Women in Coffee: El Salvador

When invited to go on the Women in Coffee Tour to El Salvador in January, I was excited at the opportunity, but then began to wonder, “what about coffee in El Salvador?” But, it was a trip none-the-less, and it was January in Minnesota, and there was a great group of women that I was excited about getting to know. Not only did I learn a lot about the history of coffee in Salvador, I learned to admire the country and the people, and I made a lot of excellent connections.

For those of you as clueless about El Salvador as I was before committing to this trip, I’ll share a little background information. Salvador is the smallest, and most densely-populated country in Central America, and the only country without both a Pacific and Caribbean coast. The country borders Guatemala to the west, Honduras to the north, Nicaragua to the east. It has the most volcanoes of any Central American country and has a mostly mountainous terrain, which gives it ideal growing conditions for coffee. There are five main growing regions in Salvador, of which we visited two: Apaneca-Llamatepec Mountain Range (Santa Ana Volcano is highest peak), and the Central Belt (San Salvador Volcano is highest peak).

In the 1970s, El Salvador was rated as the forth largest coffee exporting country, at 3.5 million bags. The decade of the 80s, though, brought Salvador’s production to a crawl, from which they are only now beginning to recover. A twelve year civil war, where some 75,000 people were killed, ended in 1992. During the decade of the 80s, an estimated 300,000 people fled the country, including many coffee landholders. This resulted in an abandonment of the land and the coffee plants. The abandonment of the land in the 80s has helped Salvador to create a name for itself in the Specialty Coffee industry today, as it is home to many heirloom varietals, including the sought-after Bourbon, Pacas and Pacamara (natural mutations of Bourbon).

We were able to participate in several cuppings while on tour and I found Salvadoran coffees to be a hidden gem, and quite different from other Central American coffees. This is due primarily to the main varietal, Bourbon, produced in the country. These coffees, overall, were very complex with hints of chocolate, vanilla, acidic fruits, and an excellent body detected in most samples. I was very impressed with the coffee and am pleased to announce that we have purchased a box of FTO
Salvadors for this year, and look forward to carrying more coffees from this origin next year.

Okay, now, after the praise of Salvadoran coffee, I must also share my concerns. It is difficult to foresee how Salvadoran coffee will carve out its niche in the coffee market of today. Will it once again become a top-producing country? They do have the quality to do so, but there were a few things that I noticed while there that will be interesting to follow in the coming years. One, there is very little organic coffee there. What concerned me is the overall lack of desire to produce organic and acknowledgement that organic coffees are in ever-increasing demand in the specialty coffee industry. Of course, there are exceptions (our FTOs that are afloat, amongst others), but I learned that less than five percent of coffee grown in Salvador is organic. The aforementioned may be a result of the fact that they are a reemerging producer in the specialty market and maybe they will come around (I suspect they will). I did have several conversations with both producers and coop managers about the organic issue and I learned that many have the misconception that, in their conversion to organic, they will have a 60-75% crop reduction for several years. Now, I’ve heard figures that hover around a 20% decline (difficult to find solid figures on this) and assume that this is more the case. Plus, I’ve heard of production increasing from going organic. It’s all dependent, I suppose, but I have a notion that producers would not be converting to organic if they were not making money at it. Second concern: their milling system. Salvador operates, for the most part, on a system of larger, regional mills. I think that the absence of smaller wet mills will limit Salvador’s production of fancy ‘boutique’ coffees, which are also becoming more and more popular in our industry. With these larger mills, it is very difficult to keep different lots of coffee separate, reducing the traceability that so many of us look for.

Luckily, having traveled to this origin, I met many of the exceptions to the above-mentioned concerns. We are excited to continue to make these connections, which will allow us to bring in new and exciting coffees. Consider trying the FTO Salvador that we have for this year, and look forward to an expanded selection of Salvadoran coffees in the coming years.

—Emily Naber (Emily@cafeimports.com).

In January, Emily and I traveled with a few customers to Costa Rica. Once again, we were lucky to have our good friends from The Coffee Source as our hosts and guides.

We spent the first day traveling within the Central Valley to Poas and the Doka Estate. This is an award-winning coffee that we have carried for several years, so it was great for those of us who had never seen the estate. We had a wonderful lunch at Doka and then traveled just a few miles away to La Hilda Estate. Both of these Estates were fairly quiet as the harvest in Costa Rica was about a month early this year.

The second day we visited a very nice estate called La Laguna in the region of Trés Rios. We were surprised to see the extent of development in this well known coffee region. The new real estate developments are literally bordering some of the larger coffee plantations. La Laguna happens to be one of the oldest estates in the region dating back to the early 1800s. The wet mill is actually housed in one of the original buildings. This is a beautiful estate with alot of history as well as some very state-of-the-art sorting equipment. The afternoon of the second day was spent traveling to the region of Tarrazu and the small town of Santa Maria.

After an incredible home cooked meal at a local establishment, we walked across the street to the Dota cooperative. Dota was established in 1960 by a small group of farmers in the region and is now represented by more than 700 growers. This cooperative has a long standing reputation for producing some of the best coffee in the country and is now run by Roberto Mata, the son of the original director. It was great for all of us to see coffee processing on a very large scale from very small producers. Dota is a great example of the cooperative coffee system at work in terms of fair prices, environmental concern, and coffee quality. After a long day in Tarrazu, we rode back through the clouds to our hotel in San José.

The third day, we continued our tradition of the canopy tour, where everyone conquered their fears and flew high above rivers and water falls through the rainforest canopy. For those of you who have considered one of these zip-line tours, but haven’t had the opportunity, we strongly suggest going for it! We spent the last evening discussing our travels and coffee issues over an incredible meal and strong drinks on an outdoor patio...perfect!

We would like to thank our friends at The Coffee Source, as well as our customers from Dry Creek Coffee in Hill City, S.D., Roaster Direct and Caffe Amoré in the Twin Cities, Great River Roasters in Pepin, WI., and Burgies Espresso in Ames, IA., for joining us on this incredible adventure.

—Matt Hupton (Matt@cafeimports.com)

As we all know from the story of Kaldi and his dancing goats, coffee originated in Africa, in Ethiopia to be more specific. Why then am I amazed at the infancy and the new hope that I felt among the participants of the EAFCA conference this year in Arusha, Tanzania, at the base of Kilimanjaro?

The newness is specialty coffee returning home. Yes, we all know that Kenyans are specialty, and fine Ethiopians have been coming out for a long time, but in many parts of Africa the very concept of boutique coffees is just starting. This is an undiscovered continent, even though coffee has been cultivated here for centuries.

At the cupping pavilion, there were coffees from Madagascar and Malawi alongside old favorites, like Kenya and Ethiopia. There is even coffee grown in South Africa and Zanzibar. The latter I had while on vacation; it had been grown at an altitude of 20 meters. (The cardamom and cinnamon brewed with the coffee were not only exotic, but quite necessary!) Many of the coffees we cupped at the pavilion were not quite ready for prime time, but they had potential, they truly had some amazing potential.

While we all rhapsodize about farmers cupping their own coffee, we have to be realistic and realize that many small subsistence farmers aren’t cupping, and aren’t going to cup. It quite simply does not make sense for a small farmer with 15 coffee trees to cup. All hope is not lost, however, as the market develops for these coffees, cupping is being instituted at the mill level. In late July or early August, I am planning on returning to a co-op to cup all the small regions and help separate out what we are bringing in at a nice premium to the standard “washed African” market the rest of the coffee has been dumped into.

Sitting at a table at dinner one night, and talking about a Malawi that we bring in, a member of the Malawi coffee board said, “You sell the coffees as Malawi? When you are over cupping, will you give a presentation about this to our members?” Not that all coffee can be sold as boutique or specialty coffee, but just the idea that some of their coffee can be specialty coffee was almost foreign, it seemed. The Malawi that we have brought in the last three years is grown at 2000 meters, with some very nice varietals that, until quite recently, were all blended together with Catimors and other less-than-yummy variatiels (the Malawi just arrived at our warehouse, FYI).

Wow, 2000 meters, many amazing varieties, volcanic soil, and now, better processing facilities. What is the limit to the potential here for these coffees? If we can separate out top lots and pay a premium for these, and especially if we do not degrade the remainders that are sold as just washed coffee, what’s not to like?

After the conference, I went to Zanzibar to dive and explore, and as I was sitting, watching dhows (small sail boats) go up the coast, as they have for hundreds of years, carrying goods including coffee, I thought about the old ways of coffee in Africa, and the new beginnings and could not help but smile. (I was also on vacation, and it was 88 degrees and sunny; it’s now 35 degrees and grey in Saint Paul.) But even with this obvious setting, the new potential and exploration in the old world of coffee fills me with excitement.

—Jason Long (Jason@cafeimports.com)

Boiled Potatoes and Goat Cheese: Peru 2006

Of course one of the greatest perks of working in the coffee industry is the opportunity to travel to far away places and meet people on the other side of the business. These working relationships are the backbone of Café Imports’ mission in the world of coffee and without them, we would not be able to do our jobs effectively. Consequently, for most of us traveling means being away from our families and homes and inevitably returning to piles of paperwork on our desks. It is a tradeoff that typically keeps us going back to origin time after time. The task of discovering great coffees and maintaining positive relationships at origin is never ending and it is with great pride and humility that we continue the quest for the best coffees from the best producers in the world.

This time it was myself, Jason Long, Mark Ballering from Steep and Brew in Madison, Wisconsin and Alex Varner from Higher Ground Roasters in Leeds, Alabama. None of us had ever visited Peru. We had never traveled together. Alex had never met any of us. This was going to be an interesting trip! The late night flight to Lima was typically uncomfortable and uneventful. We landed and got to our hotel around 2am. After 1.5 hours of sleep, we were up at 3:30 am to catch a puddle jumper flight to Ayacucho. The trip to Ayacucho by road, while I’m sure quite breathtaking, would have taken us 8 hours, while the flight lasted about 1.5. The sun rising over the Andes at 20,000 feet is indescribable. Known as the city of 37 churches, Ayacucho was founded in 1540, but traces of human existence have been found here from as long as 15,000 years ago. Just outside the city stands the site of the glorious battle of Ayacucho, where Simon Bolivar’s troops defeated the Spanish army and in turn sealed the independence of Peru in 1824. This is a gorgeous town filled with history and incredible mystique. No time for site seeing however, we left the small air strip and jumped into the Toyota van that would become our home for the next 8 hours on the journey to San Francisco and the Apurimac River Valley.

I used to live in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. I’ve climbed 14, 000 foot peaks there. The Rocky Mountains are small. I knew the Andes would be massive, but driving through them is like exploring another planet. The microclimates change faster than you can add or remove clothing. The switchback roads are not wide enough for 2 trucks, yet our driver passes, sometimes on the right. He is a professional, like I’ve never seen before. It takes about 4 hours for me to trust him and keep my eyes open. We stop halfway in the town of Tabo for a traditional lunch of boiled potatoes, goat cheese, and grilled chicken sandwiches—delicious. This was arguably the best meal we had in Peru and I couldn’t wait to come back through Tabo on our return 3 days later.

Arriving in Ayna, just an hour outside San Francisco, we are greeted by waterfalls, rainforest, and the most inviting welcome from a coffee cooperative I have ever experienced. Ayna is a small farming community nestled in the river valley at about 1300 meters. Coffee grows here between 1300 and 1800 meters and most of our Fair Trade Organic coffee is produced in this area. The coffee trees grow on very small farms—less than 5 hectares—and under a vast canopy alongside avocadoes, oranges, and other fruit trees. In Ayna we met most of the key members of CACVRA who had traveled many miles to greet us. The women prepared an incredible meal of fresh trout, plantains, and rice, which was followed by an original presentation depicting the roles of women and children in everyday life and how they assist in the production of coffee. There was singing, dancing, and big smiles. Keep in mind, this was still our first day in Peru, but the reception was characteristic of all the people that we met during the next few days. The members each stood up and spoke about their involvement in the coop and what CACVRA’s success means to their families and their community. They thanked us for our visit, which was the first to their community by any coffee importers or roasters from the United States.

I met Israel Pitesky at the 2004 SCAA show in Atlanta. He was in attendance with the director of CACVRA, Pedro Ruben Pineda Palomino, and exhibiting as part of the Transfair booth. At the time Israel had just been hired by the cooperative to assist in sales, marketing and general management. His English was rough, as was my Spanish, but we managed to make a connection that has developed into one of Café Imports’ strongest relationships with origin. CACVRA, or Cooperativa Agraria Cafetalera Valle Rio Apurimac was established in 1969 as a means of uniting cocoa and coffee growers in the Apurimac River Valley. This picturesque river valley unites the two growing regions of Ayacucho and Cuzco. The town of San Francisco lies directly on the Apurimac River and spans a bridge connecting the two regions. San Francisco also is the home of CACVRA’s main offices, cocoa receiving warehouse, and coffee cupping facility.

The bustling marketplace of San Francisco would become our home for the next 3 days. Our modest ‘hotel’ overlooking the main intersection in town was the perfect vantage point for the entire town’s commerce, the central taxi stop, and general late night flare. The bridge crossing the Apurimac River, connecting the provinces of Ayacucho and Cuzco, is like a gateway between two distinct commercial centers. The bridge itself is at night, dark and a bit spooky. The cars, motorbikes and 3-wheeled taxis do not necessarily slow down nor pay respect to the large numbers of pedestrians crossing back and forth. Below the bridge along the riverbanks lies an underground community of merchants, small restaurants, and gentlemen’s clubs. It’s about half way across to Cuzco that we notice a typical Friday night gathering on the bridge. A large group including men, women and even young children, are gazing off the bridge into the dark night. We assume there is a fight, or maybe a boat or someone in the river. Moving closer we discover that this point on the bridge is actually a free peep show. The pedestrians stop and talk and smoke or make out with their lovers while hoping to catch a glimpse of one the ‘professionals’ down below as she passes in front of the door, not necessarily in full clothing. Talk about a cheap date.

We spent the remaining 3 days visiting cooperative producers on their small farms and cupping various micro lots from some of the higher elevations. We were pleased to find several of these coffees to be exceptional, while all were above average. All of these coffees are organically grown on very small farms, by producers who take great pride in their work. Most farms have their own small washing station and drying patios, and the cooperative employs several technicians who are constantly visiting and working with the farmers to ensure quality and consistency. We found all of these coffees to present generous sweetness with hints of caramel and chocolate. A few of them displayed exceptional brightness and deep, rich body. It was refreshing to taste this type of quality from Peruvian coffees, which have historically been considered mild replacements for High Grown Mexicans. We are excited and anxious to continue examining these individual coffees and work with CACVRA to eventually separate some of them out to offer as very unique Fair Trade Organic coffees. After a formal meeting with the leaders and several members of CACVRA, we remain confident that our relationship in Peru will continue to yield exceptional, specialty coffees and lifelong friendships.

After having my ‘hotel’ room involuntarily relinquished to make room for a much larger, and clearly more important man, I personally couldn’t wait to get back to Tabo for some more boiled potatoes and goat cheese. The drive from San Francisco back to Ayacucho was long, but with less vomiting. We spent the night in this historic mountain town and had a chance to explore some if its many churches and museums—incredible. The history and architecture in Ayacucho is overwhelming and definitely a recommended stopping point for any visitor to Peru. Our final day was spent in Lima hanging out at Israel’s export office and also visiting the dry mill where our coffee reaches its final stage of processing and bagging. We were pleased to see two of our shipping containers parked outside the facility and two of our lots having just been milled and bagged. The facility is loaded with the most modern sorting equipment and the production is streamlined and very impressive. The management was gracious enough to setup a cupping of the two lots which had just been milled and both were fantastic! It should be said that CACVRA is one of our most reliable and consistent shippers. Our coffees are grown and processed with the utmost respect for the environment and the people involved, and they always ship on time. We look forward to our next journey to and through the Andes and continuing our strong relationship with this great cooperative.

--Matt Hupton matt@cafeimports.com