agro Industry PLC, who processes the coffee, before being sold to Primrose S.P PLC via the Ethiopian Coffee Exchange (ECX). In this case, our partner in the region Primrose, are responsible for dry milling and exporting the final product. The Zone of Keffa is deeply tied to the history of coffee.

Named after the former ‘Kingdom of Kaffa’ (located in the same region), Keffa is thought to be the original birthplace of all Arabica coffee produced around the world today. This is highlighted in the etymology of the word, as ‘Kaffa’ is thought to be from the Arabic word ‘qahwah’, meaning "a drink from berries". The English word "coffee", is also believed to be derived from the same root.

At first glance, Keffa’s hills look thickly forested - but in fact, it is a heavily populated region and the hills are dotted with many dwellings and villages’. This is in part due to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s 2004 voluntary resettlement programme. The project saw around 7800 families moved from overpopulated areas to less populated Woreda’s, such as Gimbo, Keffa. Around 85 per cent of Ethiopians still live rurally and make a living from agriculture; each family usually lives in a modest home (often a single round mud hut) and farms their own plot of land, where they grow both cash crops and food for their own consumption.

In Keffa, coffee is one of the main cash crops, often known as ‘garden coffee’ – covering from half a hectare to 1.5 hectares (the latter is considered big). This is usually planted alongside a second cash crop – often a large-leafed tree used in making roofs for (and also shade provider for the coffee) known as 'false banana' (Enset). This looks like a banana tree but isn't - instead its thick stem is used to produce both a nutritious flour and a fermented paste that are staple ingredients (particularly across southern Ethiopia).

Other subsistence crops planted include; sweet potato, papaya and avocado. Income from coffee is important but minimal for most farmers due to the small size of their farms. As such, inputs are minimal – most coffee grown in the region is 100% organic, though not certified, as farmers simply don’t have the money to apply chemical fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides. Primrose ensures that there are agricultural officers who work closely with each farmer to ensure the fertility of the farmland. In fact, soon the wet mill and surrounding farmers will also be RFA and UTZ certified.

Keffa Bonga

Founded in 2015 by Luke Underdown (pictured centre), Garage Coffee is a speciality coffee roasters based in the beautiful village of Hoath, just outside of Canterbury, Kent. Owner & Founder Luke identified a gap in the market to bring great coffee to the people of Kent, and started of trading at local markets and events to build the Garage brand. By 2016, Garage Coffee had gained a significant following and started to supply some wonderful hospitality businesses across the county.

In 2017, Garage Coffee opened it's flagship shop and training room in the heart of Canterbury, just off the high street and now has a small team making great coffee and sharing the same vision!

We roast in small 3kg batches for optimum quality, and only roast speciality grade coffees which are always fully traceable and fairly traded. Since launching, we have been building relationships with farmers, and sourcing coffee from the same farms season after season, with plans to make trips to these farmers in the near future!

And finally, why Garage Coffee?  Well, we are not actually based in a garage. But that's where it all started! Our roastery is situated on a campsite in Hoath and Luke had plans to convert a garage on site into a wonderful roasting labrynth - however it was just a little too close to the campers! So, he decided to source a shipping container and convert into a roastery! As 'Shipping Container Coffee' didn't quite have the same ring - he decided to stick with 'Garage Coffee', and 

Garage Coffee

Farm Info
Producer: Dung K'No collaborative groups
Region: Lam Dong province, Central Highlands
Varietal: Catimor

Background Information

These very special coffees come from smallholder Arabica producers living within the Central Highlands of Vietnam, known as the K’No people. Characterised by their local language, the K’No people are one of many ethnic minorities in Vietnam. Coffee was introduced to Vietnam in the 1800s and was grown on many French-owned colonial plantations.

Nonetheless, due to a variety of political and economic factors (including the civil/cold war and subsequent Communist prohibitions on private land ownership), Vietnam was slow to achieve any real relevance as a coffee-producing nation. As of 1990, Vietnam was responsible for a tiny 1% of world coffee trade. This had all changed by 1990, by which point Vietnam had reached its current place as the second-highest producing coffee country in the world (after Brazil) – a result of heavy investment in coffee production made possible by the liberalisation of land ownership under Đoi moi reforms in the mid-1980s and World Bank/IMF policy recommendations, incentivising farmers to produce coffee for export.

The country’s story of rapid growth, however, left little room for high-quality coffee. Some 95-97% of the country’s production is Robusta, and although Arabica coffee production has been increasing in recent years due to the expansion in the growing area and yield improvement, it still accounts for very little of the overall coffee production in Vietnam. Coffee production in Vietnam is concentrated in the Central Highlands (80%), and the small portion of Arabica grown in the country hails almost entirely from the Lam Dong province, where the K’No people are located.

Dung K’No, home to the K’No people, is a commune of around 500 households, for whom the main source of income is agriculture. Some residents may also have a secondary job e.g. working for the public sector, but will likely still produce some crops to provide food and an extra income. For many families, coffee farming is the only source of cash earnings. Other crops may include rice, maize vegetables and fruit trees such as bananas and peaches; however, these are mainly reserved for personal consumption. Similarly, small scale farming of pigs, chicken and cattle are kept to provide sustenance.

Producers in this region started growing coffee around 20 years ago, farming on very small plots (less than 2 hectares) and learning ‘on their feet’ year after year. Few, if any, had received any formal training, until in 2017, our partner in the region, who represents and provides support for several hundred small-scale Arabica producers throughout the Lam Dong province, began working with the producers of Dung K'No. Dung K'No was selected by our partner as the region had good potential for quality production. The engagement started with meetings, interviews & training to better understand producers concerns and needs.

From these discussions, a successful purchasing model was developed. In contrast to how much purchasing in the region is conducted whereby collectors go from village to village, our partner based their model on building ‘farmer collaborative groups’; buying coffee cherry directly from the villagers. This meant that staff members were on the ground daily during the harvest season to gather freshly collected cherries. Each lot submitted was checked individually with farmers (providing lots of feedback), and cash was paid directly upon delivery.

This method has ensured a large impact on quality, in turn improving the income and livelihoods of farmers. As well as purchasing, our partner has begun to help combat several challenges in reducing risk and increasing productivity for the Dung K'No people. New pests and diseases occur easily and determining the exact cause of these issues is often made difficult as there are likely several causing factors, e.g. under-fertilizing, the age of plantations etc. Under-fed and old coffee trees have less resistance to opportunist diseases and insects, therefore farmers have often faced dramatic production losses. The lack of knowledge or money for inputs only exacerbates these issues, as very few farmers have access to herbicides or pesticides and have not been given access to organic methodologies. To combat these issues, regular training on topics such as safety and good agricultural practices are provided. This helps to raise awareness of coffee farming’s impact and improvement. As most trees are quite old and resources are historically very constrained, much of the training provided is on the correct application of fertilisers. Most farms are under fertilised, and in the few cases where applications are made, there is a frequent imbalance of nutrients. This has meant fertilisation is one of the main challenges in the region.

Working with the same farmers has meant our partner can provide access to fertilisers and advice on distribution and application, ensuring optimisation of production costs and good agricultural practices. This has led to a fertilizer delivery service model to be established, aiming to incentivise the use of appropriate products and doses.

This is complemented by the providing of equipment for spraying when necessary. To combat ageing plantations, education regarding rejuvenating trees progressively by using shoots from old healthy trees for grafting is being taught. This method means that coffee trees are stumped at 20 to 25 cm using an angled cut (to avoid damage to the root). Several months after pruning, farmers in the program select the healthiest of the emerging shoots, pruning the remainder away from the plant. After this step, a strong Arabica shoot is selected to graft onto the established root (see ‘Top graft’ & ‘Insertion of graft’ below): farmers select only shoots/scion from their strongest, healthiest trees. The graft is then secured. This form of renovation by grafting onto strong, established rootstock helps the plants to achieve resistance to soil borne diseases and increases tolerances to stresses. It also can increase yields per plant. The main variety of Arabica grown in the region is Catimor, although wild single yellow bourbon and mocha trees are also likely found in producer’s lots. Catimor was originally chosen for its adaptation to local climate & altitude, as well as its resistance to coffee leaf rust and coffee berry diseases.

More recently, however, the Vietnamese government has started to recommend locally selected alternatives to Catimor, unknown to the global market. This could mean exciting new coffee varieties for the specialty coffee market in the future. Farmers in the region are accustomed to pulping and sun-drying their own parchment. Drawbacks to this system, in addition to the labour required, are that the infrastructure is highly variable and often quite rustic.

Furthermore, the weather in the region is highly unpredictable due to the mountains’ influence, and showers can rapidly deteriorate the drying product, resulting in mouldy and fermented coffee. In order to preserve the improved quality resulting from careful cultivation and harvesting, this coffee is centrally processed at our partner’s wet mill, where processing is managed with a scrupulous eye to detail and quality control. Once the cherry has been hand-picked, it is taken to the nearest individual collection point. Rather than relying on assigned collectors, our partner has established collection points for cherry, which helps ensure a higher quality end product.

Here, each bag undergoes stringent quality control, separating out; % ripe cherries, % damaged cherries, exclusion of old lots and any of unfit quality. After individual sacks have been checked for quality, Lots are defined by day of collection. Within those lots, the quantity & quality of cherry is recorded for each producer. This means that at the end of the harvest, our partner knows the exact volume and average quality sold by each farmer and is able to pay them accordingly. Farmers that deliver the higher quality cherry will be paid a premium for their hard work. At the end of each day, the harvest is transported by truck from Dung K'No to Duc Trong wet mill (~90 km away). Cherries are unloaded into a water tank and are then delivered to a flotation tank to eliminate ‘floaters’ (empty cherries or insect-eaten cherries).

There is no fermentation of coffee cherry at Duc Trong wet mill, as beans are immediately taken to the mill’s Penagos processing line; an eco-friendly de-pulper known for its reduced water consumption. After the coffee is eco pulped, it is run through a demucilager, before being delivered to raised beds next to the mill for sun-drying. Depending on the weather, drying can last from 4 to 10 days.

In some instances of unfavourable drying conditions, partially dried coffee will be moved to their mechanical dryer to finish the process. After processing, all coffee is cupped according to strict protocols, and lots are separated according to cup profiles with only the best profiles making it into the program’s speciality lots. In addition to quality improvements, our partners provide social benefits. A nursery school for local children has been built, so that parents have time to adequately manage their coffee farms. The program has also developed an educational course designed to keep young people in coffee, as well as gender awareness initiatives which improve women’s capacity to contribute to farming and business decisions within their families.

Environmental stewardship is an increasing concern in the region. Dung K’No commune is close to Lang Biang biosphere, where conservation strategy is being defined by a governmental board to plan for monitoring, controlling and valuing the region. Forest boundaries are measured by sky-monitoring, and bordering zones are defined for close surveillance or action. Forest rangers are assigned to different zones and more global policies are discussed at the provincial level.

To complement these activities, our partner’s sustainable management team (SMS) leads sustainable certification training and verifications (CAFÉ Practice, 4C, RFA), as well as more general training on Good Agricultural Practices for farmers to improve cost-effectiveness (inputs, shade trees), coffee quality and limit environmental impact. For a future sustainable coffee production, SMS is working on model farms to promote agroforestry and optimized/safe use of NPK compounds. Training in agrochemical use is also a priority in a region where those products are not well-known. Awareness regarding deforestation will be in line with the local conservation strategy, as well.

Dung K'No

Farm Info
Producer: Coopelibertad
Region: Central Valley & Tarrazú
Varietal: Caturra, Catuaí, Obatã 

Background Information

Founded in 1961, the formation of Coopelibertad is well-known as one of the most significant moments for cooperatives in Costa Rica. Since its inception almost 60 years ago, the cooperative has continued to work to benefit its members; improving both their financial and social conditions through the cultivation of coffee.

In the Province of Heredia at the beginning of the 1960s, the only companies who owned any significant capital in the coffee industry were large private companies and wealthy family enterprises. Small farmers had no access to technical assistance or financing and were severely disadvantaged when it came to marketing their coffee. In the rare cases where a loan was offered, it came accompanied by asphyxiating interest. In this environment, many farmers were regularly confronted with the loss of property and their one source of income, even when experiencing the smallest bout of bad luck. The life of a small coffee farmer was precarious.

There was an urgent need to find a solution. Many in the region began to speak of the need to free themselves from a system that was holding back the economic, social and cultural development of small coffee producers and at the same time concentrating wealth in very few hands, widening a very dangerous social gap.

In response to these economic circumstances, the National Bank of Costa Rica established the Department of Cooperatives, whose objective was to encourage the creation of well-founded organisations, composed of small and mid-sized farmers in solidarity with a philosophy of service over immediate profit.

On April 9, 1961, a group of coffee growers from Heredia, operating with the advice of representatives of the National Bank, formed the Central Committee for the Organization of a Coffee Growers Cooperative. The group began with 267 associates. Of course, this new organisation had to be given a name, and in one of the first sessions of the Board of Directors its Vice President, Mr Luis Omar Chavarria proposed:

"This company was born as a protest of the small coffee growers, who in turn saw in the union of their efforts, the opportunity to be free to manage their small businesses as they please and once and for all, not to be ever more subject to the whims of the wealthy, I propose that our Cooperative be named COOPE LIBERTAD RL."

The reasoning implicit in the proposal summarised the feelings of the small coffee growers and their desire to have their own organisation. The name was accepted unanimously.

Today, more than five decades after its formation, Coopelibertad has brought under its umbrella the majority of coffee producers in the Province of Heredia, as well as expanding into neighbouring provinces. Its name, backed by the quality of its product, is recognised by the most important coffee entities in the national and international market. In 2019, Coopelibertad represents approximately 3,500 hectares of cultivated coffee land, mostly farms of small and medium-sized producers, with estates often averaging around 5 hectares or less. The organisation has 540 full-time members and serves a similar number of independent (non-member) producers, all of whom have also selected Coopelibertad as their best option to market their coffee.

Mantilla Fancy, one of the main trade brands for Coopelibertad, takes its name from its source of inspiration; Mantilla, a micro-region located in Escazu, Central Valley. Here, not only will you find fantastic coffee, but also good people to produce it. It is for these reasons that Coopelibertad decided to name one of their most important lots by the same name; highlighting you can expect great coffee from great people.

For this year’s Mantilla Fancy lot, Coopelibertad is collecting and blending the top quality lots from all over Central Valley and parts of Tarrazu. For this to be feasible, Coopelibertad has created new systems of collection known as ‘recibidores’. Reception points have been set up all over the region, allowing Coopelibertad to be closer to the farmlands, encouraging even more producers to deliver their produce. These collection centres are located in the Central Valley provinces of Heredia, Alajuela and Moravia, as well as Corralillo in Tarrazu. All collection centres are located at more than 1,200 meters above sea level.

Mantilla Fancy

Maypole

Farm Info

Producer: Jose Arcadio Rueda
Region: Urrao, Antioquia

Background Information

Born and bought up in Urrao, Anitoquia by coffee producing parents, Jose Arcadio Rueda’s passion for coffee was encouraged from a young age. Today this passion is shared by his wife, Marbeluz, and teenage son, Santiago, both of whom help Sr. Arcadio on the farm. Over the 16 years since buying the plot, they have together built up a plantation of 9,500 trees of Caturra variety (locally known as Caturro Chiroso).

The family’s interest in specialty coffee was ignited five years ago when they won the very first regional coffee contest in which they participated. The success of being recognized as one of the best coffees in Antioquia combined with their desire to continue producing high quality coffee gave them the motivation to continue competing.

Their hard work culminated in 2013, when Finca La Falda placed 7th in the Colombian Cup of Excellence. This was a significant win not just for the Arcadio Rueda family but also for the Department of Antioquia, who is a major player in the coffee
production of the country but had never before ranked in the Cup of Excellence top 10.

Finca La Falda is 10 hectares but only 3 are planted with coffee – the rest is planted with corn, beans and tomatoes, which help the family to supplement their income year-round. As such, the Finca produces only around 55 bags of green coffee a year.

As opposed to most farms in Colombia, Finca La Falda’s main harvest (70%) is in the fly-crop season (February-May); the additional 30% is harvested in October-December. His success at Cup of Excellence has sparked Jose Arcadio's
desire to plant more coffee but it also encouraged him to be experimental. He went through a huge round of replanting in 2012-14 and all of the new seedlings planted were the very mysterious (at the time) Caturra Chiroso.

Never heard of it? Well, that’s not surprising. It is a variety of Caturra originating in Urrao that is rarely seen outside the region. The variety is characterised by an elongated cherry and is known locally for its productivity. Jose was one
of the first farmers in the region to begin planting significant plots of it and commercialising it. The variety is truly exceptional, portraying a spectacular cup, with floral and rhubarb notes. We feel very lucky to get our hands on some, year after year, and are grateful that Jose has also shared seed with producers in the surrounding area.

Despite the high quality of his coffee, Jose does not plan to compete in the Cup of Excellence program again. By participating in the contest once and placing so high, he expresses that he has firmly established the reputation of Finca La Falda and is securing fair and sustainable prices for his coffee. Instead of pursuing more competitions, he will focus on making sure that the quality of his coffee remains high across the board.

Finca la Falda

Farm Info
Producer: Echavarria Family
Region: Antioquia
Varietal: Colombia, Castillo, Bourbon, Typica and Tabi

Background Information

Santa Barbara Estate is composed of 5 sister farms that lie across three neighbouring, geographical regions - Santa Barbara, Fredonia and Amagá. Established in the 1980s, from the beginning Sr. Pedro Echavarria knew that location was crucial. Attracted by diverse microclimates, singular volcanic soils, perfect altitude and a tradition of excellence in coffee production, he established a small farm in the high Andes of Antioquia – Finca San Pascual. By marrying these perfect natural conditions with hard work and efficiency, he quickly grew both the area under cultivation and the farm’s reputation.

In the last five years, Pedro’s son – also Pedro – has become more deeply involved in the workings of the Estate’s farms, taking the already high quality of the coffee to new heights through experimentation in processing and increased monitoring and control of every stage of production. Pedro Jr. and Santa Barbara’s Coffee Director, Leonardo Henao Triana, approach the processing of their coffees with blend of art, industrial rigor and scientific curiosity. Today, in addition to providing a prime location for experimental new plantings of Castillo, Colombia, Bourbon, Typica and Tabi, San Pascual functions as the research lab where all their new processing methods are trialed.

The family always keeps a donkey named ‘Pascual’ on the premises as a sort of ‘mascot’ for the farm.

The wet mill in San Pascual was the location where Santa Barbara’s innovative Cold Fermentation process was developed, and about a year ago Santa Barbara’s Coffee Team began experimenting with processing small lots – specifically from the San Pascual farm, which is the hottest of the Estate’s lots - using the natural method. After being hand harvested and sorted, Santa Barbara dries these coffees for 4-5 days under shade and then finishes the coffee in experimental electric silos at 40 degrees for an additional 2 days, which provide much lower, even temperatures than normal silos and, thus, guarantee a much more homogenous drying process.

The farm’s smaller size and gentle geography lends itself to the space and time demands of such an intensive process, and although the farm currently only has enough beds to produce about 10 bags of green coffee per week, things look promising for the success of the experiment. Santa Barbara hopes to have the facilities in full production by next year and will potentially expand their facilities in the future.

Santa Bárbara Estate employs 60 people all year round, who on average earn 30% above the minimum wage.  Half of these also receive free housing within the farm for themselves and their families. A further 1,200 pickers are hired during the main harvest, comprised mainly of farmers from around the Santa Bárbara Estate who pick coffee to supplement their income. Workers are generally long-term employees and have been with the company for more than 10 years.

The Santa Bárbara Estate also runs an extensive scholarship and financial aid program for worker’s children as well as helping long-standing employees to acquire their own piece of land upon retirement.

San Pascual

Farm Info

Producer: Echavarria Family
Region: Antioquia


Background Information

Santa Barbara Estate is composed of 5 sister farms that lie across three neighbouring, geographical regions - Santa Barbara, Fredonia and Amagá. Established in the 1980s, from the beginning Sr. Pedro Echavarria knew that location was crucial. Attracted by diverse microclimates, singular volcanic soils, perfect altitude and a tradition of excellence in coffee production, he established a small farm in the high Andes of Antioquia. By marrying these perfect natural conditions with hard work and efficiency, he quickly grew both the area under cultivation and the farm’s reputation.

In the last five years, Pedro’s son – also Pedro – has become more deeply involved in the workings of the farm, taking the already high quality of the coffee to new heights through experimentation in processing and increased monitoring and control of every stage of production. Pedro Jr. and Santa Barbara’s Coffee Director, Leonardo Henao Triana, manage their wet mill with a blend of art, industrial rigor and scientific curiosity. They are committed to further developing the Estate’s capacity for the highest quality coffee possible and have even brought their offerings to Medellin, Colombia through their flagship coffee shop, Pergamino.

Santa Barbara began working with Mercanta in 2011. In addition to supplying us with various astounding coffees, Pedro and Leo have developed specifically for Mercanta this ‘La Joyería’ microlot.

La Joyeria truly is ‘the jewel’ of the Estate. These lots are grown at an average altitude of 1700 meters and are 100% Colombia variety. Each lot is composed of two days worth of picking; the coffee picked on the second day is added to the first after 24 hours fermentation and then left to ferment in the tanks for a further 24 hours. In this method of fermentation, the second batch raises the ph level of the fermentation tank, permitting longer fermentation times without the acetic acid produced by bacteria at a lower ph level.

La Joyería is named for and processed at the main mill on the Santa Bárbara farm. The mill can process up to 7,000 bags of coffee; however, La Joyería makes up a very small percentage of this volume. It is also stored and milled separately from the volume production.

Santa Bárbara Estate employs 60 people all year round, who on average earn 30% above the minimum wage.  Half of these also receive free housing within the farm for themselves and their families. A further 1,200 pickers are hired during the main harvest, comprised mainly of farmers from around the Santa Bárbara Estate who pick coffee to supplement their income. Workers are generally long-term employees and have been with the company for more than 10 years.

The Santa Bárbara Estate also runs an extensive scholarship and financial aid program for worker’s children as well as helping long-standing employees to acquire their own piece of land upon retirement.

La Joyería

Farm Info
Producer: Buf Cafe
Region: Huye District of Southern Province
Varietal: 100% Red Bourbon

Background Information

This 100% red bourbon coffee was processed using the natural method at Buf Café’s Nyarusiza, Umurage & Remera washing stations, at 1,743, 1,750 & 1,935 metres above sea level (respectively) in the south of Rwanda.

Buf Café was founded in 2003 by Epiphanie Mukashyaka, a dynamic businesswoman and a source of inspiration to countless other female entrepreneurs in Rwanda’s coffee sector and beyond. Buf is now managed by Epiphanie and her son, Samuel Muhirwa, who is taking an increasingly active role in running and expanding the business. The title ‘Buf’ derives from ‘Bufundu’, the former name of the region in which its washing stations are located.

Epiphanie, who was born in 1959, was widowed during the 1994 genocide - which claimed over 800,000 lives in just 3 months - but chose not to leave her family’s small coffee farm. Instead, she set about rebuilding and developing her business and with it the local community. She started Buf Café in 2003 when she established Remera washing station with a loan from the Rwandan Development Bank and the assistance of the USAID-financed PEARL project.

This transformational programme was aimed at switching the focus in the Rwandan coffee sector from a historic emphasis on quantity to one of quality - and so opening up Rwanda to the far higher-earning specialty coffee market. The programme and its successor, SPREAD, have been invaluable in helping Rwanda’s small-scale coffee farmers to rebuild their production in the wake of the devastating 1994 genocide and the 1990s world coffee crash.

Buf Café now owns three coffee washing stations – Remera, Nyarusiza and Umurage. They are currently building a fourth washing station as well, based on the local need. The company, which was serving less than 500 farmers in 2003, is now procuring coffee cherries from almost 7,000 smallholder farmers in the Southern province of Rwanda, among them, 1,069 are registered members. At Buf’s Nyarusiza washing station in 2014 there was a total of 798,685kg of cherry delivered throughout the season, approximately 5% of which was delivered by trees owned by Epiphane and her family. The remaining quantity of delivered cherry comes from farmers within the community surrounding the washing station.

Buf has very strong links with the local communities that supply it, providing jobs for 116 at Nyarusiza during peak harvest (May - June/July) and 9 permanent positions. A further 127 people are employed at Remera during harvest, with 10 permanent positions. (2014 figures) At the end of each season, Buf will share any surplus profits with both the cooperatives that it works with and its washing station managers.

The majority of the small farmers in the area have an average of only 300 coffee trees (less than a quarter of a hectare) and use some of their land to cultivate other crops such as maize and beans to feed themselves and their families. Most of their income from the sale of coffee is used to take their children to school, pay for medical care and for investment in livestock such as a cow for milk, both for use in the home and for sale locally.

The level of care that all Buf washing stations take over their processing is impressive. Cherries are hand-picked only when fully ripe and go through stringent sorting at all stages of processing.

This lot is particularly rare. Rwanda is not well-known for its naturally processed coffees, as the government’s coffee program (post-1990s turmoil) has typically focused on wet processing as a means of achieving higher quality. As such, washing stations have been dissuaded from using the natural method, due to its traditional association with lower grade coffees. With the rise of specialty coffee, of course, it has become apparent that when undertaken with care and attention, natural processing can result in coffee of astonishing and unique quality. This exceptional lot illustrates the best that natural processing has to offer perfectly. It’s boozy, fruity profile is clean and sweet without a trace of over-ferment. The very high quality can only be attributed to Buf’s staff’s diligent attention to detail.

As at most washing stations in Rwanda, women do the majority of the hand sorting. This takes place in two stages - on the covered pre-drying tables and on the drying tables. Coffee cherries are washed clean and then moved to pre-drying tables under shade cover. Here, the roofs over the tables protect the beans from the direct sunlight. Next, after being pre-dried, the cherries are moved onto the washing station’s extensive drying tables, where they are sorted again for defects, turned regularly and protected from rain and the midday sun by covers, ensuring both even drying and the removal of any damaged or ‘funny looking’ beans. After reaching 11% humidity, the coffee is then stored in a purpose-built warehouse prior to final dry-milling and hand-sorting. Each coffee that arrives is also cupped by the Q-graders of Buf’s exporting partner, Rwashocco.

Lots are first separated by collection point (farmers usually hail from around 3 km distance from each collection point) and are also separated out by days. Upon delivery as cherry, the coffee receives a paper ‘ticket’ that follows the lot through all its processing. This ticket bears the date of harvest, the collection point name, and the grade (A1, A2 etc) of the coffee – for instance, if a coffee lot is called ‘Lot 1- 06/04 - A1’, this means it was the first lot processed on April 4 and the grade is A1. This simple but effective practice is a crucial tool in controlling quality and ensuring the traceability of lots.

Umurage Kigoma

Farm Info
Producer: Iyego Coffee Growers Cooperative Society
Region: Muranga County

Background Information

This AB lot was produced by numerous smallholder farmers, all of whom are members of the Iyego Coffee Growers Cooperative Society (CGCS) delivering to Gitura Coffee Factory (as washing stations/wet mills are called in Kenya). The factory is located near the town of Kangema, in Kenya’s Muranga County.

Situated to the east of Aberdare ranges and South West of Mt. Kenya, Muranga County (formerly part of Kenya's Central Province) was home to the first administrative post (Fort Smith) set up by British missionaries in 1895. The area is inhabited and considered home to the Kikuyu people, Kenya’s largest ethnic group, accounting for nearly a 5th of the total population. Gitura, the name of the factory where this coffee was produced, is a Kikuyu word translating as locality. The land surrounding Muranga County is blessed with deep red volcanic soils, rich in organic matter and perfect for coffee farming.

First formed in 1964, Iyengo CGCS today operates 10 factories in the region. These are Iyego, Mununga, Gatubu, Marimira, Kabiruini, Watuha, Gathima, Kiairathe, Thangathi, Nyakahura and Kirangano (along with Gitura, of course) with a total membership of around 8,000 small scale coffee growers. Gitura factory has nearly 1,150 registered members, making it one of the largest in the Iyengo group. Like many Kenyan coffee factories, only a portion of them actively delivers coffee in any given year. Currently, the mill processes somewhere in the vicinity of 1,500 metric tonnes of coffee cherry annually.

Processing at the Gitura wet mill adheres to stringent quality-driven methods. All coffee cherries are handpicked and are delivered to the mill the same day, where they undergo meticulous sorting. Factory employees oversee the process, making sure that any underripe or damaged cherries will not be accepted by the ‘Cherry Clerk’ – one of the most important harvest-period staff, who keeps meticulous records of how much coffee each producer delivers on any given day (and thus how much payment is due once the coffee has sold). Any rejected coffee will have to be taken home again, and the farmer will need to find a place to dry it (often a tarp in the yard) to be delivered only at the end of the season as low quality ‘Mbuni’ – natural process coffee that earns a very low price. Thus, farmer members are incentivised to only pick and deliver the ripest cherry that they can.

After being weighed and logged, the weight of the delivery and the farmer’s identification is recorded in the Cherry Clerk’s register and the cherries are introduced into the hopper to be pulped. Pulping will only begin when a sufficient quantity of cherries has been received.

Once the coffee has been pulped, beans are fully washed using clean river water to remove all traces of mucilage, during which time it will be graded. After this, water used for processing is taken to one Gitura’s 6 soak pits. These pits were created as part of the factory’s environmental conservation project, which allows the water to soak back into the ground slowly and safely. Next, the coffee will be delivered to dry on the factory’s raised drying beds. The coffee will dry here slowly over the course of 2 to 3 weeks, during which time it will be turned regularly and covered during the hottest part of the day. Finally, the dried coffee is taken to the dry mill for secondary processing. Here, coffee is hulled and graded by size and density, before being rebadged ready for export.

Some of the issues that farmers face are low production due to pests and diseases and the relatively high cost of inputs compared to income from coffee. Many cannot afford to plant disease-resistant varieties and face being priced out of the market as their yields diminish. The Muranga area is also prone to landslides. In previous years, this has caused untold destruction, sometimes wiping out whole farms and homes.

One of Kenya’s newest but most dangerous threats is that of climate change. Due to the nation’s geographical location in relevance to the equator, Kenya is lucky to receive two crops per year. Traditionally, the main harvest is carried out in October through to December, with the fly crop in June through to August producing minimal quantities. However, recent issues caused by changing climates have meant lower yields during the main harvest, and new quantity being produced in the fly crop. This provides strain to producers, whose yearly income and crop cycles are affected by this change.

Gitura AB

Farm Info
Producer: Arturo Villatoro
Region: Huehuetenango
Varietal: Caturra, bourbon & arabigo

Background Information

Arturo Villatoro’s family has produced coffee for generations. From a young age Arturo watched and worked alongside his grandfather (Pedro), and then his father (Jacinto), on their farm in La Libertad Huehuetenango.

This deep exposure to the full growing process provided Arturo with insight into the art of coffee production, and fuelled the enthusiasm that still drives his desire to produce the ingredients of a fantastic cup today. Having discovered his love for plantations and passion for growing great coffee at an early age, Arturo has since dedicated his life to producing quality beans.

Arturo first acquired his own estate, El Regalito, with his wife and family 20 years ago. The farm lies in Aldea Hoja Blanca; 80km west of Huehuetenango, one of the key coffee-growing regions in Guatemala. Coffee is the only crop grown, with the other 120+ hectares remaining as forest. Arturo sees El Regalito as a blessing and believes that without God’s help he never would have been able to acquire the farm; hence the name El Regalito which translates as ‘The little gift’ in English.

El Regalito is self-sufficient with its own wet mill and mechanical dryer operated by Arturo’s family. Coffee cherries are carefully picked according to quality and then separated by density using a siphon. This allows Arturo to remove any inferior, less dense beans from his harvest. The coffee is then fermented for 36 hours, before being washed and prepared for drying. The mechanical dryer allows Arturo to increase his output, with the first harvest between January and February being dried by the sun on patios, and the late harvest dried using the mechanical dryer.

Arturo takes great care of his farm and carries out regular maintenance. The trees he planted 20 years ago when he first arrived still stand today, with new crops planted in five-year intervals as the farm’s output expands. Other than general upkeep, when asked what plans Arturo had for the future of El Regalito, he simply replied that he is happy and content with what he has, and envisages no major changes in the near term.

Regalito Decaf

Roast Level: Medium
Process: Fully washed 
Varietal: 100% Red Bourbon
Roaster's Notes: Roasted specifically for espresso, this bright, bold coffee comes from a favourite producer of ours, Buf Cafe. This coffee cuts beautifully through milk with rich raspberry, cranberry tones and a caramel finish.

Farm Info

Producer: Buf Cafe
Region: Kamegeri Sector
Altitude: 1,700 - 1,900 metres

Background Information

This 100% red bourbon coffee was processed at Buf Café’s Nyarusiza washing station, at 1,743 metres above sea level in the south of Rwanda.

Buf Café was founded in 2003 by Epiphanie Mukashyaka, a dynamic businesswoman and a source of inspiration to countless other female entrepreneurs in Rwanda’s coffee sector and beyond. Buf is now managed by Epiphanie and her son, Samuel Muhirwa, who is taking an increasingly active role in running and expanding the business. The title ‘Buf’ derives from ‘Bufundu’, the former name of the region in which its washing stations are located.

Epiphanie, who was born in 1959, was widowed during the 1994 genocide - which claimed over 800,000 lives in just 3 months - but chose not to leave her family’s small coffee farm. Instead she set about rebuilding and developing her business and with it the local community. She started Buf Café in 2003, when she established Remera washing station with a loan from the Rwandan Development Bank and the assistance of the USAID-financed PEARL project.

This transformational programme was aimed at switching the focus in the Rwandan coffee sector from an historic emphasis on quantity to one of quality - and so opening up Rwanda to the far higher-earning specialty coffee market. The programme and its successor, SPREAD, have been invaluable in helping Rwanda’s small-scale coffee farmers to rebuild their production in the wake of the devastating 1994 genocide and the 1990s world coffee crash.

Buf Café now owns three coffee washing stations - Remera, Umurage and Nyarusiza - as well as its own coffee trees, and buys coffee cherries from as many as 264 surrounding smallholder farmers, as well as three different local cooperatives! At Buf’s Nyarusiza washing station in 2014 there was a total of 798,685kg of cherry delivered throughout the season, approximately 5% of which was delivered by trees owned by Epiphane and her family. The remaining quantity of delivered cherry comes from farmers within the community surrounding the washing station.

Buf has very strong links with the local communities that supply it, providing jobs for 116 at Nyarusiza during peak harvest (May - June/July) and 9 permanent positions. A further 127 people are employed at Remera during harvest, with 10 permanent positions. (2014 figures) At the end of each season Buf will share any surplus profits with both the cooperatives that it works with and its washing station managers.

The majority of the small farmers in the area have an average of only 300 coffee trees (less than a quarter of a hectare) and use some of their land to cultivate other crops such as maize and beans to feed themselves and their families. Most of their income from the sale of coffee is used to take their children to school, pay for medical care and for investment in livestock such as a cow for milk, both for use in the home and for sale locally.

The level of care that all Buf washing stations take over their processing is impressive. Cherries are hand-picked only when fully ripe and then pulped that same evening using a mechanical pulper that divides the beans into three grades by weight.

After pulping, the coffee is fermented overnight (for around 12-18 hours) and then graded again using flotation channels that sort the coffee by weight (the heaviest – or A1 – usually being the best). The wet parchment is then soaked in water for around 24 hours to stabilise moisture content.

As at most washing stations in Rwanda, women do the majority of the hand sorting. This takes place in two stages - on the covered pre-drying tables and on the drying tables. Washed beans are moved from the wet fermentation tanks onto the pre-drying tables, where they are intensively sorted under shade for around six hours. The idea is that greens (unripes) are still visible when the beans are damp, while the roofs over the tables protect the beans from the direct sunlight. Next, the beans are moved onto the washing station’s extensive drying tables for around 14 days (depending on the weather), where they are sorted again for defects, turned regularly and protected from rain and the midday sun by covers, ensuring both even drying and the removal of any damaged or ‘funny looking’ beans. After reaching 11% humidity, the coffee is then stored in parchment in Sovu’s purpose-built warehouse prior to final dry-milling and hand-sorting at the Cooperative’s brand new dry mill in Kigali. Each coffee that arrives is also cupped by the Q-graders of Maraba’s exporting partner, Rwashocco.

Lots are first separated by collection point (farmers usually hail from around 3 km distance from each collection point) and are also separated out by days. Upon delivery as cherry, the coffee receives a paper ‘ticket’ that follows the lot through all its processing. This ticket bears the date of harvest, the collection point name, and the grade (A1, A2 etc) of the coffee – for instance, if a coffee lot is called ‘Lot 1- 06/04 - A1’, this means it was the first lot processed on April 4 and the grade is A1. This simple but effective practice is a crucial tool in controlling quality and ensuring the traceability of lots.

Nyarusiza Espresso, Rwanda

Roaster's Notes: This tasty crop from Tanzania has some lovely, classic sweet notes typical of this origin. With a good depth of flavour, expect nutty undertones with a blackberry brightness cutting through.

Farm Info
Producer: Mr Grivas D Mwangoka
Region: Songwe
Background Information

GDM Farm is named after its owner, Mr Grivas D Mwangoka; a local entrepreneur from the Mbozi district. Since the turn of the millennium, Mr Mwangoka has focused heavily on expanding his farm; adding over 19,000 new trees.

Born and raised in the village of Ndolezi, local entrepreneur Mr Grivas D Mwangoka has been working hard to expand his farm; improving the quality of coffee produced. Since the year 2000, GDM farm has grown by more than 19,000 trees, now totalling 81,000. In addition to coffee, GDM Farm is home to a selection of livestock, several shops, as well as housing the estates own dry mill; used by farms in the surrounding area. In the region, many grow maize, wheat and sorghum; amongst other cash crops. As well as providing a second source of income, produce such as maize provides useful by-products like mulch and later compost for the coffee trees; locking in moisture on the high sloped contour farms. Similarly, the primary fertiliser for many farms in the region is manure, mixed with small amounts of NPK (known as Yara Java).

GDM Farm provides work to roughly 70 people in the low season and some 300 in the harvesting season. Workers and pickers come from the surrounding villages, offering income and opportunity to men and women both skilled and unskilled. The majority of the staff is hired for seasonal labour – particularly during the harvest but also for pruning and other seasonal activities. Pruning is primarily conducted after the harvest season, to remove weak or unhealthy branches. When a coffee tree is no longer producing its desired quota, the tree will be cut right back and stumped; focusing on one side to allow new shoots to grow from the other. Primary varieties include Bourbon, Kent and Compact, with coffee seedlings and seeds distributed and recommended by TaCRI (Tanzania Coffee Research Institute).

When it is time to harvest, Coffee cherry is selectively handpicked over two passes; only picking the reddest cherries on the tree. To cover the 6 kilometres to the Central Processing Unit (CPU), Mr Mwangoka used a 3 MT truck to kart coffee from the field to the wet mill. Once the cherry has been delivered, the process begins by separating any under/ overripe cherry, along with any foreign matter such as sticks or gravel. Next, the cherry is soaked in water to clean off any dirt or unwanted residue. The cherry is then pulped using a Pengagose Eco Pulper to remove the outer layer of fruit, as well as the coffee mucilage; meaning no fermentation. Once pulping is complete, beans are washed and sorted using cool clean water via the washing channels; before being transferred onto raised beds to dry. Beans are spread across the raised beds and turned regularly for an even dry. The process of drying will typically take anywhere between 12 to 20 days; with beans only removed once the moisture content has reached 11.5% or lower.

One of the primary challenges facing GDM is the high cost of inputs needed to farm the land, making the cost of production expensive. Combined with the low market price for coffee, coffee farming in the region is becoming unprofitable. Besides the difficulties relating to the cost of farming, the farm is also facing a new battle; brought on by climate change. With inadequate rains and longer dry days, reducing yield is now exacerbating existing challenges facing the farm and the wider community. To combat this, Mr Mwangoka has plans in place to establish a new irrigation system, to collect rainwater and reuse during droughts. With this, GDM Farm will also be able to increase their output; meaning in time, Mr Mwangoka plans to improve the CPU, as well as his quality production system (coffee quality and traceability). Although looking to expand, 40% of GDM remains under conservation. Mr Mwangoka also plays an important role in the community; supporting local schools close to the farm, providing lunch and books for students.

GDM, Tanzania

Roaster's Notes: We’re very excited to get in our first coffee from China, with this very interesting lot from the Yunnan region. Expect cherry bakewell vibes, with a darker treacle sweetness.

Farm Info
Producer: Yunnan Coffee Traders
Region: Yunnan

Background Information

Banka farm and washing station is based in Menglian Dai, Lahu and Va Autonomous County, Yunnan and is named after the two nearby villages (Banka Yi and Banka Er) where the coffee cherry for these lots is grown and harvested. Cherry processed at Banka washing station is also grown at the nearby village of Aqi Badu as well as within the farm itself.

The harvesters who bring cherries to Banka washing station are predominantly Lahu – an ethnic group that lives across China, Myanmar, Laos and Thailand. Banka farm and washing station was originally developed by Mr. Hu, a native of Yunnan, who has been producing coffee in Menglian for almost 20 years. He was one of the first farmers to engage in large scale coffee production in the County, working in partnership with Nestle and the local government. Mr. Hu is held in high esteem within the local area, employing hundreds of harvesters from various ethnic groups across his farms each year.

In 2018, Yunnan Coffee Traders (YCT) took over the management of the Banka wet mill and a portion of the Banka farm, some 100 hectares of land, installing one of the region’s first optical sorters, experimenting with processing methods such as yeast fermentation and growing new varieties such as Pacamara and Yellow Bourbon. Banka farm produces both the company’s volume washed specialty lots, much of which is sold to Australia, as well as natural and honey process micro lots. For this season, YCT employed processing expert Joel Smith, who continues this commitment to innovation and increasing quality. Fresh from completing his Q processing course in Brazil last year, Joel has brought his expertise to oversee improvements at the farm and washing station which is reflected in improvements to the cup quality for both the washed and natural lots.

Banka, China

Roaster's Notes: Our first ever coffee from Myanmar, with some extremely interesting and distinctive qualities. As coffee goes, this is quite a savoury one with fresh basil & pine notes, but with a melon sweetness.

Farm Info
Producer: Ywangan Smallholders
Region: Shan State

Background Information

Our Ywangan coffee comes from Mandalay Coffee Group (MCG) and consists of combined daily lots grown by predominantly Danu and some Pa-O hill-tribe smallholder farmers in the remote mountainous area of Ywangan, Southern Shan state, Myanmar. MCG was formed in 2014 and is owned entirely by citizens of Myanmar. It works with these smallholders, providing support as well as processing the coffee and bringing it to market. The company is based in the town of Pyin Oo Lwin, Mandalay Division.

For this season, MCG worked with over 50 smallholder farmers, each of whom cultivates approximately 0.25-3 acres of land, with coffee plants intercropped with a variety of produce such as avocados, jackfruit, papaya, macadamia and djenkol beans. Coffee varieties include about 80% Red Catuai, 10% S-795 and 10% Costa Rica T8667, Caturra, and San Ramon. The different types of trees act as a buffer to the spread of leaf rust and provide much needed shade, for both the coffee and the families who welcome the shade around their homes. Most of the farmers do not use fertiliser, but there is a big difference in quality and yield from the wealthier farmers that can use manure from their cattle.

Pyin Oo Lwin, Myanmar

Roaster's Notes: Bold, juicy and full of flavour. Exactly what you want from a natural Ethiopian coffee. Like a blueberry jam with a honeysuckle aroma, and dark rum boozy-ness. Delicious!

Farm Info
Producer: Legu Trading
Region: Yirgacheffe

Background Information

This exceptional lot was processed, dry milled and exported by Legu Trading. The coffee was grown by smallholder farmers living around the town of Banco Gotete in Gedeo County, Yirgacheffe region.

Most contributing farmers own less than a hectare of land, and they grow coffee simply as a backyard cash crop. Coffee will usually be interspersed with other subsistence crops, such as sweet potato, mangos and avocados. Varieties of coffee grown are usually interpreted to be ‘heirloom,’ as very little renovation takes place, and farmers simply inherit the trees of their parents. This is why the varieties are referred to as ‘heirloom’ by the industry. Locally, many farmers simply call them ‘Gedeo’ variety.

Income from coffee is important but minimal for most farmers due to the small size of their farms. As such, inputs are minimal – most coffee grown in the region is 100% organic, though not certified, as farmers simply don’t have the money to apply chemical fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides.

Legu trading tries to help with this situation by offering a premium price and by hiring as many individuals as possible in their mills and facilities. The company hires at least 300 people year round and up to 600 in the high season. All workers are paid a fair wage and receive full, 8 hour work days.

Coffee is selectively hand-picked before being delivered to collection points, usually within 10 km of the producers’ homes. Great care is taken upon delivery to separate out any overripe, underripe or damaged beans before consolidating with other lots for the road to the wet mill.

At least once a day, the collected coffee cherry is delivered to the mill, where it is pulped and then delivered to a fermentation tank, where it ferments for 12-18 hours depending on the climate at the time. After fermentation the coffee is fully washed through grading channels and is then delivered to dry on African beds. Once here, the parchment is turned regularly and protected from hot sun until it reaches the optimal humidity, at which point it is bagged and rested.

Varieties of coffee grown here are traditionally referred to as ‘heirloom’ by exporters – a catchall terminology which often masks the wide assortment of varieties that may be present within various regions…even, within farms. Many of these varieties will have been developed by Ethiopia’s Jimma Agricultural Resarch Centre (JARC), which, since the late 1960s, has worked to develop resistant and tasty varieties for the Ethiopian coffee industry and also to provide the agricultural extension training needed to cultivate them. The dual factors of Ethiopian Commodity Exchange (ECX) forced anonymisation of lots (see below) combined with the relatively low awareness of formal variety names outside Ethiopia has meant that the JARC’s work has historically been under-recognised by specialty importers and roasters, but a new book issued by Counter Culture Coffee in the USA (2018/19) has drawn new attention to the topic, and rightly so.

It is important to note that varieties in Ethiopia fall within two main groups – regional or local landraces (of which there are at least 130, 33 of which would hail from the Southern growing regions) or JARC varieties. It is still very hard to tell but it is highly likely that this lot contains a great percentage of JARC 740110 and 74112 varieties, developed in 1974 by the JARC, which are directly descended from local landraces indigenous to the Gedeo Region. Most farmers have a mix of both the improved and the indigenous landrace varieties (inherited from parents and grandparents) on their farms, though research by Counter Culture’s Getu Bekele does show that there is a strong concentration of the JARC ’74 varieties.

Banco Gotete Natural, Ethiopia

Roaster's Notes: This CO2 processed decaf has very tasty milk chocolate notes with a golden syrup sweetness and pear fruitiness. A great example of well rounded Brazilian coffee.

Farm Info
Producer: Ana Cecilia Velloso
Region: Cerrado Mineiro
Background Information

Onze Mil Virgens has been in Ana Cecilia Velloso’s family for four generations. Although she is an architect by training, her relationship with coffee started at birth. Her great-grandfather, Miguel Veloso, was a pioneer in the Carmo do Paranaiba region. When he first established São Luiz Estate (of which Onze Mil Virgens is part) in 1969, the Cerrado Mineiro was agriculturally underdeveloped and there was no coffee to be found. Manoel Veloso dos Reis, Ana’s grandfather, was also a pioneer. He took over from his father, strengthened the family’s legacy, and founded the town’s first agricultural cooperative. He was also the first to implement drip irrigation and to work with pulped naturals in the region.

The family has long been acknowledged for its quality in coffee production, but the reputation didn’t immediately correlate to commercial recognition. Ana’s direct involvement with the farm started in 2013, and since then she and her brother, Lucio Velloso (who has worked on the farm since 1998), have followed in their ancestors’ pioneering footsteps. As fourth-generation farmers, they have had to balance traditional insight with the demands of today’s market. They set their sights on the specialty coffee market, but they realised the high natural quality of their coffee wasn’t going to be enough. Innovation (just as in their great-grandfather’s and grand-father’s days) was going to be the key to success.

The first step in innovation was to develop a business plan! Ana and her brother set about formulating a Development Plan, a Business Model, and a Brand Strategy – a fully modernized business approach. In doing so, they honed their vision and established their purpose. This allowed them to act with more direction and to take further steps towards quality.

The second step in innovation was with regards to technology. The family has always worked based on good agricultural practices looking for an optimal balance of quality, productivity and cost. Farm management is highly professionalised, and waste is eliminated wherever possible. In order to improve systems even further, the family has begun annual quality mapping, so that they know where on the farm the best coffee comes from. This helps them with the planning of post-harvest activities. They have established a field specifically for experimental varieties. They also invite manufacturers to test new agricultural products and machinery with them, so that they can be at the cutting edge of farming. Finally, the implementation of Enterprise Resource Planning software has enabled them to monitor costs and administration, thus maximising efficiency and productivity. Prioritizing innovation in this way is expensive, Ana admits; however, in the long term, it makes the farm financially sustainable.

On Onze Mil Virgens, just as in the rest of the region, harvesting is mostly mechanised. The farm has plots of Yellow and Red Catuaí, Red Catucaí, Yellow Icatú, IPR 100, and Arará. Every lot is separated according to its varietal, and the harvest is planned and executed with preference to maintaining single varietal lots. The priority with every harvest is to undergo a selective mechanical harvest where the maximum ratio of mature coffee is harvested. The team at São Luiz have been thoroughly trained so as to ensure that the ripest cherries are picked and so as to minimise the selection of under-ripe beans. Selective manual harvesting is done in the younger coffee plantations, such as on Lot 33, where this particular lot of Red Catuaí was grown.

Generally, the coffee processing method is defined after the quality mapping analysis that is conducted before harvest. Once the best performing lots are identified, the post-harvest processing is defined. Usually most of the harvested coffee will be delivered to the wet mill to separate immature fruits and floaters from the denser, ripe cherries. The ripe cherries will then undergo the Semi washed (Pulped natural) or Fully washed process. In cases where the vast majority of the harvested cherries are ripe, the coffee will be placed directly onto patios for sun-dried Natural processing.

Coffees coming from Lot 33 this year surprised Ana and her team with the amount of sweet, sticky mucilage that remained after the skin was removed. Due to this observation, the team decided to use a modified honey process, where the mucilage is kept entirely intact, rather than placing the coffee in the demucilager. This particular lot was taken to the patio and spread in a thin layer, one bean thick, for sun-drying. The coffee stayed one week on the patio and was regularly turned so as to prevent over fermentation. After a week, the layer was made thicker so as to slow down moisture loss. When it reached the proper humidity levels, it was taken directly to warehouse, where it was kept in parchment for 60 days. This lot was not finished in mechanical driers.

The final (but perhaps most important) step in Ana’s innovations involves working relationships on the farm. Currently their team consists of 28 members – some of whom have been working on the farm since her grandfather’s time. An additional 40 individuals are brought on during the harvest season. The Farm Manager, Fausto do Espírito Santo Velloso, has a very close relationship with the senior staff. They include his childhood friends and his godson’s parents. On the weekends he meets them to talk, not about work, but about family events. For Ana and her family, this approach doesn’t just make the farm a nice place to work, it is also important for ensuring crop quality. It means that everyone working on the farm is motivated and invested in the farm’s success. They believe in Sao Luiz and what it stands for.

However, it is also true that good relationships don’t happen without work. As such, the farm highly values investing in their workers. They hold regular workshops and training sessions. They pay attention to how their team operates. And they also strive to create personal value and quality of life based on what their staff tell them that they need.

Surely, even knowing all this about such an amazing farm, most people will still wonder ‘Why the name?’ Onze Mil Virgens means ‘Eleven Thousand Virgins’ – a pretty racy name for a coffee farm! What people in the region say is that Onze Mil Virgens previously belonged to a bigger farm in Rio Paranaíba rural area that had around 11,000 acres. It was a ‘Virgen’ forest (Cerrado biome) at the time. When it was divided into many farm lots, the parcels that got separated into Onze Mil Virgens kept the moniker. Slightly less racy but still pretty great.

Onze Mil Decaf, Brazil

Roast Level: Light
Process: Washed
Varietal: SL34 & SL28
Roaster's Notes: It’s always an exciting moment when Kenyan coffee lands, and this lot is an exceptional example of that. Delicate jasmine notes fill the cup, with a cane sugar sweetness and coconut water body.

Farm Info

Producer: 600 smallholder farmers
Region: Gichugu Division

Background Information

The Karani Factory is situated within the Kabare location of the Gichungu Division of the Kirinyaga County. Situated at the foothills of Mt. Kenya, Kirinyaga County is roughly 112 km from Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya, bordering Embu County to the East, Machakos to the South, Murang’a to the Southwest, and Nyeri to the West.

The locals in this area call Mt. Kenya Kirinyaga, the namesake of the county, meaning the crest of whiteness due to the famous snow-capped peaks. The Karani Factory is associated with the Kabare Farmers’ Cooperative Society comprising nine other factories within the area. Mills in Kenya are known as factories. The Karani Factory was built in 1998 when it also opened its doors for processing. Collectively, the 600 members of the Factory grow coffee on 134,000 trees, producing around 455 MT of cherries each year.

Karani AB, Kenya

Roast Level: Light
Process: Washed
Varietal: SL34 & SL28
Roaster's Notes: An absolutely outstanding example of Kenyan coffee. If you like juicy coffee this one is for you, with a blackcurrant body, bright papaya notes and a kiwi acidity.

Farm Info

Producer: Sasini
Region: Kiambu County

Background Information

Situated within the cool Limuru zone, the Kamundu Estate is located in the Central Highlands of Kenya sharing a border with Nakuru and Kajiado to the West, Murang’a and Nyandarua to the North and Nairobi to the South. The Estate was established in 1954 producing roughly 1,600 MT of cherries each year with both UTZ and Rainforest Alliance certifications.

Kiambu is famous for its coffee estates, which were started by British colonists in the early 20th century, now being run by local Kenyans after independence in the 1960s. The coffee is grown throughout the region on healthy deep red volcanic soils high in nutrients and organic matter. This soil is ideal for coffee production and give the trees the necessary resources to allocate energy to high-quality coffee production.

Kamundu AA, Kenya

Roast Level: Medium
Process: Washed
Varietal: Bourbon
Roaster's Notes: This tasty Guatemalan is a chocolate-y delight, with sweet nectarine notes and an orange peel finish. An excellent single estate coffee from an innovative farmer!

Farm Info

Producer: Victor Calderon
Region: Palencia

Background Information

Victor Calderon represents the 5th generation of coffee farmers from a family that has been in coffee for more than 100 years; El Tambor, however, is a relatively new addition to the rich mosaic of farms dotting this region of Guatemala, just outside of Guatemala City.

Founded as a cattle farm in the 1930s, El Tambor’s previous owner had converted the farm’s steepest, highest slopes to coffee during the 1960s. However, as price volatility worsened during the late 1980s and early 1990s, he ceased to focus on coffee farming and instead granted mineral rights to a mining company, which began speculatively mining in various locations within the farm’s 700 hectares. Throughout the 1990s, the farm was slowly abandoned apart from these exploratory excavations – that is, until Victor took control of the land.


Victor bought the farm at the beginning of 2001 with the aim of moving out of Robusta cultivation (in which his family had previously specialised) and into Arabica. The bottom was falling out of the Robusta market at the time, and while Arabica wasn’t particularly stable either, he had a dream of finding a farm that lay at 1,500 metres or above so that he could specialise in high-quality, speciality Arabica production. He was so committed to this vision that he sold his house and car in exchange for El Tambor, and upon signing the documents immediately set about renovating the coffee plots, expanding areas under coffee and improving the farm’s
small wet mill.

However, Victor is a true iconoclast when it comes to coffee farming and refuses to accept conventional wisdom or accepted practices in farming. Nowhere is this more apparent than his approach to controlling coffee leaf rust on his farm.

When coffee leaf rust became truly apparent on El Tambor, Victor was concerned about using the chemically based fungicides widely recommended in Guatemala. Realising that fungi favour acidic environments, he had tried several alkaline solutions to apply the plants – everything from lemonade to orange juice – looking for one that worked. In his research, he read that clay – particularly from volcanic regions – is very alkaline, and his thoughts returned to El Tambor’s brief mining history.

Although very little was gained from the mines, they did leave a lot of clay – white clay with a high benzonite content. Victor suspected that this clay may provide just the solution that he was looking for. After much experimentation, Victor
came to a unique recipe that has enabled him to fight off coffee leaf rust with minimal environmental impact. A solution of water and clay from the old mines is mixed together with a tiny bit of copper-based fungicide and then applied to
the underside of leaves using a normal sprayer. Originally he had applied the solution on the tops of the leaves, but then realizing that the plants respire from under their leaves (and that is also where the fungus takes hold) he requested that workers apply the solution under the leaf. Suddenly, he observed that within 3 days the fungus had died on every plant to which the solution had been applied. He attributes this not just to the alkaline solution but also to the endothermic properties of the clay, which helps regulate temperatures and helps the plants fight off future infections. Even better, this method is ecologically friendly and poses no threat to workers’ health. It can even be applied without protective clothing.

Finca El Tambor, Guatemala

Roast Level: Medium
Varietal: Caturra & Colombia
Roaster's Notes: We love Colombian coffee at GC, and this is a classic. Milk chocolate and raisin notes fill the cup, with a shortbread mouthfeel, cut with a crisp acidity.

Farm Info

Producer: Aprocoagrosh
Region: Huila

Background Information

Whilst Huila is naturally blessed with optimal coffee growing geography, the key to great quality coffees from the La Plata region (such as this lot) are the growers themselves. Coffee farming within the region is overwhelmingly small-scale. Indeed, approximately 80% of producers from the region farm coffee on less than 3 hectares of land. These small farms are tended by individual families with labour only very rarely being contracted out, which leads to more thorough and intensive management practices and great pride in the final product – which is, itself, an extension of the family.

It was only about a year ago that members of the large cooperative to which the producers who contributed to this lot belonged realized that their location and passion for coffee farming gave them a special edge when it came to producing high quality coffee. Seeing some of the quality initiatives and micro-lot separation that forward-thinking cooperatives around Colombia were exploring, a small group of about 20 producers broke off from the larger regional cooperative to establish their own organization – named Aprocoagrosh (quite a mouthful) - in early 2014.

As of March 2015, the organization has grown to around 30 growers (that’s 50% growth in just over a year!) and have established a relationship with exporting partner, Pergamino, who have worked with other cooperatives in Colombia who seek to harness quality coffee as a means to improving quality of life for their members.

There are all indications that Aprocoagrosh is a cooperative ‘on the way up’. Although the town of La Plata, where most of the farmer members live, lies at only 1,000 metres (and is something of a ‘hot box’), most members’ farms lie at 1,900 metres or above in cooler climes. In order to reach these farms, one has to travel straight UP – driving an hour or more into the steep mountains that surround the town centre. Aprocoagrosh members knew that their previous coop wasn’t making full use of this potential for quality coffee production and, furthermore, didn’t represent the interest of all its growers equally. Once they set out on their own, the reached out immediately to the organisation ASORCAFE – located in Inzá, Cauca – knowing that the group had made great headway in the speciality market by working with Mercanta’s exporting partner in Antioquia. ASORCAFE also had a very solid reputation as being run according to very stringent democratic practices. Aprocoagrosh knew they would learn a lot about governance, management and quality production from the group.

ASORCAFE has helped Aprocoagrosh set up shop and establish governance guidelines and has also generously shared their contact with Pergamino with the group.

Pergamino, as well, has been very impressed with the group and sees great potential for the future. They’ve recently established an agreement with Aprocoagrosh that includes not only purchasing from the group but also serving as mentors and trainers in the group’s quest for improved quality. In the coming year, a cupper from Pergamino will spend 3 months in La Plata, Huila with the group, teaching cupping and helping them establish a cupping lab and protocols. In the future, Pergamino has agreed to cup all coffees scoring 80 points or above from the group and has committed to finding markets for any lots scoring 84 or above.

The benefits for members are great. Members have expressed excitement about the ensured access to speciality markets and better prices, of course; but more importantly, Aprocoagrosh has promised to ONLY reserve operating costs from received coffee prices, meaning more of these improved prices will go directly to the producers. For coffee producers in this remote area of Huila, this very well mean insuring a future in coffee their children....which is something Mercanta is proud to help support.

La Plata, Colombia

Roast Level: Medium
Process: Natural/Fully Washed
Varietal: Various

Roaster's Notes: An interesting blend of coffee make up our latest decaf offering, bringing flavour notes of rose water and vanilla, coupled with a buttery pecan body. Decaffeinated using the CO2 process.

Background Information

This Decaffeinated lot is a mix of eight different smallholder lots. This is a collection of 5 Brazilian estates, 1 group lot from the Democratic Republic of Congo and 2 group lots from Ethiopia. 8 of the 9 lots have been processed using the natural method, with just the Democratic Republic of Congo using the fully washed method. By mixing Brazilian estates with East African lots, we hope to create an exciting decaf blend.

One of the vital elements and most important compounds of our natural environment is carbon dioxide. It is in the air we breathe, it is the gas that makes mineral water effervescent and, by assimilation, enables plants to grow. It is also a highly selective solvent for caffeine. Based on this phenomenon, CR3 developed its Natural Liquid Carbon Dioxide Coffee Decaffeination Process. In this patented process, the natural carbon dioxide is used under sub-critical conditions, i.e. in a liquid state at low temperature and pressure (relative to the supercritical process). These particularly gentle process parameters, together with the good caffeine selectivity of CO2, guarantee a high retention rate of the coffee components responsible for aroma and taste. The process can be described in detail as follows:

The raw, unroasted coffee is moistened with water and put into a vessel where it is brought into contact with pressurised, liquid carbon dioxide. By circulation through the coffee, the carbon dioxide draws the caffeine out of the bean. In an evaporator, the caffeine precipitates out from the CO2 which, after evaporation and re-condensation, is pumped again into the vessel containing the coffee for a new cycle.

When the required residual caffeine level is reached, the CO2 circulation is stopped and the coffee is discharged into a drier where it is gently dried until it reaches the original moisture content. The coffee is then ready for roasting.

Brazafrica Decaf

Roast Level: Light/Medium
Process: Washed
Varietal: Bourbon
Roaster's Notes: This tasty arrival represents our first Burundi coffee at GC. Super sweet candy floss and lemon sherbet vibes with a crisp grapefruit finish. Sit back and enjoy this special lot.

Farm Info

Producer: Daniel Ntunzwenimana
Region: Bujumbura

Background Information

Burundi is among the smallest coffee-producing countries in East Africa, with a population of 10.5 million that is endowed with ideal conditions for coffee production: elevations of 1500 - 2000 m, Arabica Bourbon coffee trees, abundant rainfall, and approximately 800,000 families who cultivate an average of 150- 200 coffee trees per farm. Arabica coffee now represents virtually 100% of Burundi’s national production and the bourbon variety grown at high elevations in Burundi is characteristically “sweet with bright acidity, big body, floral, citrus and spiced with wild notes.”

Over the past 25 years, coffee production in Burundi has averaged 26,700 tons per year. The harvests from this region have received excellent cupping scores, frequently placing as some of the best speciality coffee coming from Burundi.

Masenga, Burundi

Roast Level: Medium
Process: Fully Washed
Varietal: Typica & Arusha
Producer: Various smallholder farmers
Region: Eastern Highlands

Roaster's Notes: A sweet new arrival from Papua New Guinea, this coffee has creamy notes of mascarpone & honey, coupled with a floral hibiscus finish. This coffee has been decaffeinated using the CO2 process.

Background Information

This special lot from Monpi coffee is made entirely from Smallholder farms from Lufa and Okapa Districts. Each lot is sourced by local coffee entrepreneur, Mr Peno Kavori, Monpi’s partner in the region with morethan 30 years of experience. From the Tua valley in the north, through the Crater Mountain range, down to the lower Lamari valley in the south, Mr Kavori’s fleet of vehicles helps to source some of the best coffee in the region; paying fair prices and incentivizing local farmers to produce a quality product.

Coffee was initially introduced to Papua New Guinea (PNG) in the late 19th century and is directly linked to the country’s colonial history. Likely, coffee was first grown in PNG by Emma Coe Forsayth: a businesswoman and plantation owner of mixed American and Samoan descent. Emma set up large cocoa and coconut plantations in the Kokopo District in the East New Britain Province (ENBP). It is probable that her vast plantation also included coffee. Today, coffee is a major industry for Papua New Guinea with the country currently exporting around 1 million bags of coffee every year; involving more than 2.5 million people (nearly half of the total population).


This lot takes its name from Districts in which it is grown. Created by blending some of the best lots from Districts Lufa and Okapa, it only seems right to do the same with the name! Both Districts are known for being some of the remotest parts of the Eastern Highlands Province, as well as famed for producing some of the region’s best coffee. Traditionally, these very remote regions are difficult to traverse, meaning many producers would have to carry their crop over long distances to receive factory door prices. This often meant that many producers in the region leaned towards selling their lots for cheap to those willing to transport it to the mill, rather than transporting it themselves for a higher premium. As such, many producers in the region also began to focus less on producing quality coffee. Instead, producers would cut corners, rushing postharvest processing stages to achieve a quick sale.

In comes Mr Peno Kavori. Focusing solely on sourcing quality coffee, Mr Kavori’s fleet of trucks scour the rough terrain of his supply network; searching for the best lots Lufa and Okapa Districts have to offer. Instead of offering minimum prices for his collection service, Mr Kavori pays factory door prices at collection. This not only means producers are paid fairly for their quality product, but it also helps to incentivise other producers to improve their processing techniques. This business model is made possible by Peno’s dry mill. By vertically integrating the collection of parchment coffee into his business model, Peno can pass premiums onto
producers, as well as offer a quality product for export.

Description of the CR3 Natural Liquid Carbon Dioxide Coffee Decaffeination Process

One of the vital elements and most important compounds of our natural environment is carbon dioxide. It is in the air we breathe, it is the gas that makes mineral water effervescent and, by assimilation, enables plants to grow. It is also a highly selective solvent for caffeine. Based on this phenomenon, CR3 developed its Natural Liquid Carbon Dioxide Coffee Decaffeination Process. In this patented process, the natural carbon dioxide is used under sub-critical conditions, i.e. in a liquid state at low temperature and pressure (relative to the supercritical process).

These particularly gentle process parameters, together with the good caffeine selectivity of CO2, guarantee a high retention rate of the coffee components responsible for aroma and taste. The process can be described in detail as follows: The raw, unroasted coffee is moistened with water and put into a vessel where it is brought into contact with pressurised, liquid carbon dioxide. By circulation through the coffee, the carbon dioxide draws the caffeine out of the bean. In an evaporator, the caffeine precipitates out from the CO2 which, after evaporation and re-condensation, is pumped again into the vessel containing the coffee for a new cycle.

When the required residual caffeine level is reached, the CO2 circulation is stopped and the coffee is discharged into a drier where it is gently dried until it reaches the original moisture content. The coffee is then ready for roasting.

The specific characteristics of the CR3 Natural Liquid Carbon Dioxide Coffee Decaffeination Process are:

• The compounds responsible for the flavour and the taste in the roasted and brewed coffee, as well as the cell structure of the green and roasted bean, are left essentially intact. This is of clear benefit in fine, high-grade coffees

• No health risk involved since the coffee is placed in contact with only 100% safe substances – the chemically-inert (and completely evaporating) carbon dioxide, and pure water

• The extraction solvent is all-natural – an important aspect that represents a strong selling point (“Naturally Decaffeinated”)

• Certification as Organic and Kosher by the appropriate organisations/authorities

• A broad appeal that allows the roaster to offer a high-quality 99.9% caffeine-free decaffeinated coffee that will satisfy even the most discriminating taste.

Luoka AX Decaf

Roast Level: Light
Process:  Natural (24-36 hours fermented before drying)
Varietal: Geisha, Castillo, Tabi, Colombia F8, San Bernardo, Pink Bourbon
Roaster's Notes:  Rich tropical fruit notes and a grounding chocolate note to carry it through. This is a great filter option for a floral, fruity cup or works great as espresso being super fruit forward and velvety. 
Producer:  Jailer Andrés Trujillo
Region: Tolima, Planadas
Altitude: 1,850 masl 


Garage Coffee

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Garage Coffee

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Coffee Roasts

Andrés Trujillo, Colombia

Dung K'No

Kamundu AA, Kenya

Karani AB, Kenya

La Joyería

Luoka AX Decaf

Masenga, Burundi

Maypole

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Banco Gotete Natural, Ethiopia

Banka, China

Brazafrica Decaf

Finca El Tambor, Guatemala

Finca la Falda

GDM, Tanzania

Gitura AB

Keffa Bonga

La Plata, Colombia

Mantilla Fancy

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Onze Mil Decaf, Brazil

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