Farm:  Fazenda Vinhal
Country: Brazil
Region: Cerrado Mineiro
Altitude: 980 masl
Variety: Catuai & Icatu
Processing: Anaerobic Natural Fermentation
Farmer: Rafael Vinhal
Sourced Through: Southland Merchants

- the process that the component experiences suddenly changed thermal stresses

and strains of large magnitude when the heat flux and component temperature gradient change abruptly -

---

Since 1988 Vinhal Farm has been producing very high quality coffees in the heart of Minas Gerais state, in Cerrado Mineiro Region - Brazil. Throughout this trajectory they have improved their work and adopted the best sustainability practices and respect for people and the environment. They are a family running a business and everyone who works in the farm is absolutely passionate about their coffee.

Their properties are certified by Rainforest Alliance, 4C and Certifica Minas. With great care and relying on innovative craft production, they do their best to ensure that their coffees stand out both in the domestic and foreign markets, and they are very proud of all the awards they have already won in some of the main quality contests in Brazil.

Sustainability and Quality are their main focuses - their properties (Recanto Farm and Estrela Farm) have three different independent certifications, two of them international: the Rainforest Alliance, with headquarters in the USA, and the 4C Common Code of the Coffee Community, from Germany; and one of them, national: Certifica Minas, ran by Minas Gerais state.

To achieve and maintain these certifications, they need to comply with a series of standards regarding issues such as: environmental conservation and sustainable production, good social practices and working conditions, an efficient management and control system for the entire production chain and, of course, full compliance with all current legislation. Thus, they periodically receive audits on farms to validate the fulfillment of more than 100 evaluation criteria.

About Southland Merchants

Nadia and Andre are Brazilian, passionate coffee lovers, partners in business and life and the founders and owners of Southland Merchants. They met in 2002 in a casual setting and instantly felt connected. Within a year, they established their first company and fell in love. Life in Brazil was great; they love the country and its people, the lifestyle and being with their families but they could not let go of the urge to venture out into the world and explore new places. Eventually they decided to embark on an adventure and to move overseas with their three girls. They wanted to find a place that would offer a bright future for their children, allow them to meet a new culture and learn another language. After a lot of research, they realised Australia would be the ideal destination. In 2017 Australia became their new home and in the same year they arrived they founded Southland Merchants. The company supplies Australian roasters with delicious Brazilian green coffee, full of stories and passion, and connects them back to their roots.

Nougat, Orange, Red Wine

In southern Ethiopia, within the Gedeo zone, lies the village of Haru, where the waters of the Goto River nourish the coffee cultivation. Here, 2820 smallholder farmers cultivated coffee in their backyards and delivered their harvest to the Harusuke washing station. Owned by Abreham Mengiste, the Harusuke washing station was established in 2017. Coffee grown in Ethiopia is naturally organic, as landrace varieties harmonise with the environment, providing organic fertiliser and natural pest control. This particular variety is well known for its small bean size. Luckily, in this case, good things come in small packages! Elevated acidity and dense complex fruits are well known attributes of the variety and growing altitude that should be embraced and not feared!  During harvest, only red cherries are hand-picked. The coffee is depulped within 8 to 12 hours of being harvested and is transferred to fermentation tanks. There, floats are removed before the coffee is left to ferment for 48 to 72 hours. Following fermentation, the coffee is washed to remove the mucilage and placed in a drying tank for 12 hours before moving to African drying beds. The drying process takes 8 to 10 days, with hand-picking and rotation to ensure uniform drying. Supervisors oversee the operations to maintain quality. Once the coffee’s moisture content reaches 10 to 12%, it is moved to a warehouse in Addis Ababa. The cleaning process starts with pre-cleaning to remove foreign materials, followed by hulling and polishing to remove the parchment and silver skin. The coffee is then sorted by screen size and density, with defects separated using colour sorters before being bagged in Grainpro for export. Local coffees have received the 2018 African Fine Coffees Association’s Taste of Harvest award. This coffee is sourced from our partner, Primrose Coffee, a vertically integrated company with 20 years of experience in Ethiopian green coffee exports and a proud member of the Ethiopian Chapter of the International Women’s Coffee Alliance.

---

Lunke Zegeye Dayechew enforces strict quality control measures at his farm, where red
cherries are carefully sorted upon arrival to remove immature and over-ripened ones before pulping. 

The cherries are pulped within six hours of harvesting and dried on special
raised African beds to ensure even airflow for optimal drying. To prevent mould and
fermentation, the cherries are regularly turned during drying. Once properly dried, the
outer skin and flesh are mechanically removed, and the green coffee is allowed to "rest" before being exported.

The natural forests in the area are not just a scenic backdrop, but a vital local food source. They particularly provide the Ventricosum plant, also known as 'Enset’ or ‘false banana,' which is abundant in the Sidama region. Enset, a large non-woody plant, plays a significant role in the local food supply, highlighting the importance of preserving these natural ecosystems for sustainable agriculture.

Lunke Zegeye Dayechew is dedicated to environmentally friendly farming practices, using natural materials and avoiding pesticides and chemicals in agricultural production.

---

Farm: Engenho
Country: Brazil
Region: Mantiqueira de minas
Altitude: 1100 masl
Variety: Yellow Bourbon
Processing: Natural
Farmer: Jose Ronaldo Junqueira Dias

Sourced Through: Southland Merchants

---

In the heart of Brazil, the 240-hectare Engenho Farm is a testament to the Carneiro family's commitment to producing exceptional coffee. Acquired in 1954, the farm has been nurtured through generations, landing in the capable hands of José Ronaldo, a coffee enthusiast and skilled heart surgeon. Despite his medical pursuits, José Ronaldo manages the farm with the same passion and precision that define its legacy. Engenho stands out due to its strategic location. The region experiences a well-defined dry season, crucial for coffee harvesting. The unique combination of altitude, topography, and soil composition creates an ideal environment for the slow maturation of coffee beans, resulting in distinctive flavours.

Diverse Coffee Varieties:
Cultivating a variety of coffee types—Yellow Bourbon, Red Bourbon, Catuaí, Acaiá, Icatu, and Catucaí—Engenho chooses each for specific traits suited to local conditions. This diversity ensures a resilient crop, resistant to diseases, and bursting with distinct flavors.

Sustainability in Action:

Engenho isn't just about coffee; it's about environmental care. Fenced water mines and ongoing tree planting showcase the farm's commitment to sustainability. This dedication extends to the community's well-being, with initiatives like assisting in employee transportation.

The Coffee Processing Journey:
Engenho's coffee processing is a meticulously crafted journey. From natural to pulped natural, washed to natural fermented, the beans undergo careful processing on patios and mechanical dryers.

About Southland Merchants

Nadia and Andre are Brazilian, passionate coffee lovers, partners in business and life and the founders and owners of Southland Merchants. They met in 2002 in a casual setting and instantly felt connected. Within a year, they established their first company and fell in love. Life in Brazil was great; they love the country and its people, the lifestyle and being with their families but they could not let go of the urge to venture out into the world and explore new places. Eventually they decided to embark on an adventure and to move overseas with their three girls. They wanted to find a place that would offer a bright future for their children, allow them to meet a new culture and learn another language. After a lot of research, they realised Australia would be the ideal destination. In 2017 Australia became their new home and in the same year they arrived they founded Southland Merchants. The company supplies Australian roasters with delicious Brazilian green coffee, full of stories and passion, and connects them back to their roots.

Hazelnuts, milk chocolate and hard toffee.

Farm: Fazenda Resplendor
Country: Brazil
Region: Chapada de Minas
Altitude: 900 - 1,000 masl
Variety: Icatu
Processing: Pulped Natural
Farmer: Gustavo Nunes
Sourced Through: Southland Merchants

---

Resplendor Farm is a producer of specialty coffee located in the heart of Chapada de Minas region, between the municipalities of Agua Boa and Capelinha. It began in the 1970’s when Mr. Walter Palmeiras and Mr. Alair Campos came from Machado, south of Minas Gerais, to the city of Capelinha. They have since brought several other growers to the region, which has allowed the development of it, generating well distributed, higher incomes.

In 2005, Mr João Felisberto de Miranda took the responsibility for the farm, starting a cycle of changes there. In 2009, Gustavo Vieira de Carvalho was invited to become a partner with him, bringing more techniques and strong experience in administration. Joao Miranda and Gustavo de Carvalho are from two different generations but both carry on in the tradition of their families, whom are endlessly passionate about coffee production.

It was in the Southwest of Minas Gerais state that they started this partnership for the construction of a new chapter in their story; they became principal actors in the transformation of the Vale do Jequitinhonha region. This region combines the natural advantages of the microclimate of Brazil with constant investments in planting technologies, post-harvest techniques and in the drying process of pulped coffee.

Furthermore they have well integrated logistics with warehouses from their own group, which guarantees access to export markets with a constant volume, being able to withstand crop failures. Resplendor Farm has 600 hectares of coffee planted and it is managed with the latest techniques and production concepts. In this way, the plantation is self-sustaining.

They also have a strong social responsibility on the farm with its employees and surrounding communities, along with their farming practices and the environment. The farm has both UTZ and Rainforest Alliance certification, a sustainable agriculture norm, which they endeavoured to acquire in order to meet the challenges they set themselves. Gustavo Vieira owns the Geral Super Safra warehouse, located in the South of Minas Gerais. There all the selection, distribution and storage is done.

Joao and Gustavo believe strongly in the way they choose to operate, as they do in Resplendor Farm and in the Geral Super Safra warehouse, always seeking to achieve excellent performance and deliver the best coffee possible.

 

For our seasonal blend we combine transparently traded and single origin coffees to create something both delicious and dependable. For more information on the individual blend components click on the links above!

The coffee beans in this blend began as the seeds of coffee cherries - the seasonal fruit of a tropical forest shrub, grown predominantly in East Africa, Central and South America and Southeast Asia. before being roasted by us, those raw seeds had to be nurtured, carefully hand picked when ripe, fermented, dried and exported. It is a long supply chain fraught with difficulties - that sip of coffee you're enjoying began a long way away and is the result of the hard work of many people.

---