Orange blossom honey and almond praline.
Farm: San Jerónimo Miramar
Producer: The Bressani Family
Country: Guatemala
Region: Atitlan
Elevation: 1,500–1,700 masl
Variety: Catuaí
Processing: Honey
Sourced Through: Coffee Bird
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At the turn of the century, (1880s) Mr Bressani moved from Parma, Italy to the US in search of work and a better life. He left his pregnant wife behind. When he arrived to the United States he met with the only banker who provided loans to immigrants. This man was the future founder of Bank of America. Whilst he couldn’t help Mr Bressani, he found him work building the tunnels for the railroad in Guatemala, which is how Mr Bressani moved to Guatemala.
In the 1940s, Mr Bressani began to manage a farm, called San Jerónimo Miramar, which was located between Patulul and San Lucas Tolimán. At the time, the farm was owned by a German Jewish man. Shortly after, Guatemala declared war on Germany. Guatemala expropriated land away from all Germans and began to send them either back to Germany or to internment camps in Texas.
The owner of the SJM approached Giorgio’s great-grandfather to see if he would buy the land from him. He replied that he couldn’t afford it. Once the neighbour’s farm was expropriated, the owner of SJM approached the grandfather again and said “I’m going to give you an offer you can’t refuse.” “Give me the profits from the coffee for the next 5 years, and the farm is yours.” Mr Bressani accepted. With all the earnings from the coffee going to pay off the farm, Mr Bressani bought a few cows, and sold milk locally.
However, in the 1950’s, the US government donated powdered milk to Guatemala, and all dairy farmers went out of business over night. Fortunately, due to Mr Bressani’s Italian origins, his cousin knew how to make cheese.
Whilst at times the dairy operation has subsidised the coffee activities, the coffee provides work for 500 families. It is with this job creation in mind that San Jerónimo Miramar desires to make coffee a profitable activity, to support the local families.
There are so many layers to the San Jerónimo Miramar (SJM) story. Behind this beautiful family and coffee lie the creators of the up-cycled denim bag that Coffee Bird adopted. They have a passion for nature, the farm, and a priority to preserve the integrity of the soil. Behind this passion is a deep rooted love for each other, the land and the people that make it happen.
The primary activity of the farm is dairy, and coffee production has been subsidised by the dairy operations. For years, the farm sold into a local exporter and depended on the C-market. Their venture into specialty coffee began in 2014, after leaving a meeting with a local exporter, who had delivered devastating news of lower prices. After seeing the face of disappointment on his dad’s face, Giorgio convinced his dad not to sell the coffee to this exporter, and promised him they would find another way. Meanwhile his sister, Gina, was in university in the US. She approached a local roaster in town with a sample. The roaster loved the coffee, and agreed to buy it. This was their gateway into specialty. By applying their high level of detailed record keeping and controls from the dairy operation, they quickly optimised their quality. They are constantly adjusting and listening to what nature tells them, and adapting accordingly. Mr Arnoldo is responsible for the coffee operations.
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Customer Reviews
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Mandarin, Almonds
Country: Ethiopia
Region: Gingo Bedesa
Wet mill : TD Sayisa dry mill
Elevation: 2,268 masl
Varieties: Heirloom
Processing: Anaerobic, Natural
Sourced Through: Utopia Coffee
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This lot is produced by local smallholders in the district Gingo Bedesa located in the
West Guji zone.
Tadesse Desta Buku Sayisa Dry Mill Site is nestled in the picturesque landscapes of
West Guji, Oromia. With its high altitude, abundant rainfall, and carefully maintained
coffee varieties.
The site's diverse shade trees and the presence of various wildlife species add to its
natural charm. Cherries are delivered to the Tadesse Desta wet/ dry mill (2 hectares in
size) that borders the Awata River. Locally delivered cherries are then processed further
to export-ready using anaerobic processing techniques.
The ripest of cherries are placed in plastic barrels which are used to create an airtight
seal, then the coffee is degassed during fermentation which can last 4-5 days depending
on the weather. The coffee is then sent to African beds for drying, which is also weather
dependant but usually takes 20-30 days.
Farm: Finca El Silencio
Producer: Sara Gutierrez
Country: Colombia
Region: Buenavista, Quindio
Elevation: 1,400~1,600 masl
Variety: Caturra (with Hops)
Processing: Honey with Beer Hops
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Sara is a coffee grower from Buenavista, Quindío. Her family has been immersed in the world of coffee for four generations, accumulating a wealth of experiences and traditions over the years. About nine years ago, they decided to take a bold step and start experimenting with new processes, aiming to enhance the natural and authentic flavors of their coffee. Their hard work paid off, as they developed innovative techniques that not only improved the coffee’s taste but also promoted sustainability and supported the local community. Today, Sara and her family are more determined than ever to continue evolving, refining their craft, and leaving a lasting impact on the history of coffee.
Orange, Kombucha and Lingonberry.
Farm: Brumas del Zurqui Micromill
Grower: Juan Ramon Alvarado Rodriguez and family
Region: Heredia, Central Valley
Country: Costa Rica
Processing: Natural
Elevation: 1,400 - 1,800masl
Varieties: Orange Bourbon
Sourced Through: Cafe Imports Australia
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Beneficio Brumas Del Zurqui is a micromill located in the Central Valley region of Costa Rica in the sub-region of Heredia. Neighboring farms deliver cherries to this micromill. Varieties include Villa Sarchi, SL-28, Bourbon, Gesha, Typica, Caturra, and Orange Bourbon.
The mill is managed and run by Juan Ramon Alvarado Rodriguez and his family. They are fourth generation coffee producers and in 2003-2004, they began innovating their processing methods and expanding their processing infrastructure. They have also built out a cupping laboratory and roastery to ensure and maintain quality.
In the past couple years Beneficio Brumas Del Zurqui has had to face labor shortages due to both the pandemic and workers moving on to other countries in search of other employment. However, Juan takes great pride in what he does and is glad to have been able to build a family, generate employment, and provide a positive social and economic impact to his community through coffee. Juan encourages the roasters who buy his coffee to roast with intention and wake up feeling motivated, cheerful, and with a desire to live and have new experiences! He hopes that the values and love of coffee he cultivates on the farm will be carried all the way through the pipeline from seed to cup.
“I hope to God that I will die a farmer and I hope my son does too” – Juan Ramon Alvarado Rodriguez
Region - Central Valley
The Central Valley of Costa Rica is the heart of the country’s coffee industry. The high elevation, consistent weather patterns, frequent rains, and volcanic soil contribute to the wide range of offerings we are able to source form this region. Producers in the Central Valley often grow traditional hybrids and apply some of Costa Rica’s most forward-thinking processing techniques.
Microlot
Microlots from Costa Rica are typically sourced from producers who have invested not only in growing their farms, but also in building and operating their own processing facilities, typically called "micromills." Micromills typically yield fewer than 1,000 bags annually, and are often independently owned by a family or small group of producers. Microlots in Costa Rica are separated out based on differentiated characterizations such as processing, variety, or some other aspect. Microlots carry the highest quality as well as the highest level of traceability.
Process
Natural coffees are typically processed the day they are harvested, and are first sorted for ripeness and quality before being rinsed clean of debris. In many places this initial sorting happens via a float tank: Damaged and defective cherries will float to the top to be removed, while high-quality coffee will sink to the bottom to be cleaned and dried. After sorting, cherries are spread on raised drying beds, table, tarps, or patios, where they will be rotated constantly throughout the course of drying. Drying can take an average of 30–40 days, depending on the weather.
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We're always experimenting here at Monastery and our identity will always be with our light roasted coffee. However, we can't ignore part of our coffee congregation who find it hard to work with light roast or prefer a darker coffee, so here is our first Monastery Project, a delicious and juicy coffee we have loved as a light roast and now as a medium roast which we've found unlocks a punchier flavour.
Monastery Projects in the future will be anything out of our normal roasting style.
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Espresso - Neapolitan Ice-cream!
Region: Ermera
We are excited to present you the coffees from the suco (village) of Lauana. Coffee here grows in the forests; shaded, untouched, and organic by default.
Cherry is first floated in water, to separate the fruit by density. The higher the density, the higher the quality of the coffee. This leaves the low density, less mature cherries to float to the surface, which are easily removed from the water.
The Raimutin station staff then meticulously hand-sort the freshly picked and sorted cherry, removing all damaged or underripe fruit. The cherry is then transported to raised beds, where they are dried in high sun for three weeks. The staff turn the lots regularly to ensure even airflow and sun contact. When the cherries have reached their perfect drying level, the seeds are removed from the cherry and prepared for export.
The remaining cherry is not discarded, rather, it is saved for redistribution as fertiliser to the farmers who grew them.
Raw Sugar, Pomelo and Apple Blossom
Farm: La Divisa
Producer: Oscar Restrepo
Country: Colombia
Region: Risaralda
Elevation: 1,780 masl
Variety: Pink Bourbon
Processing: Natural
Sourced Through: HarvestTown Coffee
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Oscar is a 3rd generation coffee grower who took the management of the family farm several years ago while he was studying agronomy at university.
Oscar has always been passionate about all coffee process and he saw an opportunity to start experimenting unconventional processing methods for his coffee since at that stage most of Colombian coffee was washed and not many farmers were keen to try different methods.
Ever since Oscar has been focusing on the Natural process for selected micro lots of the harvests, achieving cupping scores above 86 points on the SCA (Specialty Coffee Association) scale and producing very complex and exceptional coffees with fruity and winey notes accompanied by medium acidity and body.
Harvest period:
October – January
April - June
Picking:
The hand-picking is done between 6 am and 12 pm to take advantage of the sunlight.
The coffee is hand-picked and we pay some of our pickers a bit higher than normal with the only condition to pick exclusively the ripe cherries.
During the harvest period at La Divisa the picking takes place every 20 days, with this we allow the cherries to ripe properly thus obtaining a coffee with higher sugar levels.
Drying Process:
The picking finishes at 12 pm and if the day is sunny and warm, it is put into water tanks for 2-3 hours in order to remove floaters.
Once floaters have been removed, the batch is put to dry on patios without fermentation.
On the other hand, when the picking finishes but the day is cold and cloudy, the batch is put into fermentation tanks until the next day (24 hours) and after this period of time the coffee is placed onto patios for drying.
The drying process takes normally between 18 and 22 days.
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