This is Matsuki from KEYAKI COFFEE.

 On the second day of our visit to Peru, we visited Familia Flores, which we used to manage two years ago!

 The family runs the farm and has been growing coffee on the land for generations.

 After learning about specialty coffees and focusing on quality, Mr. Flores told us that it had been 5 to 6 years since he started making them, but that “[making] high-quality coffee has increased his income and made his life more stable.

 I could sense the atmosphere of coffee enjoyment there, as there were HARIO and Chemex machines like in Japan.

 The farm is a little far from the residence, and it took us more than 30 minutes to drive and walk up the mountain. Anyway, it was a vast place.

 We went up to the top of the farm to see the “Marshall” variety, which is unique to this farm.

 “Marshall” is a natural hybrid of Bourbon origin and produces a floral, sweet, fruity, and complex coffee with spices like cinnamon and ginger, which was very interesting.

 Also, the altitude is about 1,800 meters, close to the equator, with mineral-rich soil, so the conditions are perfect for producing high-quality coffee. And Of course, the drying process is controlled with drying tables and rooms. I am looking forward to cupping on the last day to see how the coffee produced here tastes. I can’t help it!

 The owner of the plantation, Mr. Morito, and his father said, ” We would like to continue to produce high-quality coffee that will win at coffee fairs” I was impressed by his passion and love for coffee that came from his heart.

 After coming to Bolivia and Peru, I realized once again that there is a reason why ” high-quality coffee” becomes good and that the basic premise is to know this reason and to keep on working with great care.

 We take for granted that coffee is “delicious,” but behind the scenes, there are producers who grow coffee with love and passion, exporters, and transporters who deliver it to Japan. So when you first receive your “specialty coffee,” you realize that it is not just a “brown liquid” but an excellent product filled with the thoughts and feelings of many people.

 I could understand why people worldwide are fascinated by and indulge in “a cup of coffee,” as there is no other drink in the world.

 I was glad to have come to Peru, but some group members who were touring the farms with me began to feel sick. They were perhaps tired from the trip to Bolivia, so we decided to take a day off from visiting the farms tomorrow to rest up.

 I look forward to seeing a bit of the city of Jaén  instead.

 Our trip to Peru will end tomorrow, and the next day after that, so only a few reports are left on our visits to the production areas.

 Thank you for enjoying my blog updates so far.

 It’s not enough to tell you everything, but I would be glad if I could tell you a little bit about the production area and the farms.

#typica_lab

This is Matsuki from KEYAKI COFFEE.

On the sixth day of our stay in Bolivia, the morning began with breakfast at the farm. Then after that, we started with cupping Mr. Carmelo’s coffees.

We cupped 16 coffees in total, with Java and Gesha being particularly good, giving us a sense of the potential of the farm.

I learned for the first time that the drying process has a significant impact on the coffee, as Mr. Carmelo explained: “We added drying beds and installed a drying room last year, which has stabilized the quality of the coffee.”

Many coffees seemed to show Mr. Carmelo’s serious and genuine nature. It got me thinking that coffee truly reflects a person’s character while I was cupping the coffee.

It’s a clean cup, with subtle differences in variety and terroir. I felt grateful to have been allowed to taste this precious coffee, which is the result of their research and verification.

We had the opportunity to cup Andy’s coffee after lunch. Carmelo’s coffees are washed, which is traditional, whereas Andy’s are fermented.

The varieties he grows are Geisha and Catuai

The complexity of the flavor was created by using carbonic maceration and anaerobic fermentation in the process.

I could tell immediately from the cupping that it was an exceptional coffee. But, above all, the coffee remained sweet even after cooling down, and it was a testament to its high quality.

There were five different coffees, but all of them were wonderful, and I enjoyed each cup because each cup had a different flavor.

Seeing Andy’s trial and error in the fermentation process was exciting. Whether anaerobic, carbonic, or natural, it was an exciting cupping experience.

I thought it would surely attract a lot of attention in the future because it was possible to data-code everything and reproduce the same process.  So it would be possible to design coffees for competitions from roasters and baristas around the world in the future.

Finally, I was very impressed by how Carmelo and Andy’s expressions seemed stiff until the cupping, yet they smiled whenever they heard positive feedback.

I instinctively knew that I had traveled dozens of hours from Japan to see the change in the expression on their faces.

Producers are always very meticulous in their work and make good coffee.

However, they were very eager to know the evaluation of the coffee and whether it was what people would want to buy.

Today’s event at the farm was a big turning point for me. It made me realize that we can make the world an even better place to drink coffee by providing feedback to producers who are trying to make a good product.

It was just a small action, but it was a moment I thought could make a difference in the world.

I believe that coffee is something that “spins thoughts.”

Until now, the connection has been from the roaster to the barista and then to the customer. However, from now on, the start will be the producer.

What kind of thoughts did the roaster have in mind when making the coffee, and what flavor did he want to achieve?

The roaster considers this and roasts the coffee in a way that maintains its potential.

The barista is there to fine-tune the drink to the customer’s needs to create the perfect cup for them. I believe that the barista makes the best cup for the customer by fine-tuning the coffee according to the customer’s needs.

That relay would not be possible without any one of them.

That is why coffee is so interesting.

I can’t share today’s excitement with you immediately, but I would like to introduce the new Bolivian crop to our Japanese customers as soon as it arrives.

KEYAKI COFFEE  Matsuki

This is Matsuki from KEYAKI COFFEE.

On my third and fourth days in Bolivia, I visited the Agricafe, which has the largest farm in Bolivia!

Currently, the ‘Bolinda’ coffee that we serve in our store comes to us after going through the production process at Agricafe.

It has been my dream for the past ten years to come here, having loved Agricafe’s coffee ever since I started working as a barista. So I was thrilled to be able to come here.

After a cupping session with Don Pedro, Pablo, and Daniela, we toured the AgriCafe factory.

I felt as if I was at the cutting edge of coffee production in today’s world. The complete quality control from cherry cleaning to processing, the scientific investigation of the flavor produced by the soil and the variety, and the way the process compensates for the lack of flavor were beyond my imagination.

It was also exciting to visit and see the various innovations and efforts in the processing and drying process because it was very different from the farm and production processing plant I had in mind.

At the end of the tour, we were allowed to sample roast in the lab and roasted coffee for tomorrow’s brewing competition.

Don Pedro told us that he would give the winner some Geisha coffee, which got everyone pumped up.

Agricafe is full of professionalism and humor; it was simply the best.

The next day, we had a barbeque together at the Las Alasitas farm, held a brewing competition, and experienced things we don’t normally get to do!

The coffee I brewed in front of my favorite farm was fantastic, and I hope to be able to come back again next year and the year after.

At the end of the event, we gave Don Pedro some ‘Bolinda’ coffee from Agricafe and took pictures with him.

It felt like a dream and time flew by so fast, but it was a priceless moment for me!

Many thanks to Don Pedro, Pablo, Daniela, and everyone at Agricafe!

I look forward to receiving samples of this year’s lots soon.

I await the day when we can introduce them to our customers in Japan.

#typica_lab

On the last day of my stay in Bolivia, there was a “sample cupping” with a lineup of coffee from the producers that I had met.

The place was Nayra Qata, a dry mill run by Juan, whom we met when we first arrived in Bolivia. The parchment coffee collected here gets processed and exported to us.

There were 55 cups of coffee provided by Nassia and Rolando from Taipiplaya, Fernando Calle and Celso from Caranavi, and other producers who prepared samples for today’s event.

 The cups were arranged on the edge of the table, and the producers anxiously observed us.

The producers watched as we cupped and we were nervous, too, about how they evaluated the beans we roasted and the coffee we brewed.

We could tell by their eyes that the producers were looking for the roaster’s opinions, so we put a lot of effort into the cupping process.

Some cups needed a little more tweaking when we cupped them, while others stood out remarkably.

I evaluate the good ones correctly and look for positives, even those that seem a bit negative.

But I kept tasting and taking notes until the very end so that I could give feedback on my impressions.

I cannot afford to skimp on even a single cup when considering the possibility that this evaluation might affect the producer’s state of mind.

The result was that I could give feedback on all the cups, but it was the most exhausting part of the trip to Bolivia, as I had concentrated too much and felt tired afterward.

After cupping, we had lunch and took pictures with the producers to deepen our interaction.

It is a little sad to think that from tomorrow we won’t see each other again, but it was a very fulfilling eight days with more places I want to come back and visit.

Although I can’t wait to get back to Japan to talk to our customers and staff, I am going straight to Peru.

Since I have been given the opportunity to visit several farms in Peru, I hope to enjoy myself while getting plenty of motivation here.

So, keep your eyes peeled for the Peru edition!

#typica_lab

In Taipiplaya, we met Nassia and her family, Juan of Nayra Qata, and a farm owner, Roland. After lunch, we visited Roland’s farm in the afternoon in our first farm visit of the tour.

I’d heard that Roland’s farm is on the smaller side in Bolivia. But for someone who visited a coffee farm for the first time, everything I saw, I heard, I felt brought fresh discoveries and strong emotions.

From freshly picked coffee cherries to parchment during the drying process to coffee trees sectioned off according to variety. A view I’d only seen in pictures and videos was now unfolding in front of my eyes. It finally sank in that my 10-year long dream of visiting a coffee farm had come true!

Roland was happy to see roasters visiting him from Japan, and told us many things.
Roland explained what he does on his farm, how he cultivates coffee as trees grow and differences between varieties. He was willing to answer any questions that I’d come up with in my day-to-day life.
(He speaks Spanish, so none of this conversation would have been possible without Mai of TYPICA, who interpreted for us. Thank you always Mai!)

I have nothing but gratitude to TYPICA for giving me this chance to come all this way to Bolivia and talk with a farm owner!
I really appreciate this precious opportunity.

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On Day 2 of the Bolivia tour, we visited the farm of Nassia, a farm owner in her 20’s.

Nassia, whose family has been growing coffee since her grandfather’s generation, is a third-generation coffee farm owner.
Her farm is large and grows various fruits and herbs. I could feel that she deeply cares about nature while running her farm.

She focuses on organic farming out of consideration for soil and the environment. There is a lot to learn from her emphasis on making sure that everything is circular. This is probably the key behind her high-quality coffee.

Nassia is grateful to the land, her generations-old farm and her family and respects us roasters. Spending time with her made me want to drink coffee grown here. I would love to introduce her coffee to many people if I can use her coffee in Japan.

I’m all the more excited when I think that I will be able to meet more coffee producers during this tour.
The last two days have been really eventful. But I still have a lot more things I want to know and ask.

I want to enjoy the remaining three days to the fullest, one day at a time.

Please stay tuned for more updates!!

KEYAKI COFFEE
MATSUKI

I get so excited I can’t sleep when I think that I am about to experience the scenes I’ve only seen in photos and videos.

My mind has always been filled with thoughts about coffee origins. For the last 10 years, I’ve longed to know who is involved in coffee where and in what way.

I want to share my experience in a coffee origin with as many people as I can, feeling grateful that I will be able to more deeply explore coffee, which enriches our lives.

Please look forward to a series of my reports going forward.

Also, please look forward to seeing what I will think and what I will tell after visiting Bolivia and getting new values.

KEYAKI COFFEE

Matsuki