Towards the end of March 2021, I spent a week working with Giancarlo Curti of Abuela Café to get his first coffee roasts designed and ready for sale. Abuela Café is based in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul. It was my first time venturing to the very southern tip of Brazil. The weather was … Read more
Colombia and Brazil are two of the largest coffee-producing countries in the world. While I live in Brazil, I recently spent 1.5 months in Colombia exploring the coffee culture in cities and visiting farms in the north and center of the country, where I roasted and cupped lots of different coffee samples. Even though they … Read more
This past August when I was in France, I met a Colombian coffee roaster named Carlos who took time out of his day to show me around his roastery and talk all things coffee. He told me about an amazing collective of specialty coffee farmers called La Real Expedición Botánica (LaREB), led by a man … Read more
November 20th-22nd, 2019… three super busy days at the Semana Internacional do Café (International Coffee Week) in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. (From here on out, I will refer to the fair as “SIC” for short.) SIC was an incredible event, and I am super grateful to have experienced it the way I did. SIC is an … Read more
For 30 days during the months of October and November 2019, I completed a roasting internship with OOP (a coffee shop/roastery) in Belo Horizonte. This was a special opportunity graciously provided by Tiago Damasceno, co-owner and roastmaster of OOP. What does “OOP” mean? Turns out it’s Afrikaans for “open”. Check out the cafés website to … Read more
If you just received an amazing bag of coffee (or one is arriving soon) and you are worried about how to prepare and store your coffee, then this article is for you! Just so you know, if you decide to click on and buy any of the products linked below, I may earn a small … Read more
If you want to make sure you are buying high-quality coffee, it’s important to understand the parts of the label and why they are important. While the prettiest and best-designed bag is bound to grab your attention first, make sure to check the other information listed on the label as well. Generally speaking, the more … Read more
In this quick article, I will attempt to explain exactly what peaberry coffee is and why some people value it at significantly higher prices than other coffee? During my time visiting coffee farmers in Minas Gerais, Brazil, I came across several examples of peaberries (commonly referred to as “moka” here). I wanted to know why … Read more
On October 6th, I took a bus from Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, to Venda Nova do Imigrante, Espírito Santo, to spend five days with Rafael Marques. Rafael, or Rafa, is a certified Q-Grader and co-owner of a beautiful piece of property called Café Arq. He shares it with his friend Emilio, an architect, so the … Read more
Find Part 1 of this story here. After my time with Sítio Vargem Grande, I packed the rental car and headed down the mountains of Alto Jequitibá to the nearby village of Alto Caparaó in the state of Minas Gerais. This would be my base for visiting three more specialty coffee farms focused on sustainability. … Read more