INDIA
origin
R AT N AG I R I E S TAT E
Elizabeth Barry is the Marketing and Quality Manager at Cofi-Com.
A visionary man Pearl Mountain Coffee and the Ratnagiri Estate.
P E A R L M O U N TA I N PEABERRIES WELL BALANCED DELICATE PARCHMENT PAPER & SPICE ROASTED HAZELNUTS
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The Ratnagiri Estate has its own water supply from two fresh water streams and a sophisticated water and waste usage system.
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ews has reached me here at CofiCom that a new crop of Pearl Mountain Peaberries is steaming its way toward Sydney. At once, I’m spirited far away from my desk to the Western Ghats of India. Memories flood back from my visit to the coffee-producing region of Karnataka and to a recent conversation with Ashok Patre about the rich history of his family, the Ratnagiri Estate and their famous coffee. The story goes that an Indian Muslim Saint, Baba Budan, while on pilgrimage to Mecca, snaffled seven coffee beans in the lining of his clothing from Yemen to Mysore. Once home, he planted them in the Chandragiri Hills. Although it was an illegal act to remove the green coffee seed from Arabia, the number seven is sacrosanct in Islamic religion, so the
The story goes that an Indian Muslim Saint, Baba Budan, while on pilgrimage to Mecca, snaffled seven coffee beans in the lining of his clothing from Yemen to Mysore.
smuggling was considered a religious act. This was the beginning of the coffee industry in India and cultivation soon followed. Not so long ago, in 2010, weary from two weeks in the frenetic heat and chaos of Mumbai, I made the journey to Bangalore and onto Karnataka to learn more about Indian coffee production. It was a wonderful relief to watch the urbanised sprawl of Bangalore slip away as I drove into the cool of the mountains. I was immediately overwhelmed by the inherent sense of care and order evident in the plantations. Great towering teak trees provide shade for the coffee while serving as a perfect structure to support pepper vines, which are successfully intercropped to provide an additional income for the farms. The estates were beautiful: each one
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Estate workers oversee the coffee parchment drying in the sun.
a verdant, calming oasis nestling in the rolling hills. I travelled to Coorg and Chikmagalur, driving slowly through the winding hill roads through tea and coffee plantations, greedily breathing in the mountain air. Ashok Patre is a proud and driven man, imbued with an infectious sense of history and tradition. Today, he confidently builds upon the considerable legacy of his visionary grandfather, Patre Shivappaiya, who in 1923 purchased a forest to cultivate coffee. Ratnagiri literally translates as Pearl Mountain. It is located high in the Baba Budan Mountain Range, more elevated
Ashok Patre is a proud and driven man, imbued with an infectious sense of history and tradition.
Twenty-five dedicated employees live and work on the farm that produces around 125 metric tonnes of specialty washed Arabica annually.
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than most farms, producing around 125 tonnes of specialty washed Arabica annually. Spread over 117 hectares, Ratnagiri has an impressive yield of around 1.65 metric tonnes per hectare. There are three rounds of picking during the season to ensure the cherries are always harvested at their optimum ripeness and 25 dedicated permanent employees who live and work on the farm. The estate has its own water supply from two fresh water streams and a sophisticated water and waste usage system, which adheres to the Indian Pollution Control Board – an ominous body renowned
Ashok Patre’s visionary grandfather, Patre Shivappaiya.
Tall teak trees, pepper vines and coffee plants grow on the Ratnagiri Estate.
for imposing strict regulations. One of the first things that struck me when I visited the region was how many of the plantations had a commitment to environmental conservation and sustainability. They cared for their workers too – good quality accommodation, schools and health clinics were established on many of the estates. It became clear that improving working conditions has been crucial in the fight to encourage people to remain in rural areas like this. The ferocious pace of urbanisation in India has left coffee producers with an uphill battle to maintain a dedicated effective workforce. Labour costs have soared in recent years and farm work has developed a social stigma – too redolent of poverty and the past. All coffee is handpicked in India and very often hand sorted (known as garbling). It is labour intensive and costly work with relatively low yields – average yields as low as 500 kilograms of green beans per hectare for small holdings and 1000 kilograms per hectare on a larger estate. Ratnagiri’s yield at around 1650 kilograms per hectare puts it way above the average. The farm is progressive, adopting modern and scientific methods of cultivation. For many, coffee cultivation in India has meant a process of adapting, downsizing and switching to Robusta, the tough little sister to the delicate
India Coffee production facts
Global position for production: Fifth biggest coffee producer in the world – domestic consumption the lowest per capita in all coffee producing origins Population: 1.24 billion Coffee production: 5.5 million 60-kilogram bags (around 60 – 70 per cent Robusta, 30 – 40 per cent Arabica). Coffee growing area: 405,000 hectares Processing: wet and dry Arabica: 60 – 70 per cent washed, 30 – 40 per cent naturals Robusta: 15 – 20 per cent washed, 80 – 85 per cent naturals Qualities: Robusta: Cherry (naturals), parchment (washed) Monsooned Robusta. Arabica: Plantation A, B and C, Monsooned Malabar AA. Cultivation: Almost 100 per cent shade grown Regions: Traditional states include Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu in South India along the Western Ghats Mountain Range. New Arabica growing regions include the seven sister states North East – Eastern Ghats Mountain range (accounting for less than 5 per cent total production)
Arabica. This has been necessary, simply to meet rising production costs. Not so for Ashok and the Ratnagiri Estate. They are devoted to producing the highest quality specialty Arabica. It has not been all plain sailing for Ashok, but much of what happens at Ratnagiri is about the preservation of legacy – modernising and effectively marketing their product to ensure a solid future. He is the third generation to run the estate. “Our forefathers have put a lot of sweat and toil into this plantation and we have nurtured its coffee so that it has become well accepted the world over,” he told me. His grandfather Patre Shivappaiya’s vision in 1923 was remarkably clear and forthright. As the plantation has passed down through the generations it seems the rich heritage, the sense of duty, is the real key to its survival and success. Of course, behind all of this, is a great deal of hard work. “We are very proud of [Shivappaiya] as he struggled immensely in the early years to give us a beautiful farm today,” Ashok said. Ashok has had his fair share of challenges too since he took over in 1988. There was a bad attack of Coffee Stem Borer (CBB) that left the plantation in a very poor state, but by the right sort of adaptation, inherited skill, commitment, courage and drive, Ashok managed to steer things back to productivity. He is clearly proud of being progressive. There is a real fusion of traditional cultivation and knowledge with modern science. He has welcomed new cultivars of coffee and now grows SL 6&9 varietals with some Catimor and an Indian selection called Hemavathy. The estate remains acutely focussed on its product and maintaining its niche market for Pearl Mountain Coffee. I’m really struck by how significant this family tradition is to Ashok, especially in the changing face of India, a culture in great flux, rapidly embracing an urbanised, high speed, high tech, quick-fix set of values. I think back to my trip and the stark contrast between the urbanisation of Mumbai and Bangalore with the lush oasis and calm of Karnataka. Worlds apart. I’m thankful to have travelled, to be able to contextualise. So, I await the new crop of Pearl Mountain Peaberries with the quiet confidence that I know something special about their journey and legacy. It’s a pleasure to work with Ashok and to see how he follows in his grandfather’s footsteps with that same visionary spirit.
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