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Jody Carlson asked me whether or not we cupped any great naturals on our cupping caravan.  I thought I would respond to his question as a new post, as it is an interesting question.

Jody, to my surprise, we only cupped one natural on the entire caravan cupping trip. Out of 27 coffees, we cupped the Worka natural. The Worka scored well on the whole, I gave it 86-87 points which categorizes it as a Q+ coffee. It had floral and red fruit, berries and spice on the nose. In the cup it was guava with nice balanced acidity. I would be happy to serve this coffee at Transcend. Having said that, we tasted some washed coffees which were home runs in comparison.  As I have learned on this trip, I should not have been surprised to only taste one dry processed coffee in the Sidamo and Yirgacheffe regions as they are predisposed to washing coffees there (although in Yirgacheffe, only 1/3 of the coffees produced are washed).  Obviously Harrar is very well known for its natural coffees, but that has a lot to do with the climate and the lack of water available in that part of Ethiopia.

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Frankly some of the washed coffees we tasted on this trip blew my mind.  I definitely went to school on this trip in terms of what is possible in the cup when it comes to washed coffees.  We cupped a washed coffee from the Aleta Wondo region which blew my mind.  Most of the people cupping this coffee scored it 90+ and frankly it was one of the best coffees I have ever tasted out of Ethiopia; and it was definitely the best coffee we cupped on the caravan.  But we will likely be buying a couple of beautiful coffees from Yirgacheffe and Sidamo which are washed, and possess amazing structure, flavour and sweetness.  While I enjoy a great natural - we are selling the Amaro Gayo right now - they can often be a bit difficult to manage, and can present a challenge to the roaster.  I am slowly starting to find myself being drawn away from the naturals, and being drawn more consistently towards the amazing washed coffees available, not only in Ethiopia but the rest of the coffee world.

Ethiopia is a treasure trove of coffee.  There are thousands of varietals of arabica coffee growing wild in the forests of Ethiopia which have yet to be identified.  I could spend the rest of my life only drinking Ethiopian coffee and probably never come close to experiencing all that this country has to offer.  One thing that I have learned on this trip is that there are some delicious and beautiful washed coffees and there are so many more that have staggering potential.  Like everywhere else where coffee is grown, the key to great coffee is picking ripe cherries and then processing that ripe fruit in a careful and attentive manner.  One of the issues we encountered at a few co-ops had to do with inconsistent drying techniques.  Bear in mind that these were all washed coffees, and still we found that the parchment was not properly dried.  As a result the cup quality was significantly compromised. This simply goes to illustrate the challenges the farmers and co-ops face in processing their coffee.  It isn't easy, and frankly, processing natural coffee is even more risky for farmers.  So in ending this long-winded response to your question Jody I would also refer you to the interesting and educational debate on natural vs. washed coffee over at James' blog.  If you haven't read it, give yourself an hour, it is a long read but it is worth the time and effort.  BTW, thanks for the question.

Mobile Cupping Unit (Feb 21, 2010)

Today we made our way from Addis to Yirgalem.  The trip was quite long, all told we spent about 6 hours in the vans.  On the whole the trip was quite easy, apart from the duration, we made our way without incident.  The country side is dotted with farms and immaculately kept little properties.  I was impressed with the level of care and concern that is obviously given to smallholder's property.  Some little farms have the traditional round huts, and others a more square type house, but regardless, all of the small farms I saw along the way were exceedingly well kept.  We made our way to Awasa where we had some lunch, and then had our final stop in Yirgalem.  After dinner we spent a good three hours getting together a mobile cupping lab.  Starbucks had donated two mobile labs which consist of cups, a kettle, a Gene Cafe home roaster, a Barista grinder and all the other required items.  It took us about 3 hours to finally get both roasters working off of the VW Van battery, which was hooked up to a 2300 watt inverter and then converted to 220 amp power for the european power requirements.  We were up to after midnight, but after shortening runs, and doubling up cables, we finally had both roasters working and only drawing 2100 watts which was completely manageable.  The mobile lab is our back-up plan, as we hope for power at the stops we make tomorrow, but if we don't have power, the mobile lab is completely operational.  This was a cool little project, that hopefully can be replicated in other countries too.

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Yirgacheffe, a day with the Co-ops (Feb 22, 2010)

I am writing this email at 10:30 Ethiopia time.  We are in a bit rough of a hotel, no hot water in my room, loud music in the empty bar, and I am tired as we have had a full day of roasting, cupping, and meeting with producers.  We were at two co-op stations today, first at Bale Kara and then after a late lunch at a station which featured the likes of Koke, Konga and Harfu Sa.  After being up late last night and getting up early today, I am pretty tired. Today was a good day though as I tasted a couple of coffees, maybe three which would fall into the 87 - 90 point range.  All of the coffees today were washed, meaning that they possessed very defined acidity, quite nice fruit, floral characteristics, and decent body to boot.  By the way, did I say already that I am really tired.  I need and want to go to bed, but I don't want to get into the bed in my room.  I want the music to go away, truth be told, I want to teleport home just to have a good sleep in my own bed.  I think I will probably come home 10 lbs lighter than when I left.  In addition to cupping a bunch of very nice coffees today, we also spent time with some of the co-ops, chatting with them about issues of quality and their concerns about processing in general.  The bottom line is that while there is spectacular coffee in Ethiopia, there is also room for improvement, and I know that some of the co-ops can do better quality than they currently do now; given the potential that we tasted today which could be even better with more care and attention towards picking ripe coffee, and also more care in the processing of it.  All in all it has been a day where I learned more form the farmers than we taught them.

Aleta Wondo (Feb 23, 2010)

We are just in the midst of setting up our mobile cupping lab.  Today with Jeremy's help we have better electrical contacts and we think that we will be able to roast with two machines instead of one like yesterday.  We have 9 coffees to roast and cup today.  Yesterday was a good day in terms of cupping.  We stopped at two washing stations and cupped 9 coffees.  After cupping we review our scores with the farmers present and allow for questions and answers.  Willem does his spiel every day with the farmers explaining the value chain of coffee extending from the consumer in North America all the way down to the farmer in Ethiopia.  It is a visual presentation, which seems to engage the farmers.  I am typing this post sitting out in the open beside the running diesel Volkswagen Transporter which powers our mobile lab.  The caravan crew is scattered about and the farmers from this co-op are all gathered behind me.

Everywhere we go we are a spectacle.  The kids are continually running up to us yelling "you you you you you you you you" in a melodic way, and while they typically are asking us for a donation, they are mostly just curious about all of us white folk driving in caravan across their country.  They love getting their photo taken and are thrilled to see themselves in the view finder; the joy of digital photography when at origin.  Ethiopia is nothing at all like Latin America; not that I expected it to be, but now that I have been here, I can speak with authority about how differently things operate here compared to Central America.  The discussions with the various co-ops have been very instructive for me. We hear the same question being asked over and over, which essentially gets boiled down to asking for more money for the cherries picked.  Our answer has consistently focused on the correlation between quality and the price we are willing to pay for cherries.  Other issues are also talked about, for example when we were talking to members of the Harfusa co-op the other day, one of their frustrations had to do with their eco pulper (or micro mill) which wasn't separating the green cherries from the red cherries.  Part of solution to this issue is properly calibrating the pulper, but the more important issue identified in this concern has to do more with harvesting, and specifically harvesting not just red cherries.  All in all, the conversations have been very useful, for both us and the co-ops and they have been very grateful that we would make the time to come and not only visit, but cup their coffees with them right at the washing stations.

Side note, our power inverter is misbehaving again today, so now we are down to one roaster which will slow us down.  Mr. Ryan Brown from Ritual Coffee is at the Gene Cafe today, replacing me.  I have been roasting all the samples for the last couple of days and thought some one else should get to burn their hands and push the red button.

I have much to write about this trip, as I have learned so much.  I am actually pretty overwhelmed and have a lot to process.  Obviously the basics of coffee harvesting and processing remain the same no matter where you are in the world.  Pick red cherries and take care in the processing of the fruit regardless of whether it is a natural or washed process, or something in between.  But the social dynamics here are completely different than they are in Costa Rica, or Panama, or any other country, which is no surprise.  At the end of the day we are all about finding great quality coffee, and I think the responsibility of roasters within the specialty industry is to pay more money for quality when they find it.  Within the specialty industry, roasters have to start thinking about more than just differentials and the C market.  I know that I am willing to pay more, and I also know that I need to pay more for coffee, so long as that price corresponds to the quality provided.  I know that I need to work harder at the relationships I have established already, and in building new relationships.  I know that I need to work harder at communicating my expectations to both importers and farmers, so that they understand what I need, but at the same time, I  then have to be prepared to reward the quality when provided, and not simply pocket any increased margins. The growing realization for me is that we need to work together, and thankfully in this day and age of technology and efficient travel, it is much easier to build relationships and work together than ever before.

Today we got up and all headed over to Abdullah Bagersh's office for a cupping of mostly washed Ethiopia coffee.  Almost all of the coffee we cupped today was purchased on the ECX, so traceability ends at the Bagersh warehouse.  The cupping was quite enjoyable, and truthfully it is the best cupping we have had so far in Ethiopia.

The highlight of the day though was the ad hoc session we had with Abdullah before the cupping started.  Abdullah who is both an exporter in Ethiopia (famous for the Aricha and Beloya coffees of former years, now lost to the ECX) is also on the ECX board.  He spent over an hour with us walking us through the logistics of the ECX, giving us the history and rational which influenced the implementation of the ECX. It was a great session and I learned so much about the current process and had opportunity to ask questions which clarified a lot of things for me.  It was great to have time with someone so knowledgeable and integrated into the Ethiopian coffee culture.  Abdullah is a passionate and positive man focused on raising the quality of Ethiopian coffee to new heights.  I was excited to hear that he has a number of farms in various regions in Ethiopia, which means that in the years to come, he will be able to sell traceable coffee either directly or even through the DST if he so chooses.  He is committed to raising quality, now in terms of horticulture, harvesting, processing and timely delivery.  My hat goes off to him for his hospitality and his willingness to spend time with us all on a Saturday.  Tomorrow we depart Addis and head south towards Sidama and Yirgacheffe.

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To be honest, today is the first day since I left on Sunday where I have begun to feel like I wasn't run over by a bus.  It is amazing what a 10 hour time shift will do to your physical and mental well being.  Ethiopia (or I should say Addis Ababa, as we haven't been anywhere else) is overwhelming in many ways.  The smells, the sights, the food, the noise, the traffic, it all is so different than my cold world of Edmonton.  The people here are very nice, friendly, and everyone I have met has been great.  The crew along for the Round Table and Cupping Caravan are great too.  We have a good contingent with representation from Greece, Germany, the USA, and me the one Canadian.  Today was a networking day, and a day of cupping.  I got to see first hand the new grain pro bag with a ziplock (exciting).  We also finished the day off with a bit of a crazy cupping outside of the Hilton, and I say crazy as there were about 50 people cupping around a table with only three bowls per coffee.  It is always a bit of a gong show when that many people are trying to get around a table in a reasonable amount of time.  We were then over to Trabocca's office to cup the coffee that Menno and his crew have for sale this year.

To be honest, I am itching to get out of Addis and into the country of Sidama and Yirgacheffe.  I am bracing myself for the long trip, but am anxious to see the country side and the coffee.  It seems odd to travel half way around the world to spend time at a Hilton hotel (as nice as it is).  Once again I am reminded of the relationships we build in the specialty coffee world, and that is what continues to drive me forward; that and the great coffee we get to drink.  Tomorrow morning we are supposed to do a bit more cupping, and then the rest of the day is free (Lion Zoo here I come).  Then it is off to the south of Ethiopia on Sunday morning.  Events like this one continue to reinforce how much I have to learn, and how little I really know about coffee.  Ethiopia is a whole new world for me, both in terms of flavours, regions, culture, quality.  It is easy for me to start to think more of myself than I ought to when I just spend time in Edmonton.  There people tend to think of me as the "coffee guy".  Here I am a nobody, someone who doesn't understand much of anything going on.  Sure I still know what I like, and what I don't, but apart from that, I am back in kindergarden, looking wide eyed at all of the things which I have never seen before.  It is what makes the world of specialty coffee so interesting and exotic; albeit sleep deprived and exhausted, I wouldn't trade it in.[gallery]

For the benefit of the three of you out in the either world that read my blog, I thought I would post some more thoughts on the DST which occurred yesterday in Addis Ababa.  I had the distinct pleasure today of meeting K.C. O'Keefe a consultant working for ATEP in Ethiopia, who was charged with helping to put together the first DST at the Ethiopia ECX.  My conversation with K.C. albeit a short one, was enlightening, and as a result of that conversation, I feel compelled to modify my views previously expressed concerning the DST.  While my observations remain unchanged, as I witnessed the event as a complete outsider, and as such came to the event without any pre-conceived ideas, I now have some context which helps to put into perspective some of my earlier observations.

The first thing I came to understand is what an exceptionally bright young man K.C. is, and how passionate he is about growing the Direct Specialty Trade in Ethiopia.  This was exciting for me.  He presented to the round table today his vision for the specialty coffee industry in Ethiopia looking 5 years out.  While I am sure that his vision will not fully come to pass, his dreams and goals were both admirable and inspiring.  Afterwards I also found out that he was contracted to assist in pulling the first DST auction together in 4 short weeks.  This in and of itself goes a long way in explaining some of my concerns with the quality available at the auction, and the lack of bidders present.  It is nearly impossible to coordinate any major event in 4 weeks, and given the level of organization and the fact that there was actually coffee available to buy after only 4 weeks, is frankly astounding.  So with that context in place, I have to say that the DST was a HUGE success.  In fact, K.C. said that of all the work he has ever done in the world of specialty coffee, he has never worked with any group as competent and capable as those running the ECX.  I made reference in my previous post to the COE program as something that the DST could learn from, but I am sure Jon Lewis would agree with me, that the COE admin would never try and pull off a COE event in only 4 weeks.  So my hat has to go off to the ECX staff and K.C. for pulling off the virtual impossible.  I also talked to him about my idea of an electronic component to the auction process and he assured me that this idea was being considered.  Obviously getting samples out to potential buyers in four weeks would have been impossible, so the fact that there were bidders present at the DST to buy coffee, is now something of a feat.

So today I learned something, or perhaps more accurately was reminded of the fact that appearances are not always what they seem.  To an outsider yesterday, I commented that the auction seemed a bit lack-luster and I wondered aloud (prematurely, obviously) about its impact and success.  Today, with more context of how quickly the auction came together, I now have to marvel that it went as well as it did.  Knowing that, and knowing that the next auction will have more time to coordinate and prepare, I am quite sure that the coffee and the buyers will be more happily brought together.  Today during the round table, Menno Simons referred to a phrase that I found quite appropriate.  He made reference to a quote that someone made about coffee which sums up both my own, and I am sure many other's experience in the specialty coffee business.

"They say that coffee is not rocket science.... in fact it is much more complicated than that"  The reality is that the specialty coffee industry is very complicated, with multiple issues facing every stakeholder involved.  That much is reinforced for me each day that I continue my journey into my passionate pursuit of specialty coffee.

Today was an interesting day to be in Addis Ababa, and especially at the recently formed ECX (commodity exchange) as they conducted their very first Direct Specialty Trade (DST) today.  It was complete fluke that I happened to be there today, but I was nonetheless, and got to see the ECX in action.  Truth be told it wasn't very exciting, no auctioneer and with only a few buyers (all importers) in the pit, there was no spectacle.  The DST is in all honesty seemed to me to be a bit of a window dressing to the ECX, and today's auction probably didn't garner the results the ECX were looking for.  One of the problems with today's auction was the lack of perceived quality in terms of the lots available for purchase.  Many of the lots were sporting scores of 84 points or less, when combined with reserve bids of $3.00 US per pound, many did not even get a bid.  Those coffees that had some uniqueness to them sold for between $2.50 with the highest price paid of $4.02 US per pound (the average price was around $2.80, and the auction netted around $500k).  But as Jason Long from Cafe Imports told me, there wasn't enough time for co-ops or farmers to prepare select lots which could have resulted in an overall increase in quality.  So with the average quality combined with the logistical nightmare of moving 50 - 150 bags (less than a full container) it isn't worth the hassle of the premiums being sought today at the DST.  So while there is no doubt that today's auction was a step in the right direction, it was a far cry from a raging success.  I think that it has potential of offering would-be buyers with traceability, but if it is to work on a larger scale, the ECX might want to take a page out of the COE online auction, or the Esmeralda auction.  While it would likely be a huge challenge for the ECX to get samples distributed across the globe, it would allow roasters focused on quality to cup the coffees at home, and then either designate a proxy at the ECX to bid, or actually have the ability to bid online.  Getting the coffee home is another issue, but with importers like Cafe Imports already at the venue, I am sure that Jason and crew would be happy to consolidate a container or two for the right fee.  OK, enough rambling on my part for the day.  All in all, an interesting way to begin the trip.

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We are still en route to Addis Ababa, just touched down in (9pm Feb 16) Khartoun for some fuel and to drop off about half our passengers.  The rest of the flight is relatively short now.  As I said before, traveling with KLM sure makes the trip less harsh then it could be, and yet we still had a mewing cat the whole trip and many screaming kids.  I am thankful for my noise cancellation head phones, that is for sure.  I am seated directly behind Willem Boot, the fellow who has organized the round table and I also ran into Tim Chapdelaine from Cafe Imports at Schiphol Airport, who is also heading to Addis.  Frankly, it is the people of coffee which makes these trips as enjoyable as they are.  No matter how you cut it, the trip from Edmonton, to Ethiopia is very long.  The fun of this trip for me is the unexpected.  Having been to Central America a couple of times now, I feel like I have a handle on traveling down there, but this trip is a completely new thing, having never been to Africa.  I know that the caravan trip next week is going to be gruelling as the distances in Ethiopia are similar to Alberta, and we were warned to expect long trips in trucks, on bumpy roads.  Through it all, I remain more committed than ever to the direct trade model that we are on track towards.  I remain convinced that direct trade is the only truly sustainable model for quality coffee, as it is the one model which eliminates the largest number of people involved in the trade of coffee, and it ensures both traceability and a sustainable wage paid to those growing coffee.

Addis (7am Feb 17) First Impressions: Well, the sun has come up in Addis Ababa.  I didn't get much sleep as the bed in my room feels like something pulled out of the Flintstones.  The view from the hotel is quite interesting, people are up here very early, with banging and noise at 6 am.  I am about to go down and get some breakfast and see how that is done in Ethiopia.  Today the Lent season starts in Ethiopia, so people are fasting from meat, so I am not sure if we by default are fasting too.  Here are a couple of pictures from the vantage point of my room.  I will be cupping coffee a little later in the day.

It's been a rather long time since I sat down at this little piece of aluminum and contributed something to the blog.  Truth be told, it has been just a little busy around Transcend these days; what with trying to get everyone moving forward with T2 and all the rest of the growing business, it seems as if there is never any time to do this any more.  But now I am traveling, which always affords me time to contribute to the blog.  Truth be told, I hate traveling, especially when it involves multiple time zones.  Take today for example, leaving Calgary at 6:30 pm, and arriving in Amsterdam at 11 am.  This totally screws with your system, especially for someone like me who can't sleep on a plane, even under the influence of red wine and sleeping pills.  I am dead tired, and will finish this cheap glass of Vino Tinto soon and call it a night, hopefully getting some much needed rest before continuing the journey to Addis Ababa tomorrow.  Don't get me wrong, when I get there, I have a great time, I love meeting farmers, connecting with other coffee professionals, but boy do I wish that the Star Trek "beam me up Scotty" machine was a reality.  Having said all of that, if you have to fly long distances, I must say that KLM is a great way to go, as they provide exceptional service.  Air Canada could go to school on the KLM model of service for about 10 years and still not understand how to make international travel more enjoyable.