Brazil is the world leader in coffee production, and Minas
Gerais is the largest producing region in Brazil. Coffee grown in this region
is typically known for mild fruit acidity, chocolate, nut and brown sugar flavors,
and big body. That is just what you get from our two new Brazil offerings: Brazil Santo Andre and Brazil Santa Clara (organic).Each coffee produces a cup that stays
true to the regional character, but they also hold their own ground
as distinct and unique specialty coffees. This is our second year offering both coffees, and
I anticipate they will be as popular this year as they were in 2009.
Guatemala has been in the news a lot these past few weeks. First there
was the continuous eruption of Volcán de Pacaya to the south west of
Guatamala City that covered the streets in up to 8 inches of ash. Then
Tropical Storm Agatha bombarded the western coast
of the country, causing vast devastation to properties, infrastructure,
and even caused a sinkhole in the middle of the city. Meanwhile, an
international jury
of about 25 professional coffee cuppers withstood the environmental
conditions to classify the top 28 coffees of this year's Guatemalan Cup
of Excellence. Ok, so the Guatemalan Cup of Excellence may not have been
the most
interesting story to come out of Central America in May, but let me
tell you more about it anyway.
Omar Arango is the owner of Finca San Luis,
a 42-hectare farm in El Libano, in the department of Tolima, Colombia.
Finca San Luis is organic and Rainforest Alliance certified, and
located at an altitude of 1600 meters. Predominantly producing coffee
of the caturra varietal, Omar creates a cup profile that has well
structured acidity, and rich flavors that range from ripe stone fruit
to mild, sweet tobacco. While Omar often sells this coffee with the
producer group Cafinorté Orgánico, this year we are working with him to
separate some of his higher quality coffee in order to sell directly to
us as Finca San Luis.
The rumors are true!
Not every coffee drinker enjoys the physiological effects of caffeine. The good news : modern decaffeination methods allow for a complete and pleasant coffee drinking experience without the added energy. The even better news : this month we are releasing a brand new decaffeinated coffee that just might leave you asking, "La Serrania, where have you been all my life?!"
We are proud to offer two Las Mingas lots this year, one from the Department of Cauca and the other from the Department of Huila. Las Mingas Cauca is an organic lot that has bright citrus in the aroma and flavor, and is balanced by a juicy but mellow acidity. Think of it as vibrant yet easy. Las Mingas Huila is incredibly creamy and comforting, like a sweet milk candy that has some ripe cherry smack in the middle.
A coffee's quality is threatened at any stage in its life cycle, but processing is the first crucial step in conserving the quality post harvest. Processing refers to the stage after the coffee cherries have been harvested and before the dry parchment coffee is sent to the dry mill. Many physical and chemical defects have the ability to form during processing based on the hygiene and calibration of equipment, environmental conditions, and a general understanding how a given action translates into overall cup quality and flavor profile.
This month we will release the new crop from the Rwanda Buf Coffee washing stations. This is our third year support Buf Coffee and its proprietor, Epiphanie Mukashyaka, and I believe this may be the finest lot we have received from her yet. In the past we have purchased coffee from Epiphanie's Gkongoro Mill, though this year we are providing coffee from her Remera Mill, which took 7th place in the 2008 Cup of Excellence competition. The coffee has exceptional sweet, purple fruit character with warming allspice and is both juicy and dense.
For a limited time only, you can try our favorite lot from Las Mingas as pourover coffee at any of our espresso bars! Grown by Leonardo Bados as part of the Las Mingas project, the entire lot is a mere 225 pounds of coffee, and we will definitely run out fast. It's a creamy big coffee with multiple layers of deep orange zest, sweet spice, and muscular fruit.
In November, I had the opportunity to travel around the eastern states of Brazil, tasting coffee and learning about the various micro regions of the world's largest coffee producing country. Spending most of my time in the eastern part of Minas Gerais, one of Brazil's largest coffee producing states, I visited the smaller regions of Matas de Minas and Sul de Minas. Although these two growing areas are part of the same state, the differences in topography from one region to the next lend to the production of coffees with very different flavor profiles. What's more, these two areas, though different among themselves, are an even further departure from the coffees grown in Cerrado Mineiro, located in western Minas Gerais.
By November El Salvador is already past bloom, the coffee cherries are a few months shy of peak ripeness and Marco Batres is preparing both his wet and dry mill for production. These mills will process the sizable harvests of Sr. Batres's family of estates; the 15 estates in total can be found scattered around the Apaneca-Ilamatepec mountain range. They are all organic, all Rainforest Alliance certified, and the coffees produced therein are known for having some of the highest quality in all of El Salvador. The quality of the coffee produced by Marco Batres is exemplified by 4 of his lots taking top honors in this year's El Salvador Cup of Excellence competition. We were able to secure a small 5 bag lot of one such winner, the best of group in my opinion, from a 40 hectare estate called Altamira I.
This past September I joined a group of roasters and green coffee buyers from the United States and attended the 2nd annual Expo Especiales, a national conference funded by the Federación Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia (FNC). It's taken me some time to reflect on the conference, a venue that through discussing the current trends in production and consumption in one of the world's leading coffee exporting countries, essentially sets the stage for determining coffee futures globally. Here are some of my thoughts...
From time to time some very unique and beautiful coffees slip through the cracks of a competition as large as Cup of Excellence (CoE) because of variance in roast degree or other such factors. Finca Trinidad is one such coffee that did not make the final jury selection for the Guatemalan CoE auction this past July. The first axiom of sensory analysis (taste, smell, etc.) is that it is subjective and highly influenced by environmental conditions. Even as trained and calibrated coffee tasters, there is no certainty that compelling coffees will not be glanced over and forgotten. Luckily, we were able to restore Finca Trinidad from anonymity and, hopefully, create a legacy.
Two East African coffees, and two Centrals. We've been working since February to bring in these
coffees, which means the producers have been working for many months prior to
that. The process can be cumbersome, but the effort can yield unimagined results. This month's arrivals are proof that coffee is personal, coffee is political, and best of all, coffee tastes darn good.
Mid summer marks the arrivals of new crop coffees from Central and
South America and Africa. If you don't see your favorite coffees on our
offering sheet this month, keep in mind that there are plenty more on
their way to the Gimme Roastery - like the Costa Rica Las Lajas
organic, Ethiopia Amaro Gayo and Honduras Linda Vista Cup of Excellence
lot! But that's getting a head of the game... this month we're releasing
two new Colombian coffees, and giving a little extra attention to some
old favorites.
Just outside of Volcan, Panama is Finca Hartmann, a beautiful 90 hectare (220 acre) estate, in which 12 of those hecares are set aside for coffee cultivation, and the remainder are dedicated to old-growth rainforest. Alex Hartmann is one of five Hartmann siblings who work together to run the family estate. Alex is the manager of the coffee nursery, and assists in the management of all coffee harvesting between the months of September and February. When I visited Finca Hartmann in late May, I met with Alex in the nursery and got a glimpse into his philosophy of producing and selling coffee, that is, why it is so important for coffee producers and consumers to communicate with one another.
So... there are no new coffees this month, but it's prime time for approving samples from some of our favorite Central and South American coffee producing countries. We have many lots of new Colombia Las Mingas in the sample roasting queue, along with new Panama Hartmann Honey and a whole slew of Cup of Excellence auctions just around the corner. Tomorrow is the El Salvador CoE auction, and I can't wait to see how some of my favorites do! The CoE Costa Rica auction will take place next Thursday, and while we haven't even roasted these samples yet, I know there are going to be some beautiful mild coffees in that group. In any case, visit the blog on Friday to see if we bid on any El Salvs!
Later this month we will also begin to see arrival samples of some of the coffees we've purchased earlier this spring. We've got two (that's 2) east African coffees that are going to hit American soil in late June / early July. Kenya Gatomboya is first on my 'Eagerly Awaiting' list. The Kenyan lots that we've purchased in March are really killer, and I really can't wait to see them on our offering list. The second coffee on its way is our new crop Ethiopia Amaro Gayo. This will be the first of hopefully many years we will be offering this solid fruit bomb Ethiopian. Much more to come on the new release tip in July!
Tiborcito is a third generation Ratibor Hartmann. He is 4 years old and has won at least 3 trophies in Moto riding. On my first day on Finca Hartmann, Tiborcito led his mother, sister, uncle, and two visitors on an hour long tour through the nearly 30
acres coffee fields and 150 acres of lush virgin rainforest. Watch the video and read on for more of the story!
May is a month that really boosts my interest in multiple outdoor activities : running, frisbee, roasting... Roasting?! Yes. You'd better believe it.
At just about this time (and temperature) each year, we here at the Gimme Roasting Farm open our doors to let the sunshine and cool breezes in. We have supreme bragging rights over copious amounts of 'useless' space (as Allen of Mott St. likes to call it), but, of course, we don't think of it that way. We call it 'possibility', or even 'space to think'. There is certainly no better or relaxing place to contemplate the roasting of some of the world's best coffees. Hear hear!
On Sunday April 19th, Alejandro and Giancarlo (founders of Virmax Cafe in Colombia) were presented with quite possibly one of the highest honors in specialty coffee : Coffee of the Year. We have Virmax to thank for the Las Mingas Program, which brings quality coffee growers together with quality roasters. They work tirelessly to educate growers on how to overcome the many obstacles that get in the way of outstanding quality. It seems like all of their hard work has paid off.
Gabe, Janet, Anne-Marie and I are on our merry way to Atlanta for the annual Specialty Coffee Association of America Exposition. Right now we are just outside of Blacksburgh, VA and I need a little pick-me-up.
Yesterday we unveiled the new labels for our coffees! All of
the coffee labels have been updated with accurate data, and we have
tweaked the label design to represent that new data. We've worked in-house to develop a solution to provide specific information about our unique coffees. It's been a long time coming!
From time to time I am forwarded emails from the feedback page of our website. I mainly receive inquiries from the 'Our Coffee Beans' option on that page, though I sometimes get 'Other' responses involving general roasting or greens buying practices. Basically, all questions with the common denominator of Greens and Roasting get fielded by my department. Pretty nice, huh? Chat it up with the minds behind the beans.
Don't let the end of winter get you down. Lift that shroud of cold and gray with a fresh spot of Rwanda!
This is not the Rwanda of old. Indeed, it's fresher than fresh and ready to raise your spirits. This year's crop is now replete with honey and floral aromatics, with wonderfully puzzling middle eastern spices that are heightened by a blackcurrant sweetness.
It's a veritable bargain buying bonanza! All you have to do is: 1.) Head on down to State St. Gimme! Coffee 2.) Buy a cup of coffee* 3.) Choose the Daily Roast** 4.) Chat with Devorah about the Panama Hartmann Honey 5.) Brag to your friends about your daily accomplishments
Q : What's fresher than fresh? A : Colombia Las Mingas, Rwanda and Panama Hartmann Honey!!! Today we're releasing the newest crop from each of these origins.
The Las Mingas Program is one of the most responsible and direct source models available to specialty coffee roasters throughout the world.
Still, it only represents 0.025% of Colombia's annual coffee production.
Brazil Fazenda São João has finally come home to roost... I mean roast. Yesterday we received our one and only shipment. Today we will roast it. Tomorrow you can enjoy it as much as we do.
We only have 13 bags of this killer coffee. As a point of reference, we usually purchase between 50 and 250 bags of any given seasonal coffee, so you can guess how darned special the São João is. Available now and for a limited time. Buy online or in line!
I am the official Gimme! cupping spoon. I am instrumental in the daily decisions that are made at the Gimme! roasting headquarters. Let me take you through my typical routine.
I like to wake nice and early.
Shootin' hoops at an organic coffee finca in Cauca, Colombia. When you are 1,600 ft. above sea level on the cordillera central, you really don't want to be the one to chase the ball down the hill. Hence, the only shot I took... was with this camera.
The Gimme blog is a collaboration that gives voice to people across our company. Opinions expressed by our authors are uncensored, and are not necessarily the opinions of Gimme! Coffee. If you need a company statement, or any other type of response, please contact us.
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Brazil is the world leader in coffee production, and Minas
Gerais is the largest producing region in Brazil. Coffee grown in this region
is typically known for mild fruit acidity, chocolate, nut and brown sugar flavors,
and big body. That is just what you get from our two new Brazil offerings: Brazil Santo Andre and Brazil Santa Clara (organic). Each coffee produces a cup that stays
true to the regional character, but they also hold their own ground
as distinct and unique specialty coffees. This is our second year offering both coffees, and
I anticipate they will be as popular this year as they were in 2009.
Photos
Yesterday we unveiled the new labels for our coffees! All of
the coffee labels have been updated with accurate data, and we have
tweaked the label design to represent that new data. We've worked in-house to develop a solution to provide specific information about our unique coffees. It's been a long time coming! 
Shootin' hoops at an organic coffee finca in Cauca, Colombia. When you are 1,600 ft. above sea level on the 
