India
Harley Estate, and sister estate Kalledevarapura
A farm and family we’ve known personally for over 10 years, Harley (and sister estate Kalledevarapura) are owned by third generation coffee producers DM Purnesh and DM Shankar, with support from their own children. The estate is situated in Sakleshpur, within the popular coffee growing region of Manjarabad, and it’s a beautiful coffee estate and mill facility with drying patio, with plentiful shade trees and a place we’ve been delighted to visit on numerous occasions! Harley Estate (& Kalledevarapura) With Harley in Manjarabad, and Kalledevarapura within the Bababudangiri hills, these are two direct source farms that we rely on heavily for our core espresso blends like Deer Hill (arabica and robusta) and Under Milk Wood (arabica.) These coffees unselfishly lend sweetness and body whilst allowing the other ingredients to shine.
The family also produce limited honey and natural processed micro-lots which we’re proud to showcase in our Producer Series, as superb examples of accessible and rewarding everyday coffees. The Harley Estate is renowned for the production of specialty robusta coffee – winning multiple awards over the years - but there is also a small number of arabica trees on the farm too. Even with a relatively low altitude, the heavy shade helps to slow down the ripening of the cherries, and the pulped “red honey” process also helps to intensify the natural sweetness. The farm and its processing mill are simply stunning, with lake, waterfall, dense vegetation and eco lodges – created from old farm buildings - scattered in amongst.
China (Yunnan)
Yunnan conjures up the scents and visions of the ‘home of tea’ with its evocative, wild production, mist drenched valleys and Pu’er tea factories. However, the Chinese region also plays host to an exciting new frontier of coffee cultivation, harbouring all of the ingredients for exceptional Arabica production, with its fertile soils, high elevations, a perfect climate and dedicated coffee farmers. Through our partnership with Christian and the team at Indo China Coffee, we have built our connection to the producers in Yunnan.
Lijiang Rong
Through Lijiang Rong is a pillar of the local community of Paliang and its surrounding villages. His son, who shares his father’s name, is continuing the family tradition of processing both their own beautiful coffees and those of neighbouring farmers in this remote, but beautiful, corner of Yunnan.
Gui Ben Lan Hua
Based in a remote part of Yunnan, east of Pu’er City and close to the Laos border, the region is home to many ethnic minorities including Hani, Miao, Dai and others. Small producers, working with local Yunnan Coffee Traders, have two principal motivations for the production of speciality coffee - bringing sustainable livelihoods to their families and those of the local smallholder farmers in the surrounding area as well as returning the land back to being more biodiverse - many farms focus on one cash crop such as bananas. As a result, they are planting macadamia trees, mangoes, oranges among the
tea and coffee fields.
