Let's talk about estate coffees & the fourth wave!

It seems that in various trade journals and newspapers there is a big deal being made about estate coffees and the "third wave" coffee movement. However, what exactly is an estate, and why do producers and roasters tout their product as "estate" coffee? Michael

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When I started in the coffee business over 25 years ago, I purchased coffee from five estates. Those estates were on the island of Java, and were owned and controlled by the Dutch. Way, way back when sailing ships were the main source of transportation and commerce, the Dutch controlled some of the Indonesian islands, and all but one of the Banda Spice Islands, which was the island of Run. This island is a very small island about 1.5 miles long and .5 mile wide--it was jam-packed full of nutmeg. This island was controlled by the British, and the man that secured it for them was Nathaniel Courthope. The Dutch were so greedy at this time that they had to have that last island, so they traded it for an island called New Netherlands. Today; you may know that island, except that now it's called Manhattan!

Why would I share this story? Well, because it's a true story with several facts. Also, because I'd like to propose a Fourth Wave of Coffee, one based on facts. I like to refer to this wave as, "The Truth About Coffee."

The Measure of Estate Coffee

So what exactly is an estate coffee? It is a single farm that is kept pure in itself; bringing the cherry to parchment and most of the time milling the coffee on that farm for shipment. There are exceptions, however, when some of the estates bring their parchment to a central miller. Milling or the graining process is removing the thin brittle shell of parchment from the pit of the coffee cherry, grading it for size through a screening process, then putting the beans in a burlap bag. The majority of these large estates come from Guatemala, El Salvador and Panama.

Each acre of coffee trees produces approximately 60 quintales of coffee cherry or about 6,000-lbs. total (1 quintale = [+ or -] 100-lbs). A coffee cherry yields about 20% of its weight in roastable green coffee beans. If you do a simple calculation, you realize one acre of land produces only 1.200-lbs. of coffee beans per year, that's only eight sacks of 150-lbs.

Now, most small farmers have just a few acres. Can you imagine being a little farmer with 7-17 acres of land? These little farms make up a good share of what produces the quality coffee we drink in our specialty coffee houses. To be an estate, however, you need lots of acres. These little farmers are not estates--they simply can't produce enough on the land they own. These farms cannot afford to bring their cherry to parchment. Instead, they cooperatively bring their coffee cherry together with other small farmers so they can process, blend and bag their coffee together. This is called a co-op, and it is not an estate.

Fair Trade and TransFair: Not Estate Friendly

Let's talk about the concept of Fair Trade and TransFair USA'S Fair Trade Certification. TransFair USA, a non-profit organization, is the only independent, third-party certifier of Fair Trade products in the U.S., and one of the 20 members of Fair Trade Labeling Organizations International (FLO).

The Fair Trade Labeling initiatives, including Transfair, attempt to provide third world producers with fair prices for their product, which in turn supports community development, sustainable agriculture and improved labor conditions. However, on the published 2005 FLO standard, page two states: "Small farmers can join Fair Trade, if they have formed organizations (in co-operatives, associations or other organizational forms)." This means that if you purchase Fair Trade coffee, you are buying from a coop, NOT an ESTATE.

Columbia Coffee Minute

Let us talk about Colombia for a minute. They have a limited estate involvement. The National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia (FNCC), which is famous for the well-renowned Juan Valdez, has registered shippers that deal with large mills in various areas of the country. Most of the coffee from the Cafeteros (small farms) is brought to these large mills where it is then blended. It is very tough in Colombia to isolate individual farms.

Now, remember we're talking about the "Fourth Wave" here. It is also good to note that in Colombia there is a group of ladies who lead an organization called, "Mujeres de Guayata." Although it is led by women, it is not exclusively made up of women. There are men that belong and work for the association.

This organization is a growers association, not a co-op. They sell to a large private exporter, which is called "Espinosa." I commend this group's efforts and goals because they are raising the standard of living for several small farms. However, this group is NOT an estate, nor is it a co-op, it's an association. They presently don't participate in the Fair Trade program.

Sumatra and Kenya: Progress and Auctions

Does the island of Sumatra have estates? I don't know of any. I don't believe there are any large landowners in Sumatra. It is made up of approximately 40,000 small farmers. All regional gathering of coffee cherries is done by mountain men who pay the small farmers for their cherry and take it to blending centers in Medan. This is very primitive. So, if someone has a Sumatran coffee out there and tells you it's an estate, they don't belong to the Fourth Wave of coffee.

Kenya's system is different. They hold weekly auctions where the coffee from single farms or co-ops in purchased in small lots. These lots can be anywhere from 30-100 bags. Prices can vary widely because of the way the auctions are held.

Q Auctions, the Cup of Excellence and SCAP

The "Q" Auctions, Specialty Coffee Assodation of Panama (SCAP) and the Cup of Excellence (COE) are virtual trading platforms, much like E-bay's online auctions. These online auctions give roasters a convenient "one-stop shop," if you will. Third wavers and other roasters are willing to pay more for this convenience, which are pre-screened and guarantee quality. This saves on air miles, fossil fuels and is good for the environment, but ultimately, the quality and price of these coffees is determined by cupping.

Cupping can be a controversial and subjective tool. I'd like to quote Tim Castle, from "Tea and Coffee Trade Journal's August of 2000 issues: "... is it really fair to judge the effort of the men and women who spent the last year producing a crop, by hand, with one perfunctory slurp and spit? Is it, perhaps, the height of arrogance to reduce a farm's whole production to a single swirl through the neck of a gaboon? Especially then, to hawk (pun intended) 'quality' in our packaging and advertising?"

It is imperative to cup for quality, just as long as consistency is applied. In my experience there are three uses for cupping. First, the importers or roaster cups a series of new crop coffees, checking for general quality and placement for specific customers. Second, the full-time white coat cupper works for an institutional roaster, meeting a specific taste profile. Third, cupping is used as a pretentious tool.

In almost three decades, I've cupped tons of coffee and I have never encountered one that tastes like key lime pie, watermelon, champagne, or get this--blackberry cobbler. Some roasters and coffee consultants obviously have too much time on their hands, and this gives them very vivid imaginations. What's amazing is these descriptions can be found in print, and they're also not part of the "Fourth Wave."

At Longbottom, all we can promise you with the "Fourth Wave" is the truth. We offer estates. We offer cooperative coffees. We also carry Certified Organic, Fair Trade Shade Grown Sustainable Bird-Friendly Coffees. The simple truth is we offer high quality, fine-cupping coffees that are roasted to your order everyday. We don't do inventory roasted coffee.

What we also don't do is tell someone we are direct buying coffee, which is commonly available to others through the same brokers. I find it interesting when roasters claim to be buying direct from a certain estate, when I have that same estate coffee--purchased through a broker--sitting in my warehouse. Do you think this person really went over there and directly bought this coffee?

What About Importing?

Let us turn our examination to the process of importing coffee, shall we? When you import coffee, you need to fill out a lot of paperwork to satisfy the U.S. Customs and the Food & Drug Administration (FDA). Also, you need to secure the funds for the freight itself.. When the box arrives into the U.S., it's yours. It doesn't matter if it's full of rocks, stumps or dead people--it's yours. There are no guarantees. When you purchase through a broker, quality and delivery are guaranteed. If you don't like it, they will pick it up at no charge and replace it until you do. My broker at times has had to honor this guarantee.

You normally fill a box of coffee for the economics to work out. There are things like piggy backing and other creative ways, but for the most part, you have to fill a box. A box or container equates to 37, 500-lbs. of coffee. That's a lot of coffee! So, are these people really directly importing the coffee? I don't know, maybe they are. If you're an importer, maybe you don't need to fill a box of coffee. Maybe you can put it on an airplane or on somebody's yacht.

Each chop of coffee has its own individual series of numbers that are stenciled on each bag. Those numbers must coincide during FDA and customs inspections. Maybe these 'third wavers' are not only roasting rare, unknown coffees from unknown lands, but maybe they're importers too.

Ask yourself if it makes economic and ecological sense for a micro-roaster to use its limited time and resources, cruising around the globe importing coffee at great personal risk and expense? Importing coffee is another business in itself, and for the most part, it seems to be all based on volume.

I am just a specialty coffee roaster. I roast approximately 40 containers a year, and I am not an importer! I receive samples, when the new crops are offered, from many importers that I've had relationships with for over 20 years. I cup them vigorously to assure our customer the highest quality. I concentrate my efforts on cupping, roasting, customer service and helping independently-owned coffee houses grow their business. This is not new. It is what we have been doing for nearly three decades now. It has been going on for a long, long time.

New Crop Offerings

New crops are offered when the harvesting and processing is done at the first part of the yearly harvest, and are ready for shipment. Brazil's new crop starts in August, while Colombia's in October. Kenya is harvested twice a year, in November and March. In Ethiopia, the new crop starts in February: On the Indonesian Island of Sumatra, the new crop starts in November. Most of the Central American countries either start in February or March, with the exception of Panama, which starts in January. So, if you belong to the "Fourth Wave" of coffee, you should never submit a new crop offering when that country's new crops are not available. It's simply impossible to offer all these coffees at the same time, but this is happening and it is noted in their promotional material.

Longbottom History and Roasters' Coffee Knowledge

Over 25 years ago, Longbottom was only one of about four roasters in the Portland Metro area. Now, it seems that we are one of 400! Some of these roasters are months old, some are a year or two old, and some are six or seven years old. It would be interesting to know where the third wavers get their information and education.

Recently, I read in a state business journal that a new local roaster "even goes so far as to instruct pickers on when the coffee beans should be picked." Sounds pushy? Keep in mind that he also pays more for their product than virtually any other coffee buyer." Isn't this interesting? First, coffee is picked as a cherry, not a bean. Second, this roaster hasn't seen what I pay for coffee. The fact is, these farmers have been cultivating coffee trees and harvesting coffee cherry for generations. Have we reached such a point that the roaster now knows more about coffee cultivation than the farmer?

I'd like to leave you with a little story. In the year 1934, my father boarded the ship "Rex," when he left his home country of Italy. He signed in at Ellis Island, jumped on a train and landed here in Portland, Oregon. The very next day he started working for the Teresei family in the wholesale food business (fruits and vegetables). I was raised in that business. So I've done a few other things in my life other than roasting fine coffee.

Our family had a special permit to produce wine in our home, issued by the bureau of alcohol, tobacco and taxation, now known as the ATF ("F" for firearms). In the U.S., up until 1965, you had to have a permit like this to produce your own wine. Our family's permit was for 170 gallons per year. I still make wine today. I love a good wine. If you're in my home, and I serve you a glass of wine, I can guarantee you it won't taste like key lime or coffee.

I am also a master carpenter, ships carpenter and a licensed Master Mariner. I have delivered ships for people up and down the Pacific Coast. I pretty much know most of the nooks, crannies, holes and ditches that you can take refuge in from Northern Mexico to Southeast Alaska. What I love about the ocean is that it's a truth-teller. It doesn't care who you are, how rich or poor you are. It doesn't care if you're a politician, or have the media in your back pocket. I welcome this third wave of coffee roasters, because they bring excitement and change. Just tone down the hype and join the "Fourth Wave."

WHAT IS THE THIRD WAVE?

Specialty coffee's 'Third Wave' movement is a fanatical subculture that perceives and promotes coffee with a blend of artistry and science.

Proponents of this 'Third Wave' philosophy treat every aspect of the supply chain from growing, processing, roasting and preparing coffee as integral to the quality in your cup. They increasingly view coffee like fine wine, subject to changes in climate, terroir, as well as the skill of the grower, roaster and barista. Simply put, the 'Third Wave' is about making coffee the best that it can be. I think everyone can agree that this is a laudable goal, however, there is a side to this movement that needs to be questioned. There are those who are using this philosophy to market their products; embellishing the truth to set themselves apart in the marketplace.

There is an infectious youthful fervor in this movement (this is great), but we must be careful in our zeal that we don't cheapen our industry.