Farm Profile: Don Amado

Jose Amado Fernandez Farm Name: Don Amado Micro Region: Las Flores Region: Santa Barbara Farm Size: 3.7 hectares Variety: Yellow Catuai Altitude: 1550 m.a.s.l. Processing: Washed

Jose Amado’s father, Don Amado (Jose’s farm’s namesake), divided his farm into four lots – one for each of his sons. While all the brothers share facilities, each owns their own equipment and each farm’s lots are processed separately. Jose’s yellow catuai variety won the Cup of Excellence competition in 2010, with 91 points, and we bought the remaining three bags from his harvest that year.

Since then, we have visited the farm 1-2 times per year and have encouraged Jose to invest in more processing facilities. One planned future investment is drying beds, which will lead to higher quality coffee and better prices for his coffee. Jose has shown clear merits as a dedicated and conscientious producer and his coffee was one of Kaffa’s favourites from Central America in 2011. This particular lot was consistently clean and maintained its quality throughout the year.

The villages Cielito, Cedral and Las Flores follow one after another along the mountain range in Santa Barbara. Grown on this hillside is mostly Pacas, a coffee species akin to Bourbon, as well as Yellow Catuaí and Pacamara. It is challenging to process coffee cherries in areas like these, which are close to the jungle and thus, to rain. The drying process, in particular, is especially demanding. But when these processes are precisely controlled, seemingly problematic factors (like drying under challenging conditions) are what make coffee from this area particularly interesting. The coffee produced here cups with flavour attributes not found anywhere else in Central America.

Since 2005, the region, Santa Barbara, and the small producers living and working there, have shared the distinction as the place and the people producing exceptional coffee within Honduras. Our work and the beginning of the on-going relationships we’ve since established here began during the 2005 Cup of Excellence. We came to realize that there are exceptional producers from this small area. And since that inaugural year, we have purchased from over twenty different Santa Barbara producers.

Located in the village of Pena Blanca is coffee exporter San Vicente – the company that coordinates the coffee we buy from Santa Barbara. Over the past several years, one particular hillside has become the largest supplier of CoE winners in Honduras. The most successful farms with the smartest and most innovative farmers are neighbours on this hillside and they help each other to refine the best of their lots.

There exists an eagerness here; a willingness, motivation and ambition to produce the best coffee in the country. But there are also large differences amongst the farmers and our purpose is to be close to this special coffee community and get to know the most ambitious of the farmers here; the ones we can develop something with. In order to build relationships – that allow both parties to have a common understanding of quality coffee – there must be frequent and long-term presence.

To produce coffee that tastes fruity is not very complicated. But to produce coffee that is clean, clear, fresh and fruity – that’s an art. One of the biggest assumptions within specialty coffee is that coffee from high-altitude areas naturally exhibits these characteristics. But high elevation can lead to potential problems, even in tropical climates. In the highest areas of Santa Barbara, up to and over 1800 meters, producers can experience “freezing”: the combination of temperatures between 4-5C and rainfall that combine to cause cherries to not ripen and leaves to die on the bush. These conditions create a cold and humid climate, which is hazardous for processing and requires steady and reliable drying conditions for coffee so quality will not deteriorate. These natural conditions, of course, cannot be evaded. But clever and prescient coffee farmers, like the ones we collaborate with, invest in drying systems that minimize the risks associated with weather.

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Producer Profile: Jesus Moreno

Jesus Moreno Farm Name: El Filo Micro Region: El Cedral Region: Santa Barbara Farm Size: 1.05 hectares Variety: Pacas Altitude: 1580 m.a.s.l. Processing: Washed

The Moreno Brothers: Miguel, Mario, Danny, Jesus, Gerardo, and Olvin inherited their farm from their father Daniel, who divided El Filo into lots for each son. More recently, Miguel’s son Dolmin was given his own plot on El Filo to manage. Together, the family has built a wet mill, raised beds, and solar dryers to process and prepare specialty grade coffee. The Moreno brothers are model producers in El Cedral, as well as the wider region. Together, the Moreno family helps and motivates neighbouring farmers to produce and prepare better quality coffee through the sharing of their collective knowledge and facilities.

The villages Cielito, Cedral and Las Flores follow one after another along the mountain range in Santa Barbara. Grown on this hillside is mostly Pacas, a coffee species akin to Bourbon, as well as Yellow Catuaí and Pacamara. It is challenging to process coffee cherries in areas like these, which are close to the jungle and thus, to rain. The drying process, in particular, is especially demanding. But when these processes are precisely controlled, seemingly problematic factors (like drying under challenging conditions) are what make coffee from this area particularly interesting. The coffee produced here cups with flavour attributes not found anywhere else in Central America.

Since 2005, the region, Santa Barbara, and the small producers living and working there, have shared the distinction as the place and the people producing exceptional coffee within Honduras. Our work and the beginning of the on-going relationships we’ve since established here began during the 2005 Cup of Excellence. We came to realize that there are exceptional producers from this small area. And since that inaugural year, we have purchased from over twenty different Santa Barbara producers.

Located in the village of Pena Blanca is coffee exporter San Vicente – the company that coordinates the coffee we buy from Santa Barbara. Over the past several years, one particular hillside has become the largest supplier of CoE winners in Honduras. The most successful farms with the smartest and most innovative farmers are neighbours on this hillside and they help each other to refine the best of their lots.

There exists an eagerness here; a willingness, motivation and ambition to produce the best coffee in the country. But there are also large differences amongst the farmers and our purpose is to be close to this special coffee community and get to know the most ambitious of the farmers here; the ones we can develop something with. In order to build relationships – that allow both parties to have a common understanding of quality coffee – there must be frequent and long-term presence.

To produce coffee that tastes fruity is not very complicated. But to produce coffee that is clean, clear, fresh and fruity – that’s an art. One of the biggest assumptions within specialty coffee is that coffee from high-altitude areas naturally exhibits these characteristics. But high elevation can lead to potential problems, even in tropical climates. In the highest areas of Santa Barbara, up to and over 1800 meters, producers can experience “freezing”: the combination of temperatures between 4-5C and rainfall that combine to cause cherries to not ripen and leaves to die on the bush. These conditions create a cold and humid climate, which is hazardous for processing and requires steady and reliable drying conditions for coffee so quality will not deteriorate. These natural conditions, of course, cannot be evaded. But clever and prescient coffee farmers, like the ones we collaborate with, invest in drying systems that minimize the risks associated with weather.

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Farm Profile: La Tigra

Martir Muñoz

Farm Name: La Tigra Micro Region: El Sauce Region: Santa Barbara Farm Size: 3.5 Hectares Variety: Caturra Altitude: 1550 masl Processing: Washed

The Muñoz family has been growing coffee for many years, but this year is the first they have focused on producing and processing specialty grade coffee. La Tigra is a plantation of Caturra bushes and the plants are young – just three-years old. The Muñozes process their coffee at their own wet mill, which is then dried on their patio.

Since 2005, the region, Santa Barbara, and the small producers living and working there, have shared the distinction as the place and the people producing exceptional coffee within Honduras. Our work and the beginning of the on-going relationships we’ve since established here began during the 2005 Cup of Excellence. We came to realize that there are exceptional producers from this small area. And since that inaugural year, we have purchased from over twenty different Santa Barbara producers.

Located in the village of Pena Blanca is coffee exporter San Vicente – the company that coordinates the coffee we buy from Santa Barbara. Over the past several years, one particular hillside has become the largest supplier of CoE winners in Honduras. The most successful farms with the smartest and most innovative farmers are neighbours on this hillside and they help each other to refine the best of their lots.

There exists an eagerness here; a willingness, motivation and ambition to produce the best coffee in the country. But there are also large differences amongst the farmers and our purpose is to be close to this special coffee community and get to know the most ambitious of the farmers here; the ones we can develop something with. In order to build relationships – that allow both parties to have a common understanding of quality coffee – there must be frequent and long-term presence.

To produce coffee that tastes fruity is not very complicated. But to produce coffee that is clean, clear, fresh and fruity – that’s an art. One of the biggest assumptions within specialty coffee is that coffee from high-altitude areas naturally exhibits these characteristics. But high elevation can lead to potential problems, even in tropical climates.

In the highest areas of Santa Barbara, up to and over 1800 meters, producers can experience “freezing”: the combination of temperatures between 4-5C and rainfall that combine to cause cherries to not ripen and leaves to die on the bush. These conditions create a cold and humid climate, which is hazardous for processing and requires steady and reliable drying conditions for coffee so quality will not deteriorate. These natural conditions, of course, cannot be evaded. But clever and prescient coffee farmers, like the ones we collaborate with, invest in drying systems that minimize the risks associated with weather.

pdf version

Introduction to Santa Barbara, Honduras

Since 2005, the region, Santa Barbara, and the small producers living and working there, have shared the distinction as the place and the people producing exceptional coffee within Honduras. Our work and the beginning of the on-going relationships we’ve since established all began with the purchase of a microlot from Mr. Benitez when he won the 2005 Cup of Excellence. We came to realize, through working with him, that there are more exceptional producers like him from this small area. And since that inaugural year, we have purchased from over twenty different Santa Barbara producers.

This year we have chosen coffee from 16 smallholdings located along one hillside in Santa Barbara, where the villages Cielito, Cedral and Las Flores follow one after another. Grown on this hillside is mostly Pacas, a coffee species akin to Bourbon, as well as Yellow Catuaí and Pacamara. It is challenging to process coffee cherries in areas like these, which are close to the jungle and thus, to rain. The drying process, in particular, is especially demanding. But when these processes are precisely controlled, seemingly problematic factors (like drying under challenging conditions) are what make coffee from this area particularly interesting. The coffee produced here cups with flavour attributes not found anywhere else in Central America.

Santa Barbara is the name of a region in Honduras, but it is also the name of the mountain range that stretches through this part of the country. Located in the village of Pena Blanca is coffee exporter San Vicente – the company that coordinates the coffee we buy.

The one special hillside mentioned earlier has, over the past several years, become the largest supplier of CoE winners in Honduras. The most successful farms with the smartest and most innovative farmers are neighbours who help each other to refine the best of their lots.

On this hillside exists an eagerness – a willingness, motivation and ambition to produce the best coffee in the country. But there are also large differences amongst the farmers and our purpose is to be close to this special coffee community and get to know the most ambitious of the farmers here; the ones we can develop something with. In order to build relationships - that allow both parties to have a common understanding of quality coffee – there must be frequent and long-term presence.

To produce coffee that tastes fruity is not very complicated. But to produce coffee that is clean, clear, fresh and fruity – that’s an art. Assumption number one is always that coffee from high-altitude areas naturally exhibit these characteristics. But high elevation can lead to potential problems, even in tropical climates. In the highest areas of Santa Barbara, up to and over 1800 meters, producers can experience "freezing": the combination of temperatures between 4-5C and rainfall that combine to cause cherries to not ripen and leaves to die on the bush. These conditions create a cold and humid climate, which is hazardous for processing and requires steady and reliable drying conditions for coffee so quality will not deteriorate. These natural conditions, of course, cannot be evaded. But a clever and prescient coffee farmer can invest in drying systems that minimize the risks associated with weather.
 

Moreno Brothers

Of the people we have been working with in Santa Barbara, our work with the Moreno brothers is one of the longest standing. It is amongst our coolest relationships anywhere. In previous years, the Morenos preferred selling their best lots through the Cup of Excellence auction because they always achieved good results and prices. But in the last few years, however, they have decided to trade differently because they are now confident that they can produce all their coffee to CoE quality standards, and thus prefer to sell directly, knowing they will receive good prices and a stable working relationship.

In our agreement with them, we have determined that after the best lots have been identified for the season, we will cup to verify that they meet our quality standards, and then pay a higher base price than their already higher-than-average price. For lots cupping even better, we will pay more. We only buy coffee we score at 86-points or higher. For coffee scoring between 86-88 points, we have decided to pay an additional 25% premium on top of the established base price. Coffee scoring between 88.5-90 points receives a 50% premium and, if coffee scores higher than 90-points, the Morenos receive a 100% premium! We believe the Moreno family, in the future, will produce more coffee of better quality (i.e. lots of 88-90-point coffee). The family is very motivated by the outlined agreement and we are very happy and excited about this partnership.

Stay tuned for soon to come posts on our other Santa Barbara partners!

London Cupping, May 18 - the lineup

Hello London Coffee! Hope you're ready and excited to cup some fantastic coffee today. Here is the lineup, organized by origin, varietal, then process.

Table #1: Highlights from Central America
 

COSTA RICA, various mills & regions Helsar de Zarcero mill, Arce, Caturra, washed Herbazu mill, Villa Sarchi, washed Herbazu mill, Caturra, red honey

GUATEMALA, Buena Vista mill, Antigua region Hunapu, lot #1, blend Bourbon, washed Hunapu, lot #3, blend Bourbon, washed Felicidad farm, Bourbon, washed Potrero farm, Caturra, washed

HONDURAS, San Vicente mill, Santa Barbara region Juan Pablo Cruz, prod. Pacas, washed Castellanos, prod. Pacas, washed Nelson Ramirez, prod. Yellow Catuaí, washed Mario Moreno, prod. Pacas, washed Miguel Moreno, prod. Pacas, washed Amado Fernandez, prod. Yellow Catuaí, washed

Table #2: Best of...Best of Panama 2012

PANAMA, various producers/mills, Chiriqí region Duncan Organic farm, Caturra, washed (BoP #1) Don Julian farm, Pacamara, washed (BoP #2) Elida farm, Catuaí, washed (BoP #4) Elida farm, Catuaí, honey (BoP #5)

Los Cantares farm, Geisha, washed (BoP #1) La Milagrosa farm, Geisha, washed (BoP #2) Rojas farm, Geisha, washed (BoP #3)

Don K farm, Geisha, natural (BoP #1) Mama Cata farm, Geisha, natural (BoP #2) Casa Ruiz farm, Baby Geisha, natural (BoP #3)

Table #3: Highlights of natural processed coffees from El Salvador

El Salvador, various mills & regions Presented by Graciano Cruz, HiU

May 10 Cuppings in Gothenburg

Last Thursday Da Matteo roastery graciously hosted Collaborative cuppings for roasters interested in buying incoming coffees from Honduras and Panama. Since Giancarlo was also in Sweden at the time, Virmax took the opportunity to present on varietals in Colombia - specifically in the Santander, Valle del Cauca and Huila regions. El Roble is a state-of-the-art farm Kaffa started buying from last year and during this cupping, we presented three varietals from this farm (caturra, bourbon and typica), as well as a geisha from Cerro Azul Estate and a caturra from Omar Viveros' farm.

In attendance were representatives from Åre Kafferosteri, Johan & Nyström, Kahls kafferosteri, Dear Coffee, I Love You, Coffee and Memories, First Degree Coffee and Kaffemaskenin. From Santa Barbara in Honduras, 18 lots were cupped; 6 lots from the Los Angeles, Helsar and Don Mayo Mills in Costa Rica were selected; 1 lot each from the Yukro and Hawa Yember washing stations in Ethiopia were sampled; and finally, a variety of coffees from the Don Pepe, Lerida and Esmeralda farms in Panama were presented.

In general, cuppers were very excited about the Honduran and Ethiopian lots and felt that the Costa Rican lots were very clean but perhaps lacking in distinctness and character, in comparison to some of the others. Also of interest, and leading to much discussion, were the differences in cup profiles of the different varietals coming from El Roble, as well as the naturally processed geishas from Panama. Cuppers felt the Honduran coffees presented cleanly, distinctly (i.e. varietals as well as locations), with many exotic fruit notes, intensity and sweetness.

With respect to the geishas, we decided to dedicate a table to coffees from Esmeralda, specifically from the Jaramillo farm. Back in 2006, Robert asked the Petersons to begin separating lots from different areas of Jaramillo and year after year, he has preferred coffee from "Mario's area" (Mario is one of the people who live on this part of the farm). Even more specifically, Robert has cupped at various times this year and is most interested in pickings from February and March.

So, based on feedback we've received from last Thursday's cuppings in Gothenburg and in addition to prior organizing, we are in the process of finalizing shipments from Honduras and Panama. To allow for further contribution, we are hosting a cupping in London this Friday at Prufrock so that UK roasters can participate. News from this event to follow...

Until then,

Melanie