BRAZIL
The Cerrado region, in southwestern Minas Gerais, is known for its homogeneous climate and altitude. The average temperature is around 68°F, an average rainfall of 1,600 mm falls reliably from December to March, and the altitude lightly rolls from 900 to 1,250 meters above sea level. Such consistency is a big help to producers - who can focus on quality and production, instead of the weather - and to our colleagues at Stockler. “The main thing in Cerrado is the uniformity,” says Alexandre Ferraz, a Q Grader and Senior Coffee Trader at Stockler. “The weather conditions allow for a lot of control, and the farmers in Cerrado are very professional and very high tech. Their use of harvesting machines, for example, allows them to better control the exact moment to harvest, which also contributes to uniformity.” Cerrado is home to approximately 140,000 hectares of dedicated co ee production and approximately 3,600 co ee producers, the majority of whom are organized into large cooperatives. Stockler enjoys working with the same farmers, and has strong relationships across the region, but the contributors to Oberon change each year, as the focus in on an absolutely consistent cup profi le. Co ee farms in Cerrado vary in size from roughly 100 hectares to more than 3,000 hectares. And producers tend to be very open to feedback, says Alexandre, if they believe it will improve their cup quality. “We encourage the producers to trace their best co ees to particular lots, so we can trace not only to the farm but to the specifi c location on the farm.”
COLOMBIA
The team at SKN, our sister company in Colombia, cupped through hundreds of samples at the San Jose mill in Neiva to build this regional blend that's bright, creamy and sweet.
Around Huila, several purchasing agencies meticulously control each purchase to guarantee traceability and quality. Small farms here are mostly planted with Caturra, and processing is very traditional. Producers use hand-cranked de-pulping machines to remove the cherry from the beans and dry the coffee on raised beds to provide good air circulation and even drying.
SKN has 16 agronomists who work with 4,000-plus producers and are increasingly emphasizing cup quality.
