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June
29,2010

Now Brewing: Peets Ethiopian Fancy

Author | Marc Wortman

I am a member of the Peetniks Coffee Club.  This is a recurring coffee delivery program where I get a pound of coffee delivered to me in intervals of my choosing – in my case one pound every four weeks.  The coffees I get are also up to me, or I can leave it to the experts to decide what I get.  Each pound arrives with the date that the coffee was roasted by Peet’s so I know I’m getting it fresh.

The Peetniks Club is offered by Peet’s Coffee and Tea.  I have my favorite coffees but leave the selection up to one of their Coffee Tours.  This week, I received a pound of their Ethiopian Fancy.  I have yet to receive a coffee from Peet’s I didn’t like and this one is no exception.


As far back as we can trace, all coffee originates from Ethiopia, exported from the Arab world to the rest of the world through ports in neighboring Yemen.  For many, Ethiopian coffee is still the finest coffee in the world and certainly there’s the intrigue of drinking coffee from its origin.  For a time, internal strife in Ethiopia had an effect on the consistency and quality of coffee out of that region but that has changed greatly over time.

Ethiopian coffee has a medium body, so neither too thick nor too thin.  It’s fully of very “bright” flavor, with high tones and sometimes described as the world’s most distinct.  The beans used by Peet’s in this coffee are meant to deliver a floral almost perfumed aroma common to coffees from this region.

While not formally certified, Peet’s Ethiopian Fancy coffee is also organically grown.

Click here to learn more about Ethiopian coffees.

Categorized In | Buying Coffee Questions, coffees of the world

May
13,2010

The Story of Juan Valdez

Author | Marc Wortman

Coffee was introduced to Colombia in the early 1800s.  It is grown today all along the Andes Mountains that cross Colombia from north to south.  There is a misconception that Colombia is the world’s largest producer of coffee, which is to be expected given the success of their marketing that dates back to 1959.  That was the year that Colombia introduced the world to the fictitious character known as Juan Valdez.


Go back 32 years further still to 1927 when Colombian coffee growers founded the FNC, or the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia.  The group was formed for common purpose, including the maintenance of quality from that region, which benefits all of its growers.  Also, an opportunity for growers to collaborate in improving the quality of life and development of coffee growing areas, and ensure an organized economy for exporting it worldwide.  Today, the FNC represents something in the order of half a million Colombian coffee farmers.

It was in 1959 that the FNC partnered with DDB Worldwide, one of the world’s largest advertising agencies, in order to launch a North American ad campaign that first featured iconic Juan Valdez.  The intent was to give a face to the Colombian coffee grower for consumers.  While Brazil produces more coffee, this campaign made Colombian coffee perhaps the most famous coffee among North American consumers.  The campaign lives to this day and Juan Valdez remains the familiar face of Colombia coffee.

Since launching the icon, FNC has taken protection of its brand very seriously.  There have been two recent and well known instances of lawsuits by the FNC.  One of the most well known was its action in 2006 against the “Juan Valdez drinks Costa Rican coffee” slogan.  Cafe Britt in Costa Rica was to launch a t-shirt displaying the slogan.  The original meaning of the slogan that also appears on bumper stickers in Costa Rica, is in reference to the original actor that played Juan Valdez in the commercials, Jose Duval, and his love of Costa Rican coffee.  Given the popularity of the name “Juan Valdez”, Cafe Britt was able to produce a Costa Rican by the same name to justify the campaign.

More recently in January 2009, the FNC brought action against cartoonist Mike Peters, creator of the Mother Goose and Grim comic strip.  The lawsuit contends that Peters made unauthorized reference to Juan Valdez and Colombian coffee.  The suit was filed for $20 million in damages.

Hand it to the FNC, they have surpassed the world’s largest coffee producer in recognition on the strength of a marketing campaign.  This has meant an increase in quality of life for this coffee producing country.  They have created an instantly recognizable icon that many people attach to coffee in general, much less that specifically from Colombia.  And like any good marketer, they keep a tight grip on the brand’s integrity which is now over 50 years strong.

Categorized In | coffees of the world

April
29,2010

Mommy, where does coffee come from?

Author | Marc Wortman

Check out my profile of the Ueshida Coffee Company (UCC) in Kona Hawaii.  It was more than just an excellent tour of a coffee farm in one of the coffee world’s most esteemed places.  It was a lesson in where coffee comes from.

While it was a great lesson from the UCC, there is more to the origin of coffee than this.  For example, it’s not everybody that realizes that all coffee originates from Ethiopia and Yemen.


The tale goes that farmers couldn’t figure out what was getting their goats so excited.  They called them “dancing goats” and realized it was because they were eating what we know today as the coffee cherry.  The farmers consulted with Sufi mystics to get advice.  These mystics found a beverage made with the leaves and cherries of this tree kept them alert for hours of prayer, but not didn’t intoxicate them.  Coffee was born, and our first example of people using it to carry out their long duties while staying alert.

For centuries, Arabia controlled the trade of coffee.  They would only sell it roasted or else treated in water so that it wasn’t fertile and couldn’t be planted elsewhere.  Coffee was largely made available to the world through the Mokha Port in Yemen (identified below).  Rumor has it that a pilgrim from mecca and a Dutch importer separately smuggled raw coffee beans to India and Amsterdam respectively, and Arabia could not stop experimental growing in regions around the world.  The coffee cat was out of the bag.

In the 17th century, it found its way to Europe and led to the popularity of coffee houses.  The drink was advertised as a way to sharpen the senses, rather than dull them like alcohol does.  This appealed to the studious, and coffee houses became meeting places for academics and the educated of all types.

Strangely, the biggest detractor to the growth of coffee were women who were employed in ale houses and noticed the drop in business.  In 1674, the Women’s Petition Against Coffee was drafted, warning men that coffee would make them “as barren as the desert out of which this unlucky berry has been imported”.  The best part is that by this point, there were prostitutes in the coffee houses so if the men couldn’t perform at home because they’d just come back from a coffee house, they’d tell the wives it was the coffee affecting them.  Supposedly, this is how the rumor began that coffee leads to impotence!

Coffee did not successfully grow just anywhere that farmers tried to plant it, but today, is grown in 70 different countries whose climate meets growing requirements.   Today, it is the world’s second most traded commodity after oil!  My opinion (maybe somebody’s said it before): ironic that oil and coffee are the world’s two most traded commodities, one fuels our technology, the other fuels our people.

For fans of the movie Bucket List, the most expensive coffee in the world comes from the excretion of the Asian palm civet, a small feline animal that loves to eat coffee cherries.  The civet’s system does not completely digest the cherry but apparently, adds a musky flavor that is a perfect complement to coffee.  It just means cleaning up after the civets and unfortunately, I assume the guy who has that job does not see very much of the price that this coffee fetches.  I don’t even want to know who discovered this coffee and why.

Categorized In | Coffee Education, coffees of the world

February
23,2010

Brazil now producing a third of world’s coffee

Author | Marc Wortman

It’s official…Brazil produced a third of the world’s coffee last year.  Well technically, they are producing 32% of it, but that’s up from 29% in 2008.  This is the result of an increase in production of almost 10% over what was cultivated in 2008.

How many bags of coffee is that?  30.3 MILLION 60-kg sacks exported, contributing over $4 billion to the country’s gross domestic product.  The key message from the International Council of Coffee Exporters (CECAFE) is that a global recession in 2009 did not impact overall coffee consumption in key markets, including the US, Germany, and Japan.

I think it’s an interesting year to reflect on, particularly in the US market where retail leader Starbucks shut down 800 stores (not to mention 60 stores in Australia and 40 more spread around the world).  If Brazil’s exporters say there isn’t a recession in the coffee world while Starbucks closes 900 of its company-owned stores in the face of a retail recession, I take it that everybody is still drinking just as much coffee, just not as much from Starbucks.  Recessions can change the spending patterns of consumers.  Of course, that observation could be shortsighted, as shares of Starbucks sold on the NASDAQ felt the pain in 2008, with 2009 being an extremely positive year for Starbucks investors.

Learn more about Brazilian Coffee.

As an aside, here are your also-rans:
- 2nd place: Vietnam, 18% global market share
- 3rd place: Colombia, 8% global market share

Coffee is the world’s second largest-traded commodity.  The first is oil.  I guess we have a thing for black liquid.

Categorized In | coffees of the world

February
20,2010

Peets Uzuri African Blend

Author | Marc Wortman

Peets Coffee and Tea has announced that it will introduce a new coffee blend called Uzuri African Blend. The launch is the result of hundreds of hours of hands-on farmer training by Peet’s coffee buyers.  This blend promises to offer coffee drinkers with an exceptional cup while at the same time generating income for 6,000 small-scale farmers in Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda.

This region of Africa is known for coffee with floral and aromatic flavors, and a flavor in the cup that is smooth, bold, and with dark berry overtones.  It represents the opportunity for a unique coffee experience while encouraging economic development in the area that gives it to us.  Uzuri (pronounced oo-ZUR-ee) will be available on Peets website for $13.95/lb.  It will be a new permanent coffee blend for Peets, their first new blend in eight years.

The name Uzuri means ”excellent” and ”beautiful” in Swahili and was chosen by the newly trained African farmers who will grow the coffee beans.  To make this effort a reality, Peet’s collaborated with the not-for-profit TechnoServe to bring the distinct flavors to North American coffee enthusiasts while creating a sustainable business model for thousands of farmers and their communities.

In my opinion, this is truly a win-win situation and I commend Peets for the undertaking.  Not only do we get to enjoy a new blend with confidence that it will meet Peets’ harsh standard for quality in coffee…but we also help out the otherwise poor community that produces it for us.  I will be getting a pound on order.

Categorized In | Buying Coffee Questions, coffees of the world

February
17,2010

The Coffee Investment

Author | Marc Wortman

I learned today that Colombia’s environmental agency IDEAM is predicting unseasonably scorching hot weather to take Colombia through February and into March.  When temperatures lighten up in April, they’ll be followed by rain showers, but even those will be below the average for this time of year.  This announcement comes in the wake of ongoing forest fires at a high and major rivers at a low.

It got me thinking about an investment book I once read that said if there is unseasonably high rain in Brazil, buy shares of Starbucks.  See why?  If not, it’s good to learn about the coffee investment and I know I needed the refresher.

Coffee trades as a commodity on the New York Board of Trade.  It trades alongside other commodities like oil, sugar, cocoa, metals, etc.  When you invest in coffee as a commodity, you are buying what’s called a futures contract, a standard contract to buy or sell a certain amount of coffee at a specific future date for a specific price.  The coffee in question is green, unroasted coffee since the idea before a commodities market is that the commodities are unprocessed for the most part.  Once you roast coffee, you’re processing it on its way to the retail market and into the cupboards of coffee drinkers everywhere.

There are investors who see coffee investment plays and the price of a futures contract is generally used by coffee exporters to determine the price of coffee.  There are some generally accepted standards for what coffees can go for a premium over the commodity price and what coffees can go for a discount.  However, the one thing that generally doesn’t change is what we consumers pay for coffee.  It would be a crazy world if you didn’t know the price of your cup of brewed coffee or pound of whole bean coffee until you got to the cashier and he needed to check the commodities exchange for the latest price.  What that means is that the buck stops at the consumer.  Larger retailers can flex their muscle and insist on standard or fairly standard prices so that they don’t have to deal with the price fluctuations.

But at some point, somebody between the exporter in the coffee-producing country and the retailer that sells the coffee to consumers has to deal with these fluctuations.  It the commodity price jumps, you and I pay the same for our coffee but people in the chain make less money for themselves.  If the commodity price drops, you and I still pay the same but people in the chain make more money for themselves.

So if it’s raining unseasonably in Brazil, the world’s largest producer of coffee, then coffee farmers will have more coffee to harvest than what was estimated.  This will increase the supply of coffee to the world, so that if demand for coffee stays the same, the commodity price of coffee will drop.  Supply high, demand same, price drops – if supply drops then there is less of that thing and therefore it fetches a higher price.  So in our example, the world’s largest coffee retailer Starbucks will pay less for the coffee they buy but charge us the same for the coffee that we buy from them.  That means when it’s raining unseasonably in Brazil, Starbucks will make more money that year and you should invest in them before they do so you can share in the profits as a shareholder.

So all of this came to mind today when I learned about the heat wave about to continue in Colombia.  Colombia is now the world’s third largest producer of coffee after Vietnam, and a large supplier.  This weather news does not bode well for Colombia’s coffee crops and consequently, the supply of coffee to the world.  If Brazil can’t pick up the slack, there will be a lower supply of coffee in the world and provided demand stays the same, an increase in coffee prices.

I went to the Intercontinental Exchange, which lists commodity trade charts.  For news likely unrelated to what’s going on in Colombia, the price of coffee has been dropping all day…a good time to buy a contract in light of the news out of Colombia?  It will take a finer investment mind than me to answer that question, but I’m thinking of dabbling in the commodities market for the first time in my life.

Categorized In | Coffee News, coffees of the world

January
30,2010

Guatemalan crime wave hits coffee sector

Author | Marc Wortman

Crime continues to be an ongoing problem in the country of Guatemala.  According to Guatemala’s National Coffee Association and its Association of Coffee Exporters, it has most recently hit its number one export, coffee.  Police reports indicate that coffee growers are reporting the theft of coffee beans from their farms, and exporters are reporting being hit as well.

Guatemala is the world’s eighth largest producer of coffee, producing approximately 4 million 60-kg sacks each year.  The country’s high-grown beans, particularly those grown on the southern volcanic slopes, are considered by  many to be the best coffee in the world.  For yours truly, there is no better coffee in the world.  This export accounts for almost $600 million of the country’s gross domestic product, and employs approximately half a million Guatemalans.

For the sake of my coffee tastes, but even more so for the sake of the coffee growers and exporters that are taking this crime on the chin, I hope authorities are able to increase security and combat this problem.  As with many of the coffee producing countries along the ‘coffee belt’, these growers might be the country’s entrepreneurs but are by no means wealthy.  Nobody needs to have their harvest robbed in this way, and police are providing guidance on how growers and exporters can strengthen security along their supply chain.

Learn more about Guatemalan coffee.

Categorized In | coffees of the world

January
21,2010

Peets’ Arabian Mocha Sanani

Author | Marc Wortman

There’s a popular quote I can’t find about how you only feel guilty the first time you do it.  Well, this is the third straight month that I steal a pound of coffee from the Peets’ Coffee Tour that I bought for my parents.  The first time was to “help them” with their personal overstock of coffee.  The second time was because I’d be hosting them over the holidays so I could make them their own coffee.  This time…uh…this time, I just took it!

If Guatemalan coffee is my favorite coffee in the world, second place is a close tie between Kenyan coffee and Yemeni Mocha coffee.  As long as the word “mocha” comes up, we want to make sure we’re talking about the same thing.

Mocha has become associated with chocolate over time, particularly in the famous Cafe Mocha drink that combines chocolate and coffee in any number of ways.  But, the original actual use of “Mocha” is derived from the name of the Yemeni port from which coffee was first exported to the world from the growing regions of Yemen and neighboring Ethiopia.  Coffee grown in that area to this day still bears the name Mocha, or Arabian Mocha to differentiate it from chocolate.  Since all coffee originates from this area, the Arabian Mocha along with Ethiopian coffee is for many the oldest and most authentic coffee there is.

A true Mocha is grown in Yemen.  For a vendor that goes to the expense of sourcing a true Mocha, they will usually put the name of the growing region on its label, either Mattari, or in Peets’ case, Sanani.  Either region provides a full-bodied coffee.  While a Mocha can ironically carry chocolate tones, it is also VERY aromatic and in that way helps you appreciate just how much the sense of smell can contribute to the flavor of a coffee.

If you’ve heard of the Mocha Java blend of coffee, it is meant to be one of the most balanced blends, combining the bold Mocha coffee with the mellow Indonesian Java coffee.  A Mocha Java is a nice coffee, but if you LIKE coffee, try Arabian Mocha coffee on its own.

For the third straight month, I’ve brewed some as quickly as it arrived.  The beans went straight from the Peets packaging that is stamped to tell me that it was fresh-roasted less than a week ago and into an airtight container to maintain freshness.  And the empty bag?  There’s no way it goes in the garbage yet.  It’s sitting next to this computer as I type this, lined with oil from the coffee beans that is filling this room with an amazing coffee scent as I enjoy a cup of it.  I have a feeling I’ll be up late tonight.

Categorized In | Buying Coffee Questions, coffees of the world

January
9,2010

Hacienda San Pedro

Author | Marc Wortman

This week, a friend hit me with a very unexpected but very welcome gift…a pound of single-estate Puerto Rican coffee.  The estate is Hacienda San Pedro, a fourth-generation plantation in the town of Jayuya, just outside of San Juan.  It’s ironic, most people just don’t think to give me the gift of coffee, probably because they think they might not buy the ‘right kind’.  But anytime you are walking the streets this close to the source, you are getting single-estate coffee at its best.  To bring that kind of product home avoids all the steps of the supply chain that each take some measure of freshness out of the coffee, whether it’s on its way to a reputable cafe or worse still, into a grocery store.

Connaisseurs like their blends because they know that no single estate can produce a coffee with a range of flavor covering enough of the spectrum.  But we also know that there’s no finer way to isolate a coffee accent than from a single estate.  And that is how you get to know the individual accents that make up a great blend.  It might be in such a coffee that you find the accent in coffee you like most and many single-estate coffees today are regarded as far ahead in quality and experience over the blends that comprise them.

Puerto Rico has an interesting coffee history.  Up until the 20th century, it was one of the world’s largest producers of coffee (sixth).  In the transition from Spanish colony to American commonwealth, something was lost in both the quality and institutional management of cultivation and exportation, and it has yet to reach its previous grandeur.  Which is unfortunate, because at elevations above 3,000 feet, Puerto Rico has the potential to grow and export a premium coffee.  It’s admirable to see a family-run plantation like Hacienda San Pedro persist and with good fortune, the family will reap the rewards if the region’s overall quality management improves.

This pound of coffee came pre-ground, which isn’t ideal but it was vacuum-sealed.  I couldn’t smell the coffee before opening the bag so I am satisfied with it being fresh as though I bought it from the source myself.  If it was going to sit in my kitchen over a long enough period, it would lose its freshness.  Fortunately not a concern for me, I’ll get through it in about three weeks.  Interestingly, it was ground fine so no chance I can brew any in my Bodum french press or it would come out like mud.  At that grind level, I decided to dust off the espresso machine and make myself a double.

Unless it was in a blend, I’ve never had Puerto Rican coffee before.  Hacienda San Pedro advertises a robust “yet velvety taste that surprises the palate”.  This is a match for how coffee from that region should taste, and actually in line with most Caribbean-grown coffee.  That is, smooth, fragrant, and with a surprisingly powerful taste.  This coffee delivered.  The first sip of my double espresso indeed surprised the palate, enough that I gave it a double-take.  There was definitely a bittersweet accent that is ‘crowded out’ of a blend, and again, this is the very benefit of trying the occasional single-estate coffee.  Of course, that accent might be more pronounced for me drinking mostly Peets Major Dickason and Starbucks Espresso Blend for the last several weeks.  I’ll be juggling the three coffees this month, and this one will be excellent for balance in what I have on the shelf right now.

This morning, I drip-brewed a pot and the coffee was definitely milder in flavor than when Italian-brewed.  Likely due to the fine grind, it also had a lighter body.  Like Starbucks Breakfast Blend though, that’s not a bad thing for my first cup of the day.  As the day goes on however, I’ll be looking for something with a thicker consistency so my plan will be to save this coffee for espressos or else the occasional red eye coffee.  What’s a red eye? That’s what many people call a Caffe Americano – a shot of espresso in your drip-brewed coffee.  As an aside, the Americano is technically a shot of espresso in hot water to dilute it.

Roberto Atienza, fourth-generation coffee grower

Roberto Atienza, fourth-generation coffee grower

This is not a coffee you will find even in your cafe, which doesn’t likely carry a Puerto Rican coffee at all.  Because of that and before internet commerce, you would have missed your chance to try this excellent example of Caribbean coffee taste.  The internet now puts you directly in touch with the source, and you can learn more and order directly from this plantation’s website, Hacienda San Pedro.

I am pleased with my first single-estate Puerto Rican coffee.

Categorized In | Buying Coffee Questions, coffees of the world

January
2,2010

Ethiopia and the world of coffee

Author | Marc Wortman

This past week, Ethiopia’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said it plans to earn more than USD $892 million from the export of coffee in the next budget year.  This corresponds to approximately 320,000 tons of coffee, or almost five million bags of coffee exported around the world, including to Germany, Saudi Arabia, Italy, USA, Japan, and many Middle Eastern countries.

Ethiopia is the fifth largest producer of coffee, trailing Indonesia.  To put it in perspective, Ethiopia sells about a seventh as much coffee to the world as the largest producer, Brazil.  However, Ethiopian coffees are generally regarded with more appeal among connaisseurs.  And there’s more romance to it because Ethiopia is the birthplace of all coffees.  The original coffee trees were harvested in Ethiopia and originally exported to the world through port trade in neighboring Yemen.  From there, many attempted to grow the tree all over the world but only certain climates would support it.  Luckily for us, some of the supporting climates also yielded a wider range of coffee flavors that one get simply from the original Ethiopian coffee.

Today, coffee is still Ethiopia’s largest export commodity.  The same budget announced investment in their coffee laboratories where they study ways to produce higher-quality and more disease-resistant coffees.  I wish I had a cup of it right now!

Categorized In | coffees of the world

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