Productores de Especialidad: ¿Están Quedando en La Ruina?

Murray Cooper fue uno de los productores de especialidad más famosos en Ecuador. Y sí, uso el tiempo pasado porque ahora está en quiebra.

Trabajó con el café correctamente: su finca tenía un enfoque ecológico, empoderó económicamente a la comunidad local, el campeón ecuatoriano de barismo usó el café de Murray en el Campeonato Mundial de Barismo.

Pero al final, terminó fallando.

¿Qué salió mal? ¿Y qué podrías hacer personalmente para ayudar a evitar que esto les suceda a otros productores como Murray, sin importar que seas un aficionado al café, un barista o un tostador?

Read this in English A Broken Coffee Market: Why Specialty Farmers Are Going Bankrupt

Vista desde el patio de una finca hacia la selva de Los Cedros. Crédito: murraycooperphoto

De Héroe Conservacionista a Productor de Café

Murray nació en Sudáfrica, pero dejó su país a los veinte años. Fue voluntario en medio de la selva tropical de Los Cedros en Ecuador por más de una década, manejando una base científica. “Fue duro”, dijo. “No tenía electricidad ni nada … No hay música, no hay luces. Velas por 11 años “.

Es una persona imprescindible: desde 1990, Ecuador ha perdido alrededor de 20,000 kilómetros cuadrados de bosque, el 14% de su total. La minería causa gran preocupación por su fuerte impacto en todo el ecosistema.

Mientras estuvo en la selva, tomaba fotografías para apoyar los esfuerzos que hace la reserva de Los Cedros para recaudar fondos. “La gente podía ver que tenía una cierta habilidad visual … La gente suele decir: ‘Guau, ¿cómo lo haces?’ Y yo digo: ‘Si pasaste cinco años en la selva tratando de capturar la imagen, probablemente estarás capturando la imagen ‘”.

También te puede interesar ¿Por Qué a Algunos Productores Les Es Difícil Cultivar Café Especial?

Murray se convirtió en uno de los fotógrafos de aves más famosos de América del Sur, y sus impresionantes tomas aparecen en National Geographic.

También encontró el amor. Conoció a Patricia, una ecuatoriana, quien se mudó con él a su choza en la selva tropical. “Me enamoré de la selva …” recordó Patricia. “Sientes que estás retrocediendo muchos, muchos años”.

Pero finalmente, decidieron tener hijos y se mudaron a una finca de 27 hectáreas.

Diferentes nidos de aves en la plantación de café de Murray. Crédito: murraycooperphoto

Cultivo de Café Especial: ¿Una Carrera Condenada al Fracaso?

En 2011, Murray cometió un error: plantó su primer árbol de café.

Ecuador es costoso para los productores de café. Y es genial para los trabajadores del campo.

La mano de obra en ecuador es costosa en comparación con la de sus vecinos Colombia y Perú. Esto se debe en parte a la iniciativa del gobierno en 2015, de aumentar el salario mínimo y proveer seguridad social. El 35 % de los trabajadores rurales aún vive por debajo de la línea de pobreza nacional, pero las cosas están mejorando para los trabajadores del campo.

“Algunas de estas personas incluso pueden comprar un automóvil con el dinero que obtienen cosechando café, que es una situación muy diferente a la de otros países”, me dijo Juan Carlos Vega, consultor técnico superior de café.

Murray fue aún más lejos para su comunidad local. “Pagué por encima del salario estándar, siempre, como US $ 100 más”, me dijo. “Esa era otra razón por la que yo era más caro, pero esto hacía parte de mi misión …”

“Hubo una familia que comenzó a trabajar conmigo y sus hijos ni siquiera estaban en la escuela, en la escuela del gobierno, que cuesta US $ 30 por semestre o algo así. Pero simplemente no tenían dinero, no había trabajos aquí. Ahora toda la familia tiene una moto, arregló su finca y arregló su casa “.

Y los costos laborales más altos están ayudando a Ecuador a superar a Colombia en los registros de personas inscritas a la escuela secundaria. En 2012, estaban empatados al 79%. Ahora, Ecuador ha alcanzado el 88%, mientras que Colombia se encuentra en el 78%.

En cuanto al medio ambiente, Murray fue un activista de la conservación y encontró un equilibrio saludable entre la ecología y la productividad. “No hemos usado insecticidas hasta la fecha”, me dijo. Y usaron equipos para cortar el césped en lugar de herbicidas como el Agente Naranja.

La finca de Murray era exactamente de lo que hablan los tostadores de café de especialidad: el pensamiento social y ecológico. Además de todo, el café era excelente. Murray fue presentado por los tostadores de café de especialidad más prominentes en todo el mundo, y su café llegó a representar a Ecuador en los Campeonatos Mundiales de Barismo.

Y es aquí donde los problemas empiezan.

Gladys rastrilla las camas de secado cada dos horas. Crédito: murraycooperphoto

La Escasez de Efectivo Afecta a Las Fincas Cafeteras

Murray está enfrentando una crisis de dinero.

Él no lo esperaba, porque tenía una gran red de seguridad: la fotografía. Pero la red se rompió. “Todo el mercado de la fotografía colapsó localmente y el mercado ecuatoriano estaba bajando, por lo que hubo menos negocios para mí”.

Hay pocas opciones para él. Obtener un préstamo bancario para una finca de café es particularmente difícil en Ecuador: se ubica en la tercera posición de la clasificación internacional de “facilidad de acceso a préstamos”.

Pero un momento: Murray está vendiendo café de clase mundial a prestigiosos tostadores de todo el mundo. ¿Dónde está el efectivo de sus ventas?

En el otro lado del mundo, los tostadores acaban de recibir muestras de café verde por parte de sus importadores especializados. Las opciones sobre la mesa: un café de Ecuador de 86 puntos de Murray y, justo al lado y por la mitad del precio, uno de Colombia de 86 puntos.

“Por la misma calidad, el café [ecuatoriano] es más caro, por lo que obviamente los compradores dirán, ‘no, no puedo comprar tu café'”, me dijo un comprador de especialidad de café verde.

Por esta razón, los comerciantes sienten el apretón. “[En Ecuador,] estamos pagando precios altos y locos, para ser honestos. Eso es muy arriesgado para nosotros “, me comentó otro comprador de café verde.

Para sobrevivir a su crisis de efectivo, Murray necesita recibir precios altos, y rápidamente. Los intermediarios compran su café, pero, debido a que están algo apretados, pueden o pagarle bien o rápido, pero no las dos cosas.

Murray ahora está en bancarrota.

Cerezas de variedad Caturra casi listas para la cosecha. Crédito: murraycooperphoto

¿Qué Tan Responsable Es La Tostaduría?

Mientras Murray pone su finca a la venta, su café cambia de verde a marrón en las tostadurías de todo el mundo. Se vende a las tiendas de café y a los consumidores para generar ganancia. Se está moliendo, preparando y disfrutando.

¿Sabían los tostadores la verdad?

¿Sabían que los salarios altos de Murray estaban ayudando a los trabajadores a enviar a sus hijos a la escuela?

¿Sabían que sembrar café en Ecuador contribuye a la biodiversidad mientras que los intereses en la minería continúan destruyendo los bosques tropicales? (Incluso Los Cedros está, una vez más, bajo amenaza).

Si no sabían todo esto, ¿por qué no? Algunos de ellos incluso visitaron la finca.

Y si lo sabían, ¿por qué no podrían apoyarlo pagando precios altos rápidamente y transmitir el mensaje positivo a sus clientes?

Probablemente habrá más quiebras. “Estamos viendo el mismo problema con otros productores que están muy desanimados … desanimados …”, confesó un comprador de café verde. “Entraron en el negocio pensando que obtendrían precios altos y tal vez no se cayeron en cuenta de lo altos que iban a ser los costos”.

Le pregunté a un productor qué pasaría si continuara recibiendo los mismos precios. “Tendría que cerrar mi finca …” suspiró. “Las personas que trabajan para mí, las tendría que despedir, legalmente o lo que sea. Y especialmente para las mujeres que trabajan en el área, van a perder algunos ingresos adicionales “.

¿Se pueden evitar estas quiebras? ¿Qué se puede cambiar para que otros productores de especialidad no se encuentren en la misma situación que Murray?

Cerezas uniformes y perfectamente cosechadas de la finca de Murray. Crédito: murraycooperphoto

Cómo Apoyar a Los Productores de Ecuador

Si quieres promover cafés de productores como Murray y empoderar a los ecuatorianos rurales, aquí hay siete puntos de partida:

• Si eres dueño de un café o bebedor de café, pídele a tu tostador que pague más por el café ecuatoriano y prepárate para pagar más.

• Busca en Google el nombre del productor (varias fincas grandes son activas en las redes sociales) y contáctalo. Pídele su opinión sobre los precios del café. ¿Son estos precios suficientes? ¿Los productores ganan lo suficiente en el mercado de especialidad?

• Si eres tostador, no asumas que a los agricultores ecuatorianos les pagan bien simplemente porque sus cafés son caros.

• Si eres tostador o propietario de un café, paga más por el café ecuatoriano y explícales a tus clientes por qué lo haces.

• Cuéntales a tus productores lo que pagaste por su café y de cuánto fue la prima que tomó el comerciante de café verde de especialidad. La Información es poder.

• Comparte el riesgo con los productores trabajando con compañías alternativas de abastecimiento. Busca cadenas de suministro más cortas y una mayor transparencia.

• Comprométete a comprar de la misma finca ecuatoriana todos los años, a pesar de las buenas o malas circunstancias.

Si crees que tienes en mente los intereses de un productor, debes actuar ahora.

También te puede gustar La Importancia en la Transparencia del Precio del Café Verde

Escrito por James Harper del podcast de café  Filter Stories. Puedes escuchar más acerca de la historia de Murray en el Episodio 2: Firefly

Traducido por Alejandra M. Hernández. Traducción editada por María José Parra.

Las opiniones dentro de este artículo de opinión pertenecen al escritor invitado. Perfect Daily Grind cree en fomentar el debate sobre temas de actualidad dentro de la industria y, por lo tanto, busca representar las opiniones de todas las partes.

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Origin Spotlight: Exploring Ecuador’s Specialty Coffee

Welcome to Ecuador. This small country may not make the list of the world’s most-famous coffee-producing countries, yet head out of the cities to the Andean mountains or fertile Amazonian basin, and you’ll find coffee cherries slowly ripening on small farms.

But what flavour profile does an Ecuadorian coffee have? What are the different regions? And what varieties and processing methods will you encounter? I spoke to several experts to find out. Read on to discover the answers.

You might also like 5 Reasons Why Specialty Coffee Is Taking Off in Ecuador

Coffee dries on San Cristóbal Island, Ecuador. Credit: Caravela Coffee

The Sweet Flavour of an Ecuadorian Coffee

What marks out an Ecuadorian coffee? Sweetness. All of my interviewees agree on this.

Carlos de Valdenebro is Caravela Coffee’s Country Manager for Ecuador and Colombia. He tells me that Ecuador’s coffees are juicy and complex, with a lot of jam notes, sweetness, medium acidity, and yellow fruits.

Ted Stachura, Director of Coffee at Equator Coffees Teas in the US, tells me that for the best lots coming out from Ecuador, “what I find is a very concentrated degree of flavour… whatever it might be.”

And the notes that these best coffees tend to have? “Flavours that are kind of stone fruits, such as peaches, apricots, lots of plums… lower-acid fruits. They still have good acidity; they are very high elevation. Some of the best lots have floral characteristics, too. It is just a very well-balanced and satisfying coffee [when drinking] the best that Ecuador has to offer.”

David Kastle, Senior Vice President at Swiss Water Decaffeinated Coffee Company, tells me that his company has recently sourced an Ecuadorian single origin coffee for their Small Batch Series of limited-edition offerings. He tells me that Ecuador stood out to his team for the sweetness of its coffees.

“I don’t see [Ecuadorian coffees] with high acidity, but what I do find pretty consistently is a coffee with a creamy body and particularly the sweetest-tasting coffees I know… Gentle, floral, fresh fruit flavours but not huge body, not overly fruity, not screaming acidity… To me, [it’s] a very satisfying coffee,” he says.  

Coffee dries on raised beds on San Cristóbal Island, Ecuador. Credit: Caravela Coffee

A Small Country With Great Potential

When Ecuadorian coffee is so delicious, it might seem strange that it’s not more popular. But there’s a reason it isn’t as famous as, say, coffee from Colombia or Brazil. It’s not for lack of potential but simply because the country’s harvest is small – and, unfortunately, in decline.

According to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) report 2017/2018, Ecuador harvested just 87,000 ha of coffee, even though 200,000 ha were planted.

What’s more, in 2017, FAS Quito reported,  “FAS Quito is revising downward its MY 2016/17 coffee production estimate to 170,000 bags, reflecting a production decline of 24 percent compared to MY 2015/16 levels. Production fell due to lower yields as a result of a lack of investment in rejuvenating plantations. This situation could start to change in MY 2017/18 if productivity increases, as announced by the Government of Ecuador.”   

But why is there a lack of investment? And why are so many planted hectares going unplanted? Especially in a country with such a delicious flavour profile and relatively good connections to importing countries.

Producer Murray Cooper examines his coffee plants in 2018; Murray Cooper has since gone bankrupt and stopped producing coffee. Credit: Mario Idrovo

Why Is Coffee Production Declining?

Carlos says that there are many reasons for Ecuador’s declining coffee industry:

Low Productivity: Farms produce, on average, 400 kg of coffee per hectare. Carlos tells me that this is a third of Colombia’s productivity.

Dollarisation: In the early 2000s, Ecuador faced its worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Politicians, desperate for a solution, turned to dollarisation. Ecuador gave up its local currency and instead adopted the US dollar. However, this gives the country little control over its own monetary policy, and Ecuador still has less economic stability than the US. This has a knock-on effect on producing communities – and, in particular, has prompted many to leave the farm behind.

Emigration: Carlos explains that, with Ecuador’s financial struggles, younger generations have migrated away from the farms and often abroad, to countries such as Spain, Italy, USA, Canada, and the UK. In rural areas, the older generations are left behind to tend the farms. “Today, the average age of a coffee producer is 60 years old,” he says, “meaning that the labour force is old.”

High Production Costs: Dollarisation meant that the price of goods in Ecuador is now tied to the strength of the US economy – which tends to appreciate faster than in Latin American countries. And with that, wages also need to increase.

Carlos tells me that a coffee picker in Ecuador will earn around US $20 a day, significantly higher than in neighbouring Colombia. “This makes it a snowball effect,” he says, “since Ecuador not only has a low level of production but that production is also very expensive.”

Yet it would be a mistake to think of Ecuador’s coffee production as simply being in decline. For a small country, Ecuador has an impressive amount of diversity – in climate, in varieties, and in farms and farming practices.

A Typica coffee tree on San Cristóbal, the Galápagos Islands. Credit: Caravela Coffee

The Two Types of Ecuadorian Farms

Carlos says that Ecuador’s 75,000 coffee producers can be divided into two groups. In the north of the country, in mountainous Pichincha and Imbabura, you will find professionals from other industries: architects, doctors, and so on.

According to Carlos, many of these have started farming specialty coffee because they see a potential for profit. “These producers have a more business-like focus,” he says, “with bigger farms.”

And as Ted tells me, “There are… a growing number of producers that are interested in very high-quality coffee, interested in improving quality. [They’re looking at] everything from processing methods, variety separation, and all the things that specialty roasters are interested in.”

But Carlos explains that you’ll also find smallholder producers in Ecuador, with just two to three hectares of coffee on their farms. They are forced to also grow other crops, such as cacao, cotton, and sugarcane, to make a living.

It’s these farmers who produce the instant coffee that Ecuador is so famous for. In 2016–17, 84% of Ecuador’s coffee exports was soluble.

What’s more, across Ecuador, there are 85,000 hectares of Arabica and 110,000 hectares of Robusta – a symbol of Ecuador’s two coffee industries, quality and commodity, growing side-by-side.

Producer Pablo Velez flies a drone over his farm in Zamora Pichincha, Ecuador. Credit: Mario Idrovo

The Different Coffee-Growing Regions of Ecuador

Yet it’s not as simple as a north-south divide. You also have to consider the diversity of terroir.

Situated in the northwest of South America, Ecuador is bordered by the Pacific Ocean. Further inland, the Andes run the length of the country. And then, to the east, you find the Amazon.

According to the FAO, “Fifty percent of coffee production occurs in the coastal provinces. The province of Manabí accounts for 30 percent of total production. The Amazon and the Sierra (mountain) areas account for 30 and 25 percent of Ecuador’s coffee production, respectively. Robusta coffee is mainly planted in the Amazon, while Arabica coffee is cultivated along the coast.”

Even this is, of course, a generalisation.

In the south of the country, Carlos tells me that you’ll find Typica, Caturra, and Bourbon growing at 1,700–2,300 m.a.s.l., mainly in the mountainous Loja, Amazonian Zamora, and coastal El Oro areas.

It’s from Zamora that Swiss Water sourced their fully washed, organic, sun-dried Typica-Caturra coffee. It was grown in Chinchipe, Zamora by the ACRIM co-operative. Here, the cooperative says, coffee is grown under shade and intercropped with plantain.

In northern Ecuador, you’ll find coffee grown in Pichincha, Imbabura, Sucumbíos, and Orellana. Carlos tells me that varieties such as Colombia and Castillo have been imported from Colombia and planted here.

In the coastal province of Manabí, coffee is generally grown at 600–800 m.a.s.l. Carlos describes it as “a geographic location with particular climates where the temperature is relatively low, which brings great potential for natural processed coffees as the weather is quite dry after the harvest.”

And then, you have the Galápagos Islands. Coffee from here is in fashion – and expensive, partly because of supply and demand but also partly because of the difficulty in transporting it to the mainland. Carlos says that green coffee from here can cost US $5–11/lb.

Carlos also tells me that he’s seeing an increase in rust-resistant coffee varieties, such as Sarchimor. Coffee leaf rust can pose a significant threat to coffee producers; it devastated Latin American crops in 2012. Rust-resistant trees offer security but often have a less complex, acidic, and sweet flavour profile.

On the other hand, he adds, you can also find Sidra in Ecuador: a rare variety with a reputation for quality.

Discover more! Read What Is Terroir & How Does It Affect Your Coffee?

Typica-Caturra decaffeinated green beans from Zamora, southern Ecuador. Credit: Swiss Water

Processing Methods

Ted tells me that Ecuador is known for its washed processing: a method that results in clean coffees. You can also get fully washed or double washed coffees – in fact, this is the processing method used for the Swiss Water Typica-Caturra small batch coffee from Zamora. These are processed using a method from Kenya that results in exceptionally clean lots. In turn, this allows all of the coffee’s complexities and flavours to shine.

Mario Idrovo, the current Ecuador Barista Champion, also adds that there is a growing trend for natural and honey processed coffees, especially in Loja. In fact, in the World Barista Championship, he presented a natural processed Ecuadorian coffee produced by Gerardo Díaz.

When working with a washed coffee, he adds that you would look for a clean cup and bright acidity, juicy body, and floral fragrance (and probably with orange or lemon notes). With a honey or natural, however, he would expect to see more body, sweetness, and fruity notes.

Ecuador’s coffee may not be well-known compared to that of its neighbours, but it deserves our attention. With its sweetness, body, fruitiness, and floral notes, it can offer a delightful cup of coffee.

The challenge? To nurture the country’s dwindling industry, increase productivity, and help producers tackle the high costs associated with coffee production. These are all real issues facing Ecuador.

But in the meantime, if you get the opportunity to try an Ecuadorian coffee, I encourage you to do so. Savour the sweetness and understand the story behind the cup.

Enjoyed this? Check out 5 Reasons Why Specialty Coffee Is Taking Off in Ecuador

Written by Angie Molina. All quotes from Carlos de Valdenebro and Mario Idrovo translated from Spanish by the author.

Please note: This article has been sponsored by Swiss Water Decaffeinated Coffee Company.

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Toby’s Estate Announces New Bushwick Cafe And Roasting Space

Breaking news coming out of Brooklyn as Toby’s Estate has announced—and you’re hearing about it first here on Sprudge—a brand new cafe and roasting space to open later this fall in Bushwick. Their sixth location, the new space will operate alongside Toby’s original Williamsburg roastery, allowing the company to “double its roasting capacity while staying true to [their] small-batch philosophy,” per the brand.

Taking over 8 Wilson Avenue, the new cafe will feature a daily brunch menu full of items prepared at their in-house kitchen as well as pastries and grab-and-go items from local purveyors like Supermoon Bakehouse, Ovenly, and King Street Kitchen. Toby’s Bushwick will also serve as the flagship store for Salt Lake City’s Saint Anthony Industries—their first in New York City—who will be highlighting their manual brewers as part of the Toby’s pour-over bar.

When looking for this new space, co-owners Amber Jacobsen and Adam Boyd originally set out to find a larger location to replace their current roasting space, which they have since outgrown after six years. But when Jacobsen and Boyd found the spot on Wilson Avenue, they opted to change course and run two separate roasteries. Fit out with a restored 22-kilo Probat, Toby’s Bushwick will serve at the jumping off point for the new Toby’s Wholesale Partnership Program, “a new initiative that will provide wholesale partners with additional opportunities to tailor coffee programs to their individual needs,” according to a press release provided to Sprudge.

“Many of our partners want to be even more involved in their coffee program and take ownership of everything from flavor profiles to packaging design,” Boyd states. “They want to learn how to source, roast, and blend their coffees so that it becomes an extension of their own brand.”

“We see this program as a great collaborative opportunity for our partners and a way for them delve into this process while still retaining the services that we provide beyond coffee roasting, including equipment loans and servicing, education certification, and consistent quality sourcing,” Jacobsen adds.

In a time when every cafe wants to also be a roaster, it’s a smart move by Toby’s. With two roasters working discretely, Toby’s is able to continue roasting coffee to their own specifications for their six cafes while allowing wholesale accounts the opportunity to make the coffee they serve their own, something that couldn’t be done had Toby’s opted for one larger roaster instead of two medium-sized. It’s a gambit that allows wholesale accounts to have the uniqueness associating with roasting for oneself (without all the upfront equipment costs) while keeping them as wholesale accounts. And for the rest of us, it’s a new place to grab a little brekkie and some filter coffee. And that’s pretty nice too.

The new Toby's Bushwick is located at 8 Wilson Avenue, Brooklyn. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Zac Cadwalader is the news editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge.

Top image via Toby’s Estate

Disclosure: Toby’s Estate is an advertising partner with the Sprudge Media Network.

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Inside Everyday Coffee’s Maybe Pop-Up Maybe Permanent Melbourne Cafe

What do you get when you cross an exhibition space, a print shop, a work shop, a book shop, and a coffee shop? Well, something that sounds like the set-up for a really terrible joke, but is actually a building filled with creatives and a buzzing coffee shop headed up by Everyday Coffee. Located on the corner of Queensberry Street and Lansdowne Place in the inner-northern suburb of Carlton (a short ten-minute walk from Melbourne’s city center), Everyday Coffee’s latest venue is a small and succinct coffee-shop-inside-a-shop.


In the years since opening their first location on Johnston Street, owners Mark Free and Aaron Maxwell have grown and developed Everyday Coffee in quite an organic way. They now roast their own coffee, have a Midtown store, and founded All Are Welcome with baker Boris Portnoy. Their new space was born out of a conversation with longtime customer Ziga Testen, who at the time was setting up a new studio on the ground floor at Queensberry Street; it’s a partnership between Testen, design studio Public Office, and Perimeter Books.

Everyday Coffee Owners Mark Free and Aaron Maxwell

The design and feel of the space is comfortable, but quite minimal—wooden bar seating lines the front window, and a coffee workbench sits against the back wall. There’s a communal table, bench seating, and a small book display sitting next to a print workshop, which makes for some fascinating viewing.

Chatting to Free about their approach to design, he explains that Everyday wanted the new space to have an ad-hoc, work in progress feel. “Because it very much is one,” Free says. “The design came a little from us and our collaborators upstairs, and a little from our cabinetry and furniture makers Dale Holden and Adam Ascenzo.”

While it feels a bit wrong (and even a bit cliché) to call the space a “pop-up,” that’s ostensibly what it is for the time being—according to Free they could be here making coffee for a month, a year, or indefinitely.

“Everything is on wheels,” he says. “So we can roll out any time if the going gets tough.”

For now, Everyday is cranking out espresso drinks with a black powder-coated La Marzocco Linea, and offering delectable pastries from All Are Welcome (and some neatly packaged chocolates from Hunted & Gathered).

“We were conscious that we were setting up between the two big universities,” Free says of the location. “So we made it a space where people can grab a quick takeaway but also meet up or work on a laptop or browse the books.”

The atmosphere is reminiscent of Everyday’s Johnston Street store, and customers seem to feel at home in the space, setting up their laptops to work on projects and assignments, catching up with friends, or getting their re-usable cups filled before setting off on their way. It’s this approachable feeling that’s made Everyday such a staple within Melbourne’s specialty community—theirs is an ethos of belonging in every new location, with excellent coffee as a delightful extra perk.

Everyday Coffee is located at 225 Queensberry St, Carlton. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

Eileen P. Kenny is a coffee professional, winemaker, and Sprudge Media Network contributor based in Melbourne. Read more Eileen P. Kenny on Sprudge.

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Cata de Cafés, Baristas Pro: La Escena de Especialidad en Brasil

Thiago Borba quiere que Brasil tenga una cultura fuerte de consumo de especialidad. Y tiene un plan para que esto suceda.

Hace parte de Burgeon Coffee, una exportadora de café especial en Brasil. Thiago cree en la calidad de los cafés de su país, y además cree que los habitantes también merecen beberlo. Pero para hacer que esto sea una realidad, necesita generar una apreciación hacia él. Necesita ayudar a las personas a comprender a qué sabe la especialidad, por qué la preparación es importante y por qué vale la pena pagar un poco más por ello.

Thiago hizo una presentación acerca de este tema durante el Micro Festival, El Salvador y accedió a hablar conmigo después del evento. Continúa leyendo para descubrir cómo está promoviendo el café especial a los brasileños, desde sus padres hasta productores y consumidores.

Read this in English Coffee Cuppings, Pro Baristas: Brazil’s Growing Specialty Scene

Thiago Borba hace una presentación sobre la cultura brasileña de café de especialidad en el Micro Festival El Salvador.

Cambio de Actitudes

Thiago me dijo que en Brasil puede ser difícil hacer que la gente valore el café de especialidad. El país, a pesar de tener un gran café, no tiene una reputación por esto. Y el café especial que puedes comprar en las tiendas es costoso.

Me explicó que es fácil beber café gratis en el país productor de café más grande del mundo, siempre y cuando no te importe un mal café. Entonces, ¿por qué pagarías US $ 15 / kilo por una bolsa de café de especialidad?

Pero las cosas están cambiando. Danilo Lodi, el primer brasileño en convertirse en juez certificado para el Campeonato Mundial de Baristas, me dijo: “Los importadores y tostadores fuera de Brasil juegan un papel importante en el desarrollo del café de especialidad en Brasil … [Y] tenemos varias fincas que han estado haciendo un trabajo increíble con café especial durante un par de décadas. Ellos son quienes están mejorando la calidad “.

El objetivo de Thiago es hacer que más locales descubran cafés brasileños de alta calidad. Él cree que es posible crear una cultura de consumo especializado en su país. Así que empezó con sus padres.

También te puede gustar Turismo Cafetero: La Experiencia de Origen Definitiva

Parte de este café será exportado; otra parte irá a las tostadoras de Brasil. Crédito: 3 Brothers Coffee

Despertar Curiosidad

“Quiero que mi mamá y mi padre hablen de lo bueno y malo que es el café”, me dijo Thiago. “Lo que hice fue simplemente mostrarles, a través de una sesión de cata, diferentes tipos de cafés. Y les dejé decidir cuáles fueron buenos o malos “.

¿El resultado?

“Mi padre se sorprendió mucho cuando descubrió que, durante muchos años, realmente le había gustado el café malo”.

Thiago explicó que no quiere decirle a la gente lo buenos que son los cafés brasileños. Él quiere que lo descubran por sí mismos. Debería ser simple, me dijo. Y también es efectivo: experimentar un buen café inspirará pasión de una manera que con una conversación no se logrará.

Thiago le enseña a su familia cómo catar. Crédito: Thiago Borba

Redefinir al Barista

Además de lograr que los brasileños prueben el café especial, Thiago sabe que es importante que la gente entienda el valor de una tienda de café y un barista.

Lucas Salomão, ganador de la Copa Barista Brasil en 2016 y 2015, también cree en esto. Me habló de café na rua (“café en la calle”), donde los baristas servían gratis café de alta calidad a los transeúntes mientras explicaban su papel en la industria. Fue un evento popular. La gente regresó y pidió más, los periódicos lo cubrieron, y Café Container hizo pegatinas que decían Feita por barista (“hecho por un barista”).

Feito por barista, hecho por un barista. Crédito: Lucas Salomão

Fomentar La Educación Sobre El Café

Una vez que las personas han comenzado a reconsiderar su café, es hora de continuar con su  educación. Y Thiago cree que esto es particularmente cierto con los productores.

Actualmente, Burgeon dirige talleres sobre café y cata para productores. A medida que desarrollan sus habilidades sensoriales, Thiago dice que a menudo se vuelven aún más apasionados por el café. También cree que es importante que comprendan qué tipo de café están vendiendo.

Burgeon vende café verde a tostadores locales, como Wolff Café y Bica Torradores de Café. Y los agricultores compran allí su propio café recién tostado. Marcos Carvalho, un productor de Cabo Verde, Sul de Minas, me dijo: “Probar mi propio café, el que he producido con amor y mucho esfuerzo, es indescriptible. Es emocionante … [Después de ello], pude ver la diferencia entre un buen café bien preparado y otros cafés “

Pero Thiago no quiere detenerse allí. Después de presentar en el Micro Festival de El Salvador, contactó a Hugo Wolff de Wolff Café para organizar su propio evento. Él quiere que los oradores provoquen debates dentro de Brasil sobre la especialidad y compartan las últimas innovaciones, y también hacer conexiones.

Es importante entender toda la planta. Crédito: 3 Brothers Coffee

Fortalecer Relaciones

Thiago cree que las conexiones son cruciales para el desarrollo de la cultura cafetera local. Me comentó de una mujer coreana que, cuando probó café de especialidad de Brasil por primera vez, quiso aprender más. El dueño de la tienda de café tenía una buena relación con los productores, así que, organizó a la cliente una visita a sus fincas. Luego ella les compró su café.

Las relaciones aumentaron la reputación del café brasileño a nivel internacional. Pero Thiago cree que también puede hacerlo a nivel local.

“Estas son las conexiones reales que quiero crear”, me dijo. “Cuando alguien en un café te conecta con el tostador, y el tostador con el “cazador” y el exportador. Este es el verdadero significado de una relación “.

Crear una cultura cafetera local es una tarea difícil, pero Thiago y otros actores de la industria conocen su importancia. Y ya están viendo el impacto.

Escrito por A.K. Molina Ospina.

Traducido por Alejandra M. Hernández. Traducción editada por María José Parra.

Burgeon Coffee fue patrocinador del Micro Coffee Festival El Salvador. Esta entrevista se llevó a cabo de acuerdo con nuestras políticas editoriales, y Burgeon Coffee no ha tenido mayor influencia en la copia final, así como cualquiera de nuestros otros entrevistados.

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What You Need to Know Before Buying an Espresso Machine

Do you want an espresso machine but are overwhelmed by the choices? Not sure whether to invest in a prosumer or semi-automatic machine? Wondering if your new café machine needs pressure profiling? Take a look at this guide to buying the best machine for your home, café, or business.

You may also like Discovering The History of The Espresso Machine at MUMAC, Italy

Barista working with an espresso machine. Credit: Alesia Kazantceva 

Factors You Should Consider

There are a lot of good machines out there, but what works for one person may not be the best choice for another. Before you make any decisions, consider what you need from your machine. Here’s a list of things to think about:

• Espresso quality
• The time it takes to prepare an espresso
• Installation site (space, existing infrastructure)
• Available labour
• Target consumer (you, your colleagues, paying customers)
• Whether you will be preparing latte art or other drinks
• Any personal preferences (design, manufacturer, country of production, etc.)
• Price

But to make an informed choice, we need to look at where you’re pulling that shot.

La Spaziale espresso machine. Credit: Rafaella Rossi, Aventuras da Barista

Choosing a Machine For a Café

Professional machines will allow you the most control over your espresso. There are many factors that affect the flavour, aroma, and quality of an espresso: grind size, pressure, temperature, extraction time, and more. Some machines will allow a fine adjustment of these elements so that you can accentuate acidity, highlight flavours, or mask defects.

A machine can reduce human error, but a good barista who understands their machine is vital for producing a quality espresso. Some professional machines have touchscreen displays to easily finely control the espresso. But if it breaks, are you still able to use the machine and will your baristas know how to manually control these factors?

Astoria coffee machine. Credit: Rafaella Rossi, Aventuras da Barista

Before you choose a machine, consider how it works when preparing two or more drinks at the same time.

How many group heads do you need? Do you want more than one steam wand? Having more than two group heads can help prevent orders backing up, but you will have more to clean and maintain. And you’ll need a large enough space to accommodate a big machine.

Ask the seller about the number of boilers and how quickly pressure is resumed after pulling a shot. Pressure stability is important for consistency and the most stable models have two boilers. In a busy café, you want to know that the espressos are consistent even in peak periods.

You might also like: How to Open a Specialty Coffee Shop, From Concept to Launch

Espresso shot falling into a cup. Credit: Talismán Café

You may want a machine with variable pressure. Different pressure profiles can create significantly different end results. Adjusting the pressure can, in some cases, reduce channelling and improve extraction.

And although you may think you simply want a consistent flow of water, flow profiling is another way of manipulating extraction. Does your machine allow this and is it important to you?

Here are some more factors to consider before buying a machine for a café:

• Find out how long the machine takes to be heated when it is turned on. You want to know that it will be ready to work when you open your doors each morning.
• If you intend to serve beverages with latte art, check how easy it is to operate the steam wand. Some machines are more precise in the control of steam than others.
• Check the energy usage. Large machines require more power but some models have energy-saving options.
• Some models require the installation of water filters. Is this a realistic option for your business?

See also: A Guide to Setting up The Espresso Machine in Your New Café

La Cimbali machine with digital displays. Credit: Rafaella Rossi, Aventuras da Barista

Choosing a Home Machine

If you regularly grab a coffee on the way to work, a home espresso machine can be a good investment. But how much time and effort do you want to dedicate to your daily cup? There are some different considerations when choosing a home machine.

All espresso machines will require some maintenance: removing the coffee grounds or empty capsules, cleaning the drip tray, filling the water compartment, etc. But you should consider whether you want to maintain a detachable brew group or not. This is the part of the machine that you lock the portafilter into. Hot water circulates here to keep the machine at the correct temperature.

Some machines have detachable brew groups that are easy to open for cleaning or inspection. Other machines have an in-built brew group that is designed to clean itself automatically. These can be tricky to look at if something goes wrong.

If you like getting hands-on, opt for a machine with a detachable brew group. If you prefer to let the machine do the cleaning, you may need to pay for a service if something isn’t working.

Just as with professional machines, you should also consider the pump pressure and whether you can control it. Pressure determines how much flavour the machine can extract from the coffee, as well as the quality of the crema. Look for a machine with 9 bars or more.

Manual Machines

Manual machines use a lever to create the pressure needed for extraction. They look great and certainly have their market, but they take a lot of effort. It’s unlikely that you’ll want one as your everyday machine.

Prosumer Machines

Alternatively, you may think you want a professional-grade or prosumer machine with one group head and a steam wand. They allow the same preparation of espresso drinks as at a café. But it’s important to know if a complex machine is the best fit for you.

With prosumer machines, you need to control the espresso parameters just like a barista does: grinder regulation, amount of grounds, tamper pressure, etc. This takes time to learn. Maybe you’ll enjoy this; in that case, go ahead, purchase it, and enjoy mastering these parameters.

However, if you just want a quick and easy drink each morning, this isn’t the type of machine for you.

Espresso and milk drink prepared by a home brewer. Credit: Cultura Coffee

Semi-Automatic & Super-Automatic Machines

If using a prosumer machine sounds like too much effort, consider a semi-automatic machine. They take some of the work out of your hands.

Common features include digital displays, programmable buttons, pre-grinding, pre-infusion, and temperature control. Select a program and press a button. It’s much harder to mess it up, but you’re still in control.

Super-automatic machines are even more simple to use. Start the pump with an on/off switch and stop it when the extraction is complete. The machine does most of the work for you. This is the most popular style of machine for home use.

Barista steaming milk at a café in Barcelona, Spain. Credit: Fernando Pocasangre

Automatic & Capsule Machines

Automatic machines do it all. Simply make sure that they have coffee and water and press a button. They don’t allow you any control over the extraction, but they deliver a somewhat consistent espresso with minimum effort.

Capsule machines avoid human error almost entirely. Keep the water reservoir full, pop a sealed capsule of coffee into the machine, and press a button.

They don’t leave messy grounds to clean up, but bear in mind the environmental impact of single-use containers. Some manufacturers are introducing recycled and biodegradable versions, but do you really need a capsule? Many automatic machines leave you with a neat “puck” of coffee that is just as convenient to clean up.

You’re also limited to using the capsules available for the model of machine – and most of the brands making capsules are second-wave players. But there is a growing specialty capsule market, with brands working to create high-quality specialty pods that are sometimes decomposable, too.

Learn more: Why Specialty Coffee Needs to Befriend The Capsule Consumer

Coffee capsules. Credit: Rafaella Rossi, Aventuras da Barista

Choosing a Machine For Your Business

Some businesses offer coffee as an add-on feature. Maybe you want to offer a cup at your salon, retail shop, or wine bar. In this case, you probably want a reliable, quick, and easy machine. Depending on your brand, the ability to control your espresso may be less important. The same likely applies for a business where coffee is provided for staff members.

For a consistent cup of coffee with minimal effort, automatic and capsule machines, or even vending machines, are popular. There are also SCA-certified batch brewers that make coffee to third wave standards and allow you to adjust the recipe to suit the coffee.

Barista steaming milk to prepare a milk and espresso beverage. Credit: Canabeans

There are many factors to consider when buying an espresso machine. By thinking about these points, you can make the best choice for your circumstances. And don’t be afraid to shop around, do your research, and ask questions. The investment will be worth it when you taste that delicious espresso.

Enjoyed this? Check out How to Keep Your Baristas From Quitting

Written by Raffaella Rossi of Aventuras da Barista

Perfect Daily Grind

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