Ethiopia – Yirgacheffe – Chelba – Natural – Microlot
Region – Chelba
Grade – 1
Screen Size – 14/17
Farm Size – Smallholders and co-ops
Producer – Chelba Station
Processing – Natural – Hand-picked and then sun dried in the cherry on raised beds, for 4 – 6 weeks
Altitude – 2090 MASL
Varietal – 100% Heirloom
Tasting Notes – Citrus, orange marmalade & delicate florals
Optimal Roast – Suits a light roast
Cupping Score – 87
Roasting Information
Equipment – Coffee-Tech FZ-94 Torrefattore Electric Roaster
Roast Level – roasted light. For best results enjoy 5-7 days after roasting and then within 30 days.
Farm and processing information
Chelba is a municipality in Ethiopia’s single most famous district, Yirga Chefe. Yirga Chefe is one of 7 districts in the greater Gedeo Zone, but its early reputation as the locus of the country’s greatest terroir and best processing (Yirga Chefe was the location of the country’s first washing station) quickly grew beyond the district itself. Now, the coffee nomenclature “Yirgacheffe” simply refers to the entire Gedeo Zone regardless of whether coffees originate from Yirga Chefe proper or not.
The Gedeo Zone as a whole is a coveted place. It is a narrow section of highland plateau dense with savvy farmers and fiercely competitive processors whose coffee has for decades been considered a benchmark for beauty and complexity in arabica coffee, which is known for being beguilingly ornate and jasmine-like when fully washed, and seductively punchy and sweet when sundried. It hardly requires an introduction for most roasters.
The Chelba washing station is owned and operated by Tracon Coffee, an independent exporter who manages 6 stations total in Gedeo. 460 individual smallholders contribute to Chelba, each averaging 1.6 hectares of coffee, and most of them also producing enset—a fruit-less relative of the banana tree whose pulp is scraped and packed into cakes, fermented underground, and then toasted as kocho, a staple starch in the area.
At Chelba, natural processed coffees are typically sorted by hand on arrival to the processing site and then taken directly to raised beds to fully dry, a process that takes about 21 days.
The results speak for themselves , and are a tribute to the hard work and meticulous processing at Chelba – in the cup we have incredible complexity with a fruit forward profile and beautiful lingering citrus and floral notes to finish.
El Salvador – Finca La Providencia – Black Honey – Microlot
Region – Tacuba, Ahuachapan
Farm Size – 70 Hectare
Producer – Fernando Alfaro & Jose Guitierrez
Processing – Black Honey – mucilage left on and dried on African raised beds with meticulous care
Altitude – 1250 MASL
Varietal – Cattura
Tasting Notes -Rose, Kumquat Marmalade, Blackberry, Cocoa
Optimal Roast – Suits a light-medium roast
Cupping Score – 85
Roasting Information
Equipment – Coffee-Tech FZ-94 Torrefattore Electric Roaster
Roast Level – roasted light-medium. For best results enjoy 5-7 days after roasting and then within 30 days.
Farm and processing information
Finca La Providencia is owned by Fernando Alfaro and Jose Enrique Gutierrez, who run the farm under the name INVERFINCA, SA de C.V. Both are fourth generation coffee producers in El Salvador and apply their cumulative experience and extensive knowledge to running the farm, which was acquired seven years ago with the idea of producing high quality coffee. Fernando and Jose have the primary goal of achieving high quality coffee production while producing high yields.
The farm is located in Canton La Pandeadura of the Tacuba municipality, department of Ahuachapan. Situated between 1,100 to 1,300 meters above sea level, La Providencia occupies 70 hectares bordering a biological corridor near the Parque Nacional El Imposible. The wildlife in the area is diverse and the air is clean and fresh.
The farm is worked with an integrated farm management system which starts with soil analysis to identify soil deficiencies and to meet the unique nutritional and structural needs of the soil. The farm hires, on average, between thirty and fifty employees during the off-harvest season to complete key works such as: coffee pruning, windbreaker pruning, and application of chalk and lime fertilizers, herbicides and foliage fertilizers, and controlling diseases such as coffee leaf rust.
The farm is planted with Red and Yellow Caturra and Red Bourbon. Coffee is harvested using only the strictest of quality control guidelines. The beans are picked when in full maturity and then are hand sorted to remove any damaged or under ripe cherries before they are delivered to the mill.
Processing:
This 100% Caturra Black Honey coffee was processed at La Providencia’s wet mill.
This coffee has been processed using the Black Honey method, where immediately after being dry pulped it is put to dry in parijuelas (raised beds) and continually turned to ensure even drying and prevent over-fermentation. Parijuelas are wooden bed like structures that are raised above ground with mesh, much like African beds. After several days of pre-drying on the parijuelas, the coffee is then finished on clay patios. The drying time is about 22 days.
‘Honey’ processing is a method of low-water processing that is increasingly common across Central America. Different designations of white, yellow, red and black honey are often used among Central and South American farmers and commonly refer to differences in:
• the amount of mucilage left on the bean after pulping;
• how the beans are dried (i.e. direct sunlight or shaded conditions);
• the length of time and conditions under which the beans are dried.
Colombia – Belen De Umbria – Washed – UTZ & RFA certified
Region – Belen De Umbria
Grade – Excelso
Screen Size – 16
Processing – Washed
Altitude – 1500-1870 masl
Varietal – Typica, Castilla
Tasting Notes – Milk chocolate, vanilla and hazelnut, balanced citrus acidity, creamy body , long sweet finish
Optimal Roast – Medium
Cupping Score – 83
Roasting Information
Equipment – Roastmax 10kg Gas Roaster & Coffee-Tech FZ-94 Torrefattore 2.4kg Electric Roaster
Roast Level – roasted medium. For best results enjoy 5-7 days after roasting and then within 30 days.
Historical, Political and Geographical
Belén de Umbría is a town and municipality in the Department of Risaralda, Colombia. At an elevation of 1,634 metres, it is located at approx. 1.5 hours drive from the city of Pereira. Its population is about 21,000 inhabitants.
As rich in proud coffee farming traditions as thier soil is in volcanic ash , the producers have combined the peak of the last crop to deliver this showcase for thier region.
Farms range between 10-50 ha growing mostly caturra and catuai varieties under native shade canopies. The UTZ and RFA practices and guidelines are followed in order to protect environmental and social values. Most of all, this is a community-produced coffee that benefits from members banding together to overcome the challenges of living in rugged and remote , mountainous terain.
Infrastructure , knowledge and encouragements are shared to raise the collective quality and income , in turn , for everyone.
Papua New Guinea – Chimbu Province – Washed- Organic
Region –Chimbu, Eastern Highlands
Screen Size – 15/17
Producer – PNG Coffee Cup Ltd.
Processing – Washed
Certificate – Certified Organic
Altitude –1650-1850 masl
Varietal – Aruca- Blue Mountain, Typica & Bourbon
Tasting Notes – A bright juicy cup with lemon and pineapple acidity, a long sweet chocolate, caramel and hazelnut finish
Optimal Roast – Medium
Cupping Score – 83.25
Roasting Information
Equipment – Coffee-Tech FZ-94 Torrefattore Electric Roaster
Roast Level – roasted medium. For best results enjoy 5-7 days after roasting and then within 30 days.
Historical, Political and Geographical
Coffee is a relative newcomer to Papua New Guinea considering that the commercial coffee production in the country dates back to 1926/1927 when the first Jamaica Blue Mountain seeds were planted. Making up a share of approx. 70% the coffee production is largely characterized by small farmers with land holdings that grow as little as 20 trees per plot in so called “coffee gardens” alongside subsistence crops. The country is generally dominated by fragmented mountain ranges, steep valleys and plateaus that are difficult to access.
Since many of the smallholder farmers live in such remote places, their coffee must be picked up by airplanes on grass landing strips, or for those lucky enough to have road access, trucked to the nearest town – often struggling with broken axles from the trip. The typical village-based grower in PNG uses no synthetic fertilizer or chemical pesticides. Leaf-fall from the trees which shade it, together with the skin and pulp of his freshly processed crop provide natural and nutrient-rich mulch.
In order to process his coffee the farmer uses either his own small hand-operated pulping machine or brings his coffee cherries to central washing stations. Nevertheless, also larger farms such as the Sigri and neighboring Kigabah Plantation are part of an exciting coffee culture in PNG. In general, PNG coffees stand for exciting complexity, truly spinning you once around the flavor wheel.
This is an A/X grade, organic certified coffee from the Chimbu Province in Papua New Guinea. This coffee was grown on the slopes of the mountainous region of Gunagnni in the SineSine district at altitudes of 1600 – 1800m and include Arusha, Bourbon, and Typica varieties. Simbu, officially spelled Chimbu, is a Highlands Region province in Papua New Guinea. The province has an area of 6,112 km² and the capital of the province is Kundiawa. Mount Wilhelm (4509m), the tallest mountain in Papua New Guinea, is on the northern border of Simbu. Simbu in the local dialect really means Sipuuuu, which means “thank you”. Simbu is located in the central highlands cordillera of Papua New Guinea. It shares geographic and political boundaries with five provinces: Jiwaka, Eastern Highlands, Southern Highlands, Gulf and Madang. It is a significant source of organically produced coffee.