A ‘special’ cup

I am thinking this would be a good time as any to explain a bit about the coffee industry, and specifically about the variance in quality.

The specialty coffee industry demands that quality measures be considered in every step of the process: beginning with the health of the coffee trees.  Everything including cultivation, harvesting, processing and drying all are very vulnerable phases for the coffee bean.  Defects, even when infrequent, do matter and are noticeable in the cup.

As I get more and more into the coffee thing, I realize how detached most roasters are from the source of their beans.  How are specialty coffee roasters supposed to judge a green beans’ quality and ensure that for their customers?  After having this experience on a farm, I can see why concerned and committed roasters have long been visiting farms across the globe to make a difference on the farm level.

Attempts to make changes on an international or Hawaiian farm is confronted with some major challenges.  Beside the mere audacity of an outsider coming in with new ‘ideas’, internationally, there will also present differences in language, culture and socio-economic capabilities.

As any commodity industry goes, more product harvested = more money.  Thus farmers of all regions battle with the amount of labor involved to create a better tasting coffee.  A higher price may not be enough incentive, but that is the best tool a quality minded ‘greenie’ and specialty coffee advocate has.

Being able to visit a source farm is a privilege for many roasters because it can be very difficult and costly to micro-manage foreign, small lot farmers.  So, roasters often end up at the will of having to trust large coffee importers.  They, in turn, are trusting their ‘greenies’ who often source their coffee from a coffee farm cooperative.  Everyone is divvied out a slice of the pie along the way.  The money paid by a roaster is passed around to everyone attending this coffee party.  The last slice is always for the farmers, whom always get the smallest slice.  That, however is a whole different issue: ‘fairness’ aka ‘fair-trade-ness’.

Makana Gardens, even for Hawaii is unique in that they not only grow their coffee, but also move the coffee through almost every stage in the process: seed to roasted bean.  I think often how lucky I am to have this experience.

They grow their coffee, aiming to supply all their nutrient and pest control needs naturally.  They hand-pick their harvest (with the help of volunteers like me!), picking only ripe cherries for the best flavor.  They de-pulp and ferment their beans, then over-see their drying phase, keeping an eye out for defected beans.  And then they mill the beans and roast them as customers order them! Packaging, storage, and moisture levels are paid great attention so as not to damage the bean in any stage.  As I learn more and more of the journey coffee takes from seed to cup, I see how timeliness and attention to detail is imperative.  And I think I’m beginning to understand why they use the word ‘special’ to describe this growing industry.

I can’t help but feel like one of my favorite takeaways (besides the thrill of traveling one day for business) is how precious a delicious cup of coffee is.  I feel incredibly lucky to be drinking it daily.