News Archive
Back from the Road: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, The Direct Specialty Trade Auction
3-10-10
As you may know, about a year ago and half ago Ethiopia radically changed the way coffee was traded throughout the country. A trading platform called the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange (ECX for short) emerged and the old auction system was done away with. The new system focused on real-time pricing and trading broken down for virtually every unique region and processing style within Ethiopia. Our Head Roaster Tim Hill traveled to Ethiopia to attend the inaugural Direct Specialty Trade Auction and filed a report about the experience.
Read Tim's full report from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in our COFFEE ORIGINS section.
Thanks,
Nathan
From the Road: The Secret Coffee Farmers of East Java
2-23-2010
Counter Culture's Director of Coffee and co-owner Peter Giuliano filed a trip report last week from ... Java! In his report, Peter offers an overview of the history of coffee production on this volcanic island that became synonymous with coffee itself. Peter recounts a coffee epiphany at his first job as a barista in 1987, the emergence of an underground Arabica trade, and his travels in the Javanese hills to explore the region, meet coffee farmers, share coffee with them, and tour their farms. Read Peter's full trip report in our ORIGINS section.
Best,
Nathan
Dean & DeLuca Features Counter Culture Coffee in Iron Chef-style Competition
2-10-10 Our friends at Dean & DeLuca recently invited five of their executive chefs from around the country to New York for an Iron Chef-inspired battle of culinary artistry and skill. Much to our surprise and delight, Counter Culture Coffee was revealed as the “secret” ingredient the chefs were instructed to use in every one of their five dishes! Delicious, creative highlights included seared scallops with French lentils and a coffee-citrus sauce; beef with a coffee and chili rub with Romanesco vegetables in coffee oil; and fresh berries with a coffee-infused mascarpone.
Read more about the event, including the results, at Dean & DeLuca’s Gourmet Food Blog.
Best,
Mark
From the Road: Salaam from Sumatra
2-9-10
Counter Culture's Director of Coffee and co-owner Peter Giuliano filed a trip report this weekend from Jagong, Sumatra, where he visited our partners, the Gayo Organic Coffee Cooperative, and their leader and exporter, Mr. Irham. In his report, Peter outlines the progression of Counter Culture's relationship with the co-op, changes within the Gayo infrastructure, and recent harvest initiatives by contributing farmers. Read Peter's full trip report in our ORIGINS section.
Thanks,
Nathan
From the Road: Honduras to Nicaragua
1-22-10
Counter Culture Coffee Sustainability and Producer Relations Manager Kim Elena Bullock is in Central America visiting several of our producer partners. Last week, she spent time with Roberto Salazar at his farm Finca Pashapa in La Labor, Honduras, and arrived in San Ramon, Nicaragua, earlier this week to visit with the farmers at Finca Esperanza Verde – whose coffee comprised last year's Cafe San Ramon. Upon her arrival in Managua, Kim Elena sent us an update on her visit to a La Labor and shared with us her conversations with producers and exporters at the offices of the exporter, Beneficio Santa Rosa, in the mountainous city of Santa Rosa de Copan to taste coffee together and to strategize.
Read Kim Elena's full trip report from her travels in Honduras in our COFFEE ORIGINS section.
Best,
Nathan
