21st de Septiembre |
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 Zaragoza, Mexico
Counter Culture Direct Trade Certified Certified Organic • Shade-Grown Direct from the remote, mountaintop farms cultivated by our close partners at the 21st of September cooperative in Zaragoza, Mexico, this incredibly aromatic, full-bodied coffee offers rich, deep notes of dark chocolate, toasted nuts, and sweet cherries. View Map. Click here for Kim Elena's November 2008 trip report from Putla, Mexico. |
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$11.75
(per 12 oz bag) | ||
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There are some places in the world, because of agricultural tradition, climate, or good fortune, that are just magic when it comes to food. Southern Mexico is one of those places—it’s got one of the richest, most delicious agricultural traditions in the world. Corn was originally domesticated in this region, and so was Cacao, from which we make chocolate. The ancients of this region, both Maya and Aztec, thought of this area as a breadbasket, a rich agricultural heartland. Today, some of the most delicious food traditions in the world come from this place, and still, foodstuffs grown in the remote mountains of the region have some sort of delicious magic.
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And so it is with coffee, which was brought here sometime in the 18th Century. Over time, coffee became part of the produce of the area, and coffee, especially from the state of Oaxaca, began to become famous for its unique quality. These days, coffee is grown on remote mountaintop villages perched on the border of land and sky, by a people still speaking Mixtec, an ancient indigenous language, and observing the agricultural traditions of the past. 
A new relationship is never easy, particularly with a fledgling cooperative of small farmers. None of these farmers had ever sold coffee directly to a roaster before, particularly one as passionate about quality as we are. Our Kim Elena Bullock took this as a personal challenge, and has spent an unprecedented amount of time on the ground in these mountains doing the grassroots work of introducing the farmers to Counter Culture, building trust and commitment, and ensuring that we have access to the very best of the harvest. The farmers of the 21st are spread out around dozens of mountaintop villages, and we’ve discovered that some of these coffees are better than others. We work with the co-op to create a “Special Lot,” crafted from the best from these villages. Kim’s extensive firsthand experience, coupled with constant cupping of the coffees, has led us to coffee greatness once again, and we are pleased to introduce it to you! 