October 30th The Coffee Report: At the Source

Akalelu and Dawit run an impressive business. On our journey to and thru Guji we stopped at two wet processing mills and a dry processing mill. The dry processing mill we visited was a small operation, which is ironic considering that 65%+ of Ethiopia's coffee is dry processed. I was struck immediately by the homogeneity of the first pile of cherries. The cherries looked incredible, just incredible. Dark even color, uniform bean size, nearly identical drying rate, and just so pretty. On a larger second pile, children, coming after Sunday school, were sorting the cherries to make some extra money. I asked the children and the adults (separately) how many days the children worked and both answered that the children only work on the weekend because they are in school Monday thru Friday. When I asked Dawit how many passes would be made on the second pile he told me more than five to ensure the quality. Surprised and slightly dumbfounded I asked why. He said this is the Ardi! After the initial surprise subsided he also told me that this was the Tinkish (the Flying Crop or first crop). Then he told me one last thing that stopped me again, "MJ, this probably won't be Ardi because the quality is very good, but not good enough." Those are very high standards you have Samuel.

Before arriving at the first wet processing mill just outside of Yerga Alem, Mother Nature played her hand and let loose a day long rain which set back harvest by at least a week. This wet processing mill was smallish in size, only able to handle around 30 quanto (100kg per quanto), but was actively processing the first harvest. All of the work at the Mill was done by hand except for the pumping of water, which still made this mill slightly more advanced than some others that use a gravity water system. The beans were laying around in almost every state: ripe red cheeries, smooth cream white silver skinned, moisture filled dull olive green, and nearly dry bright green. Seeing the beans in all these states reminded me of how intricate a process is used so I can brew my morning coffee. At this small mill nearly twenty people will touch the coffee. The farmer delivers the coffee (one), someone receives the coffee (two), it's moved to sorting (three and four), sorted (five and six), moved to pulping (same three and four), pulped (seven), washed (eight-nine-ten), drained to fermentation tanks (eleven), drained from fermentation to drying tank (eleven again), drying tank to mesh transportation screens (twelve and thirteen), spreading across raised drying beds (fourteen thru nineteen), off to storage (twenty to twenty three) and finally on trucks bound for the ECX (twenty four to twenty six). But having said all this the most striking image was of two older men. They were sweeping our "garbage" coffee into piles meant only for domestic consumption. By percentage almost no Ethiopian will drink their countries specialty grade coffee (read this as coffees purchased by high-end coffee houses) and for certain the farmers will never drink their crop. For them it's simple, sell the coffee for money to eat, or drink their dinner, clothes and tools.

The second wet process mill was a major operation and the largest of Akalelu's four mills. This mill could process, as measured by drying capacity, 220-260 quanto or roughly 50,000lbs. at a time. Unfortunately, the rain held the coffee on the trees so the mill was on a skeletal. At this size, the mill would have been a sight to see with 300 to 500 people working. Maybe next time.

Lunch and Ethiopian hospitality would not be deterred by lack of coffee or even by an intense but brief monsoon-like rain. Our hosts set out a table with chairs on the slope above the drying tables, then filled the table with roasted goat, injera and beer. Talking coffee, discussing life and having more than a few laughs we allowed the day to slip into the past. Ethiopian people have a kindness and easiness about them that is infectious and beautiful, and their children laugh and smile constantly filling the space around you with happiness. When finally the past returned to be our future we left for Hagermaram to bed down for the evening.