Origin

Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee. A pilgrimage of sorts for any coffee professional and somewhere we have always wanted to visit. We visited Gedeo and Guji this year with the intention of gaining a deeper understanding of how the supply chain works and gleaning how our purchasing decisions here could have more impact.

Production in Ethiopia is most commonly centred around washing stations (or sites) which typically are set up to process either washed or natural coffees. These can be privately or co-operatively owned and will purchase cherry...

Chirinos is one of the seven districts of the San Ignacio province, north of Jaen. This remote mountain region is where the mayor of San Ignacio hails from and it’s thought that this is the reason why more government money has been spent on improving infrastructure for the area. Concrete roads and electricity are common here and the town centre boasts a bank and other local amenities which make this an ideal central hub for many local cooperatives and exporting companies which serve the district.

Our first visit to...

Peru is an origin which we had wanted to visit for the last few years as the coffee industry there is improving really rapidly. The potential for quality is great as they have really diverse micro-climates and high altitudes. Until recently, Peru has been known for cheap, high volume, commonly organic certified lots which have been staple blenders for many. Nowadays (as producers have realised that they can achieve higher prices for better quality coffees), more attention is being given to processing with a focus on improving drying practices which is essential...