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It is not Epiphanie herself that produces the coffee, but numerous small holder farms that provide the components for the entirety of the lot. The Remera Mill is able to process roughly 198 tons of coffee cherries each year. The coffees are naturally processed and sun dried on traditional African drying beds, which are perforated to enhance airflow, and elevated to diminish contamination. All of the coffees that arrive at the mill are of the bourbon varietal and are produced at altitudes between 1750 and 2000 meters.

While I have not met Epiphanie, her reputation procedes her as a remarkable woman who has suffered hardships during the Rwanda genocide of 1994, only to rebound with help of the development projects such as USAID and the Rwanda Coffee Development Authority. She is known for being a dynamic woman and a source of inspiration for many other women in the coffee sector.

Platinum Blonde

Over the course of the past few weeks you may have noticed a cornerstone blend either missing from our shelves, or marked as 'sold out' on our web roster. Platinum Blonde, the blend known for smoky leather character, has been discontinued, with no plans for revitalization.

If you've been a Gimme enthusiast for some time, you have no doubt been intrigued by the Platinum Blonde and its iconic label: the Rowdy Gal's Espresso Blend, with an aroma of centennial Harley leather. Platinum Blonde was a careful blend of coffees from Sumatra, Kenya, Guatemala and India, originally created to embody the idea of dive bar chicness, and vanity fair. This blend developed a devout following in its more than 5 years of existence, and yet you may be wondering why we are now discontinuing it.

Coffee buying begins around the cupping table. It is there that a coffee proves its true charm, or falls flat in one aspect or another (or altogether). When a coffee shows lack of performance or promise, the consequences can sometimes be easily dismissed, but they can also have a profound effect on years of effort or aspirations for the future of a coffee. This is what happened with one such component of the Platinum Blonde, the India Malabar.

As purveyors of quality coffees, we have a responsibility to source and purchase coffees with integrity, and to prove them beyond a namesake. Over the past few years we have seen a steady drop in the quality of samples we have seen of the India Malabar, and could no longer buy this coffee in good faith. The decision to reject current samples impacts the Platinum Blonde in such a profound way that we can no longer offer it as a coffee product.  The good news: retiring blends that we deem to be under-performing provides us with the opportunity to explore, perfect and release delicious new blends that we've never had before. Embrace the coffee landscape as it is constantly changing.