Fresh Cup Magazine | Nov/Dec 2020 by Fresh Cup Magazine

FEATURES

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Turkish Coffee Revisited New life for an ancient brew method By Michael Butterworth

Blockchain Benefits Coffee Farmers The hi-tech innovation transforms how coffee goes from farm to cup—and ensures growers unprecedented supply chain transparency By Jodi Helmer

Haiti

Singapore Kopi Culture

A story of revolution and inspiration at origin

Coffee culture in Southeast Asia

By David & Gaïna Dávila

ON THE COVER: 8 ] NOV/DE C 2 0 2 0 » f r e sh cu p. com

ILLUSTRATION BY CYNTHIA MEADORS

By Sierra Yeo

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2020

Fresh Cup Farewell

DEPARTMENTS

VOLUME 29

NUMBER 7

More Offers = More Sales

Publisher’s Letter

Creating a Budget That Works For You

By Jan Weigel

In House

By Emily McIntyre

Coffee Marketing

By Janae Easlon

Cup of Comfort

A Call for Racial Equity

Trending

The Case Against “Golden Milk”

By Susan Johnston Taylor

The Whole Leaf

By Robin Roenker

Sustainable Matters

By Farah Jesani

12 | EDITOR’S LETTER

14 | CONTRIBUTORS

56 | COUNTER INTELLIGENCE

66 | ADVERTISER INDEX F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 9

PUBLISHER’S LETTER

Fresh Cup Farewell To my dear industry friends,

JAN WEIGEL in Peru with the Café Femenino Foundation.

s I sit here reflecting on the past 28-plus years that I’ve been in the coffee and tea industry, I think about all the entrepreneurs I have met with great ideas. They would call or bring their prototypes to our office with hopes of words of encouragement, thoughts on change, and the opportunity to spread the word through Fresh Cup. Many of these ideas became award-winning, multi-million-dollar businesses. I am proud to say Fresh Cup has been a part of the success of so many—and I know Ward would be proud too. In the beginning, most companies that were starting out did not have ad agencies or even in-house graphic designers. They just had something they had created and wanted to sell to the industry. Trade shows booths were very simple, with a few items on a 6-ft. table and a simple backdrop. As time went on, the industry became more sophisticated. The original prototypes became more refined. More and more ideas for a better way entered our industry. The booths became bigger and more elaborate, but the industry still kept its community of friendships. I have always loved that I have close friends who are in their 20s to the ones who have retired, of whom many I still keep in contact with. We have lost a few beautiful souls, but I remember what they contributed to the industry, and how so

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many before us moved it forward to the large-scale industry it is today. It has been a wonderful couple of decades. However, with 2020 coming to an end, it is time for me to retire and spend time with my husband and family, making this the last issue of Fresh Cup Magazine. You will still see me involved with the industry, as I plan to remain on the Café Femenino Foundation Board raising funds to help our coffee communities around the world. When the world settles back into some sense of normalcy, we will bring back the Golden Bean Coffee Roasters Competition (hopefully next September if it is safe and we have a vaccine). It has been an honor to have so many wonderful friends and supporters throughout the years. It started for me as a financial supporter of and cheer-

leader for Fresh Cup. I came on board full-time as director of our coffee and tea trade shows, NASCORE, and the Fresh Cup Roadshow, eventually becoming the publisher of Fresh Cup in 2006. It has been a beautiful adventure that only this close-knit industry could have given me. I want to thank you all for your kindness, support, and most of all, your friendship. I will be watching your continued successes in the months and years ahead. Embrace the friendships you have and continue to make, because that is what makes for a successful life.

My best wishes to all of you,

JAN WEIGEL, PUBLI SHER jan@ f r eshcup.com

PHOTO COURTESY OF JAN WEIGEL

EDITOR’S LETTER

Fr esh Cup M agaz ine

“It’s important to preserve traditional diaspora coffee cultures…to keep brewing diversity within coffee.” —Pamela Chng, Bettr Barista

n a year that’s taught us to expect the unexpected, I must admit I didn’t anticipate having to write my last letter as Fresh Cup editor. This issue is more than just a bookend to 2020; it’s the final chapter of an era: after almost three decades serving our beloved coffee and tea community, we bittersweetly announce this is Fresh Cup’s final publication. Two years ago, I introduced myself to you all, a newcomer to the industry who had only just learned how to make a pour-over. In that first letter, I shared how coffee, to me, represents comfort and connection, and symbolizes my relationship with my family. It has been amazing to see in this short time how my new coffee family has grown, and I am fortunate to have met and worked with so many of you. As we note on our cover, this issue is a look toward the future of coffee and tea. These pages celebrate where we’ve come from, and where we are going. But while much has changed in the years since my first letter, many of the fundamentals of our industry haven’t. It’s still about the farmers, and how technology is adapting to the evergrowing challenges they face (p. 38). It’s still about the equipment, and how even centuries-old brewing methods have asserted their place in today’s world (p. 32). It’s still about the customers, and the importance of education and discussion on the global flavors that rapidly pop up on café menus all over (p. 28). It’s still about sustainability, even beyond composting and zero-waste, but the crucial part racial justice plays in our fight for a more sustainable planet (p. 62). It’s still about giving back, and becoming a hub of community and comfort in these uncertain, unprecedented times (p. 22). And it’s still about family, and sharing one’s culture and history with the world (p. 44 & 50). If this year has taught us anything, it’s that we are a global community. It is not up to the privileged few to decide what coffee or culture is worth preserving. We cannot change what needs to be changed, nor face whatever new challenges the future brings, without each other. We must continue to tell our stories, to honor our heritage, and to not only acknowledge but celebrate coffee’s and tea’s vast diasporas. As the year comes to a close, I wish you all comfort and connection— whether it’s over haldi doodh or chai, kafe or kopi, that’s up to you. Thank you all for your ingenuity, your hospitality, and your friendship. It has been a wonderful journey.

FR ESH CUP PUBLISHING Publisher and President J A N W EI GEL jan@freshcup.com EDITOR IAL Editor CA I TL I N CA R TER editor@freshcup.com Associate Editor J A NA E EA SLON janae@freshcup.com ART Art Director CY NTHI A M EA DOR S cynthia@freshcup.com ADVERTISING Sales J A N W EI GEL jan@freshcup.com Ad Coordinator DI A NE HOW A R D adtraffic@freshcup.com ACCOUNTING A ccount i ng M anager DI A NE HOW A R D diane@freshcup.com FR ESH CUP FOUNDER W A R D BA R BEE 1938-2006

E D I TO R I A L A D V I S O R Y B O A R D ALFONSO CARMONA Sustainable Harvest Coffee Importers

JEN HURD Genuine Origin

CHUCK JONES Jones Coffee Roasters

BRUCE MILLETTO Bellissimo Coffee Advisors

BRAD PRICE Phillips Syrups & Sauces

MICHAEL RYAN Threadbare Coffee Co.

MANISH SHAH Maya Tea Co.

LARRY WINKLER

S U BS CR I P T I O N Q U E ST I O N S ? EMAIL: freshcup@pfsmag.com CALL: 888-881-5861 PO Box 92735 Long Beach, CA 90809-9639

F R E S H CU P M A I L I N G A D D R E SS PO BOX 14827, Portland, OR 97293 PHONE: 503/236-2587 | FAX: 503/236-3165 F R E S H CU P P R O U D LY S P O N S O R S N O N P R O F I TS

CAITLIN CARTER, EDITOR

editor@freshcup.com

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F R E S H C U P. CO M

CONTRIBUTORS

MICHAEL BUTTERWORTH is an Autho-

DAVID & GAÏNA DÁVILA come from a long

JANAE EASLON is the associate editor at

rized SCA Trainer based in Istanbul, home

line of coffee producers in Nicaragua and

Fresh Cup Magazine. Her writing focuses

to the subject of his feature in this issue:

Haiti, respectively. While serving abroad

on community, sustainability, and busi-

Turkish coffee, p. 32. He is the cofounder

as an American diplomatic family in 2016,

ness. For this issue, she spoke to business

of thecoffeecompass.com.

they began building the foundation of

owners about their best tips and tricks for

their company, Dávila Kafe, after recogniz-

budgeting, on p. 16. She lives in Portland,

ing the need for greater representation,

Oregon, with her dog Herb.

My go-to coffee pairing is whatever gluten-free pastry is available at my regular coffee shop. I’m partial to the dacquoise. I’m hopeful that in 2021 we’ll continue to

at every level, in the coffee industry. While sharing the very best of Haitian and Nicaraguan coffees, they are also building

see specialty coffee emerge in new markets,

a creative community around coffee to

especially Eastern Europe and the Middle

provide a platform on which the stories

East, where I’m based.

of young minority entrepreneurs and

Coffee is best paired with a dog walk! I am most hopeful that people will continue to think collectively and be empathetic in 2021.

aspiring artists can be showcased and represented. Read their piece on the history of Haitian coffee, on p. 44. Our coffee is best paired with a freshly baked baguette, or a Nicaraguan traditional breakfast of gallopinto and platano maduros. The mix of black beans and rice with a hot cup of black coffee makes breakfast time extra special! We’re most hopeful about the real change and equity that’s being cultivated JODI HELMER is a North Carolina-based freelance writer covering the intersection between food and business. This issue, she covers how blockchain is transforming supply chain transparency, p. 38.

in the coffee industry for 2021. We are also

FARAH JESANI is an IT consultant turned

excited to see average citizens and coffee

barista turned chai entrepreneur. She is

consumers continue demanding equitable

the CEO and founder of One Stripe Chai

treatment of farmers and underrepresented

Co., a South Asian-inspired beverage com-

communities in the industry.

pany located in Portland, Oregon. She’s passionate about how food and beverages are represented specifically in the coffee

Tea is best paired with warm peanut butter cookies.

industry. On p. 28, she shares why we should embrace “ haldi doodh.”

I’m hopeful that the struggles we faced in 2020 lead us toward a more positive, safe, inclusive world.

Coffee is best paired with Biscoff cookies! Chai is best paired with Ritz Crackers (don’t knock it till you try it!). I am most hopeful for change. Change

CORRECTION

in how we treat and respect each other,

In our September/October issue, on p. 34, we inadvertently used a photo previously

earth, change in how we view our food

commissioned by Barista Magazine. Fresh Cup apologizes for this oversight.

systems, and change in how we love and

change in how we view and nurture the

care for ourselves. 14 ] NOV/DE C 2 0 2 0 » f r e sh cu p. com

EM I LY M CI NTY R E is CEO of coffee im-

Lexington, Kentucky-based freelance

porter Catalyst Trade and creator of the

writer ROBIN ROENKER has extensive

world’s first coffee marketing system,

experience reporting on business trends,

which can be found at catalystcoffee-

from cybersecurity to real estate, personal

consulting.com. Read the second install-

finance, and green living. For Fresh Cup,

ment of her Fresh Cup column, “ Coffee

she covers sustainable and eco-friendly

Marketing,” on p. 20. Get in touch at

trends in cafés and the coffee industry in

emily@catalystcoffeeconsulting.com.

her award-winning column, Sustainable Matters. This issue, she takes a look at

Coffee is best paired with a great conversation or a book. I’m most hopeful about innovation and rebuilding in the coffee industry!

the importance racial equity plays in a sustainable future, on p. 62. Tea is best paired with a holiday movie,

IN OUR OUTGOING ISSUE OF 2020, we asked our contributors to reflect on what makes their coffee or tea ritual special, as well as what they hope a new year will bring.

a good book, or a cozy crochet project. For 2021, I’m hopeful for the development of a successful COVID-19 vaccine, the return of semi-normal social gatherings, and healing for everyone affected by the many challenges of 2020.

Coffe/Tea is best paired with ______ What are you most hopeful about for 2021?

Full-time freelance writer SUSAN JOHNSTON TAYLOR covers personal finance, entrepreneurship, and lifestyle topics for The Wall Street Journal, Daily Candy, Parade, Entrepreneur, Boston Globe, Fast Company, and The Atlantic. For this issue, she caught up with several

SIERRA YEO is a coffee specialist, Q

operators to find out what they’re serving

grader, and freelance writer whose work

up this fall, and beyond, amid COVID-19

has appeared in Barista Magazine, Biocaf

challenges (p. 22).

(Urnex Brands), SOLO Magazine, Caffeine Magazine, and Perfect Daily Grind. She is

Tea goes best with a good book.

the founder of The Kore Directive, a coffee

Hopefully seeing loved ones in person

professionals network for womxn based in

and in a safe way.

London, United Kingdom, with the aim of forging greater inclusivity and job opportunities in the scene. Now based in Singapore, she makes her Fresh Cup debut covering the country’s kopi culture, on p. 50. F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 15

IN HOUSE

Creating a Budget That Works For You Entrepreneurs share their best financial practices By J an ae Easl on

oney isn’t exactly the easy part to owning or starting up a business. Sometimes business owners in the coffee and tea community navigate finances with only personal experience to draw from; sometimes people have been in business a while and are still wanting to try something new with their profits. But budgeting doesn’t have to be a roadblock. These entrepreneurs have a few tips and tricks up their sleeves.

costs are covered to recoup starting costs,’” says Sokunbi. Like personal finances, she continues, business finances can have ebbs and flows. Not only should you track those costs that keep your business open, but as time goes on, write down an amount you want to set aside for emergencies, such as economic downturns or slow seasons.

CL EV ER GI R L F I NA NCE’ S BUDGET TIPS FOR SHOPS: • Define business goals and budget those in

Calculate Costs Starting out with a simple spreadsheet, or pen and paper, can open the doors to understanding how much money you earn and how much money you pay out. It is all about starting to visualize the numbers. Bola Sokunbi is the founder of Clever Girl Finance, an online platform and community for personal finance and accounting courses. Sokunbi, also an author, posted a video on YouTube especially for business owners, “Starting A Business The Right Way: How to Create A Simple Business Budget,” which has garnered thousands of views. To begin the budget journey, Sokunbi suggests, at the very minimum, writing down every essential cost that is needed to keep your business open, and categorizing what is recurring every month. That way, she says, you know how to see past those numbers. If you are opening a new business, startup costs should also be factored in, she says. “Once you factor in startup costs, you can determine how long it may take to recoup them by taking the startup costs and dividing them by six months, a year, and say, ‘Okay, now I know how much extra I need after my essential

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“Say I want to make $500,000 this year, or I want my business to be profitable by June,” she continues. “That is where budgeting comes in. This is where business owners need to be proactive and not to rely on that software. Those tools can’t read your mind.” By setting aside money through budgeting, goals can become a reality over time or help you develop a payment plan for capital taken out to reach them.

• Define recurring costs as the base of your budget to keep your business running • Create an emergency fund • Divide sales sheets by products to see what is selling and what isn’t

BOLA SOKUNBI

“Build a line in the budget that has a goal to set aside a fixed amount every month,” says Sokunbi. “Have a business backup. For example, business may be slow and instead of letting parts of your team go, you can continue to pay them. Or maybe you will need to upgrade your equipment. By doing this, this makes you rely less on debt in uncertain times.”

Define Business Goals While budgeting with digital tools like QuickBooks and Microsoft Excel sheets is valuable, Sokunbi says your goals as a business owner are just as vital. “Those programs will tell you how much you made, how much taxes you owe... but they don’t really align with what your goals and objectives are,” she says.

“Think of it as you are telling your money what you want it to do for you and your business, based on your plans and your goals and objectives for your business to be not only profitable, but to grow,” she says. Budgeting definitely can seem hard in the coffee and tea industry. Like any entrepreneur in any field, many people enter the industry because of their passion for coffee, with finances the last thing on their mind, says Sokunbi. “[Many people are] trying to leverage a business as a way to get ahead, but there might be aspects of finances in their personal life that they don’t even understand,” she says. “And so it makes it even more so difficult and more so uncomfortable to have the conversation from a business perspective.”

Projecting Is Just As Important Sahra Nguyen started Nguyen Coffee Supply in Brooklyn in 2018. Her com-

PHOTO BY CAROLINE BEFFA PHOTOGRAPHY

pany directly ships green coffee from producers in Vietnam, offers singleorigin roasts and more, and sells to consumers via its website. A few years into owning her business, her takeaway is: budget—but don’t forget to add financial projections. “The closer you stay to your numbers, the more control you’re going to have over your business and the more empowered you’re going to be as a business owner and entrepreneur,” says Nguyen. SAHRA NGUYEN

She believes outlining a financial model—or the process of creating a summary of a company’s expenses and earnings in the form of a spreadsheet that can be used to calculate the impact of a future event or decision—can allow businesses to project, or forecast what future finances will look like. “You can always find the formula that works best for you,” says Nguyen. “It’s also about how much you want to walk away with like, do you want to make a profit? Are you looking to just break even? I think staying flexible is important, and financial modeling allows you to easily shift your budget and prices if you need to.” As a new business on the block, a financial projection can forecast spending based on recurring costs, and how much you hope to make on sales, to determine outcomes. By doing this, you can show bankers or investors the path of paying back loans, growing, or sustaining your business. And for those

PHOTO COURTESY OF NGUYEN COFFEE SUPPLY

in business for a while, projecting could mean staying on track or making profitable or even bigger moves.

Review, Then Review Some More Actively reviewing the budget and projections can make a real difference for the future. “Look at your prior month’s budget, even your last six months of spending,” says Sokunbi. “There are so many incredible insights and many people will shy away because they think they are not making enough money, but there are so many golden gems and nuggets in your history of your business.” To begin, Sokunbi suggests looking at your past business’s budget, past expenses, and past spending, then taking a look at what areas are the largest, and determining if that spending is necessary. It also reveals, based on revenue coming in, what is making you money and what is not. “You might find the biggest bulk of spending is your coffee, and that is okay, but you might find that you are spending more on coffee cups than you should be,” she says. “Or...let’s say you have 10 different types you offer, you may find that there are actually two coffee products that are your top sellers that are bringing in so much money for you, but you have high expenses on the other eight products, [which] is another opportunity for you to cut back on your spending for those eight products….Put more of your spending towards the products that are doing well for you to try to earn more money. How can you adjust things, is there opportunity to save more so that you can widen that gap between your revenue and your expenses, which essentially is your profit.”

Invest In Marketing Marketing can be expensive to add to your business’s ongoing expenses, but can be well worth it to boost your foot and/or digital traffic.

Nguyen did her own marketing when her business started, and has recently outsourced it after her company grew over the years. “I have the unique advantage as a super creative person and someone with a background in media, so I created all of it,” she says. “For those who do not own their marketing, it is very important to invest in because it is a big opportunity to connect with your audience, and it is a place to have first contact with potential customers.” Nguyen also suggests taking out a small loan up to $1,000 as a trial for experimenting with applying marketing services to your business plan. “If you do that, I would say be mindful how it will affect your cash flow because paying it back will take partial revenue each day,” says Nguyen. “Ask how marketing could bring value to your company, whether it is new customers, and set goals so you feel you’re getting value out of it since it can be hard to put a direct ROI on marketing.” F I NA NCI A L P R OJ ECTI NG 1 0 1 • Use last year’s sales numbers as the basis of your projected sales numbers • Find free projecting spreadsheets online to begin to play around with your numbers • Check in often, and remember these numbers are educated guesses

No Shame In Starting Small Running a bare-bones operation to start could mean faster profits and growth. Janine Awan and her husband Saadat Awan of Woodcat Coffee in Los Angeles started with limited furniture and a limited menu. After gaining awareness in the community, the couple was able to afford to do more. “A lot of businesses take out loans and just want to finish the place,” says Janine Awan. “We had nothing on the walls. We barely even had tables and chairs. We just were like, let’s start, let’s start appealing to the neighborhood and proving to them that we know

F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 17

In House what we’re doing….Six years later, we’re doing great. We just started roasting this year, which is going to help us save even more money.” The Awans, like Nguyen, also drew from past professional experience to boost their business. Saadat is trained in MEP (mechanical, electrical, plumbing) engineering, while Janine is a professional designer and illustrator. “We have been DIY from the start with Woodcat,” says Janine. “That is probably my biggest piece of advice, that if you are brick and mortar, you do not have to have all the things right away. Start small.” During times of uncertainty, like with the COVID-19 virus, finances can be tight, and working with a limited, stripped-down budget can happen. “What are those recurring costs that you need to have in place at the very least that will still give your customer that amazing experience, but will not put you over budget and eat into your profits?” says Sokunbi. “Emergency funds set aside [during budgeting] can help you weather the storms during those times, or low seasons.” Hungry Bunny Virtual Donut KHLOE HINES Shop in Wichita, Kansas, opened up in March, just as the United States saw COVID-19 cases rise. Its owner and creator, Khloe Hines, lost her previous job during this time, and decided it was time to launch a longtime dream of hers to own an online-based doughnut shop. Everything came out of her personal pockets in the beginning, says Hines. She does her own grocery shopping for the business, makes her own stickers, sends packages, does local deliveries— you name it, Hines does it. “Don’t be afraid to ask for help, when it comes to the budgeting aspect of running a business,” she says. “Find a mentor, or a colleague, or even a friend that is willing to assist you with record keeping and bookkeeping.” Even keeping a notebook can make a difference in tracking items and finances starting out, suggests Hines. “It’s always kind of bumpy being an entrepreneur and a small business owner, but I believe these things help a lot,” she says. “Budgeting...is not about perfection, but it’s about having one in place and trying to work through it every month,” adds Sokunbi. “And then very importantly, assessing the prior month to determine what went wrong, what went wrong, what can be, what can be improved upon, and what can be done differently.” FC JANINE & SAADAT AWAN

PHOTOS FROM TOP: COURTESY OF WOODCAT COFFEE, COURTESY OF HUNGRY BUNNY VIRTUAL DONUT SHOP

F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 19

COFFEE MARKETING

More Offers = More Sales By Em i l y M cI n t y r e

he secret to coffee sales is simple: Make More Offers! I’ve heard this idea called ABL, or “Always Be Launching.” The more you make offers to your customers, the more they will buy, which is successful for two reasons: novelty and the power of statistics.

and editors want to hear about novelty as much as your customers do. 3. Track your results, learn everything you can, and do it all again! Be consistent. It takes time to become a go-to source of delight for your customers and their friends. Also, be patient, because momentum takes time to build.

The Novelty Factor We humans like new things! There’s a reason that every time big tech companies release a new product, people line up and camp out the night before, even if they already have a similar product. In the coffee world, we see this with pumpkin spice lattes, limited releases, and cool collabs. Don’t you get excited when your favorite roasting company does something new? There’s almost no limit to how excited we get over new things, which means that the more new things you as a coffee business offer, the more your customers will buy.

Simple Statistics At risk of oversimplifying this point, the other reason that frequent offers or launches are pretty much guaranteed to increase your sales is the power of statistics. If you make three sales for every 10 people who see your email offering a new product, you’ll make sales in direct relationship to how many times you offer a new product! It’s your choice: once or twice a year, or every few weeks? How much coffee do you want to sell? It’s entirely up to you!

What Makes a Good Offer or Launch? While it’s tempting to try and make every launch huge, it’s better to vary the type of launches or offers as much

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The Power of Deadlines & Scarcity

MY OFFER BRAINSTORM During my marketing masterclass in May (the replay of which is available on my website), I created a huge brainstorm of Offer/Launch ideas for every type of coffee business, from coffee shops to coffee producers to consultants. You can get it free by emailing me at emily@ cataly stcoff eeconsulting.com and asking!

as possible. Creativity is essential and the whole process can be incredibly fun both for teams and solo entrepreneurs. A great launch could be something as simple as making a big deal about expanding your open hours or free shipping for a holiday, or it could be as involved as a cross-border collaboration with a competitor or a complete new product line. The key here is to: 1. Come up with something new (or revive something old) that’s worth noticing. 2. Tell everyone about it. Absolutely talk it up on social media, in your brick-and-mortar spaces, by email, and on your website, and don’t forget to do PR around it—journalists

If you haven’t already been using deadlines in combination with scarcity to close your sales, you’re going to love what happens when you try it—after all, we humans are driven by FOMO, or Fear of Missing Out. If someone is already leaning toward buying from you and there is a deadline to make the decision and/or limited quantities, they will be more likely to make the purchase. One simple way to use deadlines is to send an email announcement and offer a discount if the customer buys by a certain date (3–7 days out is good). Then, send another email to remind them a day or two later and explain what benefits they will get from it, and another an hour or two before the discount goes away. (I usually get up to 50% of my sales right at that moment.) The nudge of urgency helps your customers make decisions.

Important Metrics Even if you’re not data-driven, you should still track your results from your offers so that you can improve with each one. At a minimum, I recommend you keep track of the ways you promoted the offer, any responses you got from customers, and your final number of sales. If you care to track results for each channel (e.g. email vs. in-person sales), then it is even more educational. FC

F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 21

TRENDING

Cup of Comfort How Café Owners Are Seizing on Seasonal Trends in Light of COVID-19 By Susan J ohn st on Tay l or

few years ago, nitro cold brew was all the rage and keto followers were buzzing about butter coffee. While many coffee shops and cafés still offer those drinks, the unusual circumstances surrounding this year have ushered in a new crop of trends. As operators seek ways to reach customers amid shelter-in-place orders and fears of spreading coronavirus, many have turned to options like curbside and contactless pickup, grab-and-go options, and bags of whole coffee beans to adapt. At the same time, customers are dealing with uncertainty and spending more time at home, with many craving comforting tastes and smells. Fresh Cup caught up with several operators to find out what they’re serving up this fall, and beyond.

NUNATAK COFFEE’ s take-and-bake scones.

PORTRAIT COFFEE R OASTERS & BIG SOFTIE’ s cold brew ice cream float.

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(FROM LEFT TO RIGHT) PHOTO COURTESY OF NUNATAK COFFEE, PHOTO BY KIYAH C PHOTOGRAPHY, AND PHOTO COURTESY OF A 2ND CUP

A 2ND CUP is a nonprofit coffee shop with a mission to end human trafficking.

F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 23

Trending

Nunatak Coffee Beaver Dam, Wisconsin Connie and Josiah Vilmin began roasting coffee in 2004, and added a bakery and café at the beginning of 2018. Connie handles the bakery side, developing the recipes for their popular scones in flavors like cranberry pistachio, maple oat, white chocolate raspberry, and blueberry. They’d set up a website pre-pandemic, but the need to connect with customers in new ways this spring accelerated their move online. “COVID pushed us in a direction maybe sooner than we were thinking, of finding creative ways to offer [our products],” says Josiah. The pandemic inspired many people to start baking at home, but not everyone wants to bake from scratch, so that provided an opportunity for the Vilmins. In May, they began selling take-and-bake scones for pickup.

“The scones are made from scratch and flash frozen here,” explains Josiah. “You can take them to your oven and bake them to your specs when you want them.” Their most popular scone flavors are blueberry and white chocolate raspberry, so those two are available for take-and-bake. “As nice as it is to have them baked perfectly in our store, sometimes it’s cool to have them at your convenience at home,” he says. The take-and-bake scones proved popular for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and other events this year. Even as businesses reopen, Josiah anticipates continuing to offer take-and-bake scones with the addition of seasonal flavors like caramel apple and toffee pecan. “I see us adding to it with some of our bakery items as we continue,” he says. In addition to the popularity of its take-and-bake scones, the business has also seen an uptick in sales of whole beans so customers can make their coffee at home. Each summer, they offer a cold brew cola. “We’ll have it for a few weeks and then it’ll go away,” says Josiah. “We use our wild coffee for that cold brew with a cola-flavored syrup and carbonated water. It’s like drinking a coffee Coke.”

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PHOTO COURTESY OF NUNATAK COFFEE

Portrait Coffee Roasters Atlanta, Georgia With the slogan of “pouring a new narrative,” Portrait is a socially conscious coffee brand committed to increasing representation of African Americans in the specialty coffee industry. Before cofounding Portrait, Erin Fender worked in a candle shop, so she was familiar with the candle-making process and thought soy candles would be a good extension of the Portrait brand. “How can we express ourselves through different senses?” she wondered. It started with Rocket Love, a candle scent she created using a combination of blood orange, sandalwood, and bergamot. It’s an homage to the Stevie Wonder song of the same name.

“We felt Stevie was a great reference to Black culture and Black music,” says Fender. “It’s a great leg to our brand.” The next candle scent was Mama’s Gun, an earthy blend of clary sage, basil, and peppermint, and a nod to Black singer-songwriter Erykah Badu. Although Rocket Love is a fruity, summery scent, Fender plans to keep it available into the fall and beyond, with more candle scents in the works. “People are passionate about having good scents in their homes,” she says. “[They] are looking for different ways to indulge and ways to practice self-care, and I feel like candles are a way to make a home feel more homey.” Fender wanted their candles to be affordable, so they set the price point at $16 for an 8-ounce candle. Portrait staff pour the wax into glass jars, and Fender says the jars can be repurposed after use. “You can clean out the remaining wax and use it for whatever,” she says. In addition to candles, Portrait also collaborated with a local soft serve ice cream brand called Big Softie during the month of September. Fender predicts a soft serve revival as a new trend; she and her

PHOTO COURTESY OF PORTRAIT COFFEE ROASTERS

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Trending Evans believes that’s because most of their customers are still working from home rather than picking up a to-go coffee on their way to work. Jars of the house-made fair trade syrups are also popular. Flavors include coconut, caramel, vanilla, secret squirrel (hazelnut and amaretto), mint, mocha, and honey rosemary. The latter syrup started as a seasonal offering, but it’s become so popular that Evans says they plan to keep selling it. Customers use the syrups for lattes, but they can also be used in cocktails.

husband, Portrait cofounder Aaron Fender, “have a ritual called Big Softie Sundays,” she says. “It’s the highlight of our week! So, I posted about Big Softie at some point, and Sarah, the owner, reached out to our team about doing a collaboration.” Big Softie remixed Portrait’s Aunt Viv latte (named for Janet Hubert’s character on “The Fresh Prince of BelAir”), made with cardamom and brown sugar, into a cold brew ice cream float. They also created a coffee soft serve made with Portrait’s Founders roast.

survivors, all of its sugar, chocolate, and other merchandise is fair trade. Grocery stores now stock yeast and toilet paper more reliably than they did in the spring, so the shop has moved away from selling pantry items. However, they’re still selling drinks such as mocha, chai, cold brew, and lattes in half-gallons.

A 2nd Cup Houston, Texas After closing its dining room in mid-March, A 2nd Cup quickly pivoted to “Pandemic Pantry,” selling kitchen staples sourced from distributors. “It definitely filled in a void that we saw with people for just some basic necessities like eggs and flour and yeast,” says operations director Brooke Evans. “[Back in March,] you couldn’t find yeast anywhere.” They also sold hand sanitizer, toilet paper, tea, and chocolate chips and cocoa. Since the coffee shop has a social mission of raising awareness about human trafficking and a job-training program for

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“That’s something that has definitely stuck,” says Evans. “People are opting to get those larger bulk drinks to have at home. They’ll come in once a week and pick up a half-gallon.” A 2nd Cup is also selling large volumes of tea leaves and coffee beans.

While Texas allowed dining rooms to reopen at partial capacity, A 2nd Cup has not reopened its dining room and instead added picnic tables outside. They have sold house-made breakfast tacos for a while, but they’re especially popular now with to-go orders. “We have made sure everything in our shop that we’re selling is stuff that transports well and is still good if you’re taking it home,” says Evans. In addition to food and drinks, A 2nd Cup partnered with another anti-trafficking organization, Elijah Rising, to sell hand-poured candles, with scents like Earl Grey and Almond Milk Latte, and bath and body product like lip balm and soap. The candles have sold especially well. They’ve also partnered with two other organizations to sell masks. A 2nd Cup logo shirts, mugs, and enamel pins are also available. “Having that added revenue stream has helped keep us going,” says Evans. FC

PORTRAIT COFFEE ROASTERS PHOTO BY KIYAH C PHOTOGRAPHY, OTHER PHOTOS COURTESY OF A 2ND CUP

THE WHOLE LEAF

The Case Against “Golden Milk”

By F ar ah J esan i

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PHOTOS BY MORGAN GLAUB

016 was the year of galaxy cakes, cauliflower as rice, and the infamous golden milk latte. A lot of thoughts went through my mind the first time I saw “golden milk” on a coffee shop menu. The first, accompanied with a full-on eye roll, was, “It’s haldi doodh.” The second was a simple but important question: “People want to pay for this?!” You see, this new drink on the block looked, smelled, and tasted exactly like the drink my Indian mom forced me to drink growing up as a kid in Atlanta. Unlike chai, it did not evoke memories of warmth, family, or catching up with old friends. Instead, it took me back to all the times I would pray my mom forgot she had heard me cough earlier in the day and I’d get to escape this hot yellow medicine. I had only ever seen this drink through the lens of medicine, and since it didn’t taste like its Western fruit-flavored gummy counterparts, it was low on my list of desirable things in life. Most of my South Asian friends who grew up with the drink had a similar experience. (I say “most” because there’s always that one kid who likes to suck up to the moms.) For a little background, “haldi doodh” literally translates to “turmeric milk” in Hindi (haldi being the turmeric). In Gujarati, it’s called “haldar varo doodh,” in Telugu it’s “pasupu paalu,” and “holud doodh” in Bengali. The word haldi itself is derived from the Sanskrit word haridra, which means “yellow.” Now, take a moment to contemplate that there’s over 50 other names for turmeric in Sanskrit. A spice so nice they had to name it 50 times! Unlike chai, which is not an ancient Indian drink (the British brought tea cultivation and consumption to India in the 17th and 18th centuries as a part of their colonial ventures, but that’s a juicy conversation for another day), haldi actually is ancient and native to the Indian subcontinent (we’re talking about evidence of its usage dating back over 4,000 years!).

IT’ S HALDI, DOODH: One Stripe Chai’s turmeric latte blend.

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The Whole Leaf

FARAH JESANI (at left) prepares a turmeric latte, or haldi doodh (far right).

Producing over 1 million tons of turmeric a year, India is the largest producer, consumer, and exporter of turmeric in the world. What is all this turmeric used for? Haldi is used as a spice in food, as a dye, and, most importantly, as natural medicine. It is widely known for its anti-inflammatory and gut-benefiting properties. In the past few years, consumer interest for wellness beverages has spiked immensely and turmeric has become a daily go-to superfood for many. U.S. imports of turmeric have increased more than 14 times since 2002 ($2.5 million to over $35 million), making it the top importer of the spice globally. Nowadays, you can find turmeric as an ingredient on

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anything from popcorn to granola to nut butters. So, back to seeing this drink that had been my frenemy for as long as I could remember hanging out on a café menu. As my taste buds evolved, haldi doodh actually grew on me over the years. I was using haldi more and more as I learned to cook Indian dishes from my mom. The earthy flavor that I had once abhorred had turned into a flavor I now admired and looked forward to. I often found myself making sure I drank haldi doodh when I felt a cold creeping up or a cough coming on— just as my mom would! When I launched One Stripe Chai, I knew deep down that haldi doodh was going to be somewhere in our lineup.

My inspiration for One Stripe Chai was to bring coffee shops a more delicious and high-quality option for chai. Now that turmeric was becoming so popular, I once again noticed watered-down or low-quality versions of haldi doodh popping up all over the place. This summer, we proudly launched “It’s Haldi, Doodh” as a punny ode to the drink I grew up with and the reaction I always had when seeing it on menus. Choosing this name was an intentional decision. I knew it could be a bad move since most people don’t speak Hindi and may not know what haldi doodh means, but haldi doodh is inherently Indian, and in 2020, representation matters. If Americans can learn to pronounce gnocchi, schnitzel, and ashwagandha,

PHOTOS BY MORGAN GLAUB

then they can call this yellow goodness of a drink something more beautiful and expressive than the rather uninspired “golden milk.” Additionally, I want the name of this blend to create a moment for education. We the people in specialty coffee know that not every patron who walks in the door will know what a traditional macchiato is, and now and then a customer will be severely disappointed when we hand them what seems to be a miniature version of what they expected. This moment is one in which to humbly educate our customer on the product that we are selling. We should be open to educating ourselves and our customers on the tradition and context of all products on our menus.

Besides staying true to our name, we source turmeric from Diaspora Co., a fellow South Asian-owned company. Diaspora was founded by Sana Javeri Kadri with the goal of creating a more equitable and decolonized spice trade. Their turmeric is bright and potent and comes from a fourth-generation farm in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India. We pair this haldi with stone-ground organic black pepper and cinnamon, which we grind fresh in-house before blending. Black pepper enhances the absorption of turmeric’s active ingredient, curcumin, while cinnamon provides a slightly sweet finish to balance out the earthiness of turmeric. Since launching “It’s Haldi, Doodh,” I’m proud to share that not one person

has complained about the name. Instead, I’ve had an outpour of messages from people that appreciate the education and are now replacing golden milk in their vocabulary with haldi doodh! Coffee shops are talking about calling this haldi doodh on their menus, with “golden milk” as a simple tagline. The thought of walking into third-wave coffee shops, in all their single-origin and direct-sourced coffee glory, and seeing “haldi doodh” on the menu gives me goosebumps. We can choose to either unknowingly consume the foods that are laid before us or we can choose to become intimate with their stories and backgrounds— this is all to say that context and representation matter. FC

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NEW LIFE FOR AN ANCIENT BREW METHOD BY MICHAEL BUTTERWORTH

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Turkish Coffee Revisited

TUR KISH COFFEE PR EPARATION using a copper cezve filled with water and coffee grounds. At Coffee Manifesto in Istanbul, they skim the foam off the top of their Turkish coffee.

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PHOTOS BY MICHAEL BUTTERWORTH

he barista at Coffee Manifesto in Istanbul’s Kadıköy district measures out a small dose of coffee and turns the dial on the Mahlkönig EK-43 clockwise, almost as fine as the grinder goes. In seconds, the coffee is ground into a fine dust and is carefully shaken into a small copper pot with a long handle. The grounds are mixed with tepid water and given a quick stir with a small wooden paddle. With a few clicks, a butane burner ignites with a flash of flight. The barista carefully adjusts the burner until the blue flames are just lapping over the sides of the copper cezve. Within minutes, the concoction slowly begins to bubble. Suddenly, the foam billows up, threatening to overflow before the barista swiftly removes the cezve from the heat source. In one careful motion, the entire mixture, grounds and all, is poured into a small cup— a sort of inverted espresso demitasse with a wider base than lip. The steaming hot coffee must sit for several minutes as the grounds are allowed to settle to the bottom. This is one of the oldest coffee brewing methods, and for many people around the world, is still what comes to mind when you say “coffee.” Although dozens of nationalities claim a coffee culture centered around a cezve or ibrik, the concentrated, unfiltered brew is perhaps best known as Turkish coffee, and a growing number of specialty coffee professionals are rediscovering the method’s potential. “Cezve reveals in full the taste of the coffee,” says Tetiana Tarykina, the 2019 Ukrainian Cezve/Ibrik Champion. (In Turkish, an ibrik is a pitcher and a cezve is a small-handled pot used to make coffee. Curiously, the former word is often used to describe the latter in English and other languages.) Tarykina finished second at the 2019 World Cezve/ Ibrik Championship, a World Coffee Events competition in which competitors prepare multiple coffees, including a signature beverage, with cezves for a panel of judges. Although the competition attracts less attention than its sister WCE competitions the World Barista Championship and Brewers Cup, for cezve enthusiasts, the antique brewing technique is equally worthy of a place in the spotlight. “Cezve is a very difficult but interesting brewing method,” says Tarykina. “It is a concentrated coffee beverage that makes it difficult to hide coffee defects.” It’s not uncommon to hear coffee roasters anecdotally mention their roasts perform better on the cupping table than when brewed. Like in cupping, Turkish coffee doesn’t filter out the insoluble compounds that are typically trapped by a filter. The result is

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Turkish Coffee Revisited

TETIANA TARYKINA, the 2019 Ukrainian Cezve/Ibrik Champion.

Tetiana Tarykina’s Turkish Coffee • Add 7.5g of Turkish ground coffee and 60ml of water to the cezve. • Place over medium-high heat. • Stir at 0:30, 1:00, and 1:30. • Decant mixture into Turkish coffee cup when the slurry starts to foam up. • Total brew time should be 2:30.

a substantive, coating mouthful—a chance for consumers to experience another side of the coffee. “Mouthfeel and sweetness are more important for Turkish coffee,” says Turgay Yıldızlı, the 2013 World Cezve/Ibrik Champion and founder of Specialty Turkish Coffee, an online Turkish coffee equipment supplier based in New Orleans. “A smooth, round mouthful makes the fruity or floral notes more pleasant.” It’s a sentiment perhaps best echoed by a T-shirt Specialty Turkish Coffee stocks. On the shirt, the outline of a cezve surrounds the words, “We don’t filter people or coffee”—a riff on the popular poster by Department of Brewology. The unfiltered consumption of Turkish coffee helps create its unique flavor profile, but so does the heat application used during brewing. “This is a very primitive brewing method,” says Yıldızlı. “Decoction.”

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Most brewing methods, be it a pourover dripper or French press, start with almost-boiling water that will cool slightly during brewing. In the case of siphon brewers, the slurry is held at a constant temperature. But Turkish coffee starts with tepid water that is heated, meaning most of the extraction happens at the very end of the brew. Turkish coffee is far from the only method that uses decoction to extract coffee solubles. In Ethiopia and Eritrea, a jebena is used to brew coffee, typically heated directly over a fire. A similar tradition exists in Scandinavia, where kokkaffe is made by boiling coffee in a kettle before using fir leaves as a makeshift filter. Although much older, Turkish coffee is perhaps more analogous to Italy’s espresso culture: small, strong cups of coffee that are brewed to-order one or two cups at a time. The comparison is perhaps fitting,

considering the Venetians first acquired coffee through trade with the Ottoman Empire. Although Coffea arabica is endemic to Ethiopia, the plant was brought to Yemen by the 15th century. Turkish historians M. Sabri Koz and Kemalettin Kuzucu observe in their book Turkish Coffee the spread of coffee cultivation in Yemen coincided with the Ottoman golden age, during the reign of Sultan Süleyman I. At the time, Istanbul was the capital of a vast empire that stretched across North Africa and Eastern Europe, all the way into modern-day Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Prior to the Ottoman conquest of Yemen, coffee had mostly been consumed for medicinal purposes or in religious ceremonies by Sufi monks, but it soon became the empire’s social beverage of choice. In the early 1500s, the first coffeehouse opened in Istanbul’s Tahtakale neighborhood, and the new trend soon spread throughout the whole city. The sultan employed a team of full-time coffee makers, and many other officials followed suit. “It became a luxury item to serve your guests,” says Yıldızlı. “Hospitality and guests are very important in Eastern cultures.” Although it’s been almost a century since the last sultan reigned in Istanbul and the Ottoman Empire was replaced by the modern nation state of Turkey, the way that coffee is prepared in much of the former empire remains the same. “Every second Ukrainian family has a cezve at home,” says Tarykina. Likewise, travel to Serbia, Cyprus, or Egypt, and you’ll find locals sipping on cezve-brewed coffee, though they likely all have different names for their brew of choice. “The name is a problem,” says Yıldızlı. “Is it Turkish coffee? Greek coffee? Cezve coffee? Ibrik coffee?” As a Turkish-American, Yıldızlı is partial to the name Turkish coffee, though he recognizes the method belongs to many cultures. “Know the history,” says Yıldızlı. “And you can change the tradition.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF TETIANA TARYKINA

For those hoping to add Turkish coffee to their café menus, certain challenges abound. “There’s not enough information around,” says Yıldızlı. “There’s a bias that it’s too bitter.” Like crema for traditional Italian espresso, the köpük, or foam, on top of the cup is typically taken as a sign of quality. To maximize foam, traditional recipes in Turkey call for bringing the coffee to its boiling point multiple times, cooling the coffee in between. But for Yıldızlı, repeatedly heating the coffee will over-extract it, producing a harsh, bitter cup. To prevent over-extraction, baristas can manipulate other brew variables. For example, most Turkish coffee recipes call for stronger coffee-to-water ratios that serve to balance out the fine grind and intense turbulence. Yıldızlı prefers to start with a 1:10 ratio when dialing in a new coffee; Tarykina opts for an even stronger recipe, using 7.5 grams of coffee to 60ml of water. Yıldızlı further breaks from convention by starting with warm (50–60 degrees Celsius) water, to shorten the overall brew time and avoid over-extraction. Still, he recommends that aspiring cezve users experiment with different recipes, and trust their palate. “There is no standard evaluation of this brew method,” says Yıldızlı. For those interested in developing their Turkish coffee brewing skills, Yıldızlı and Tarykina recommend investing in a highquality cezve. With the direct heat application to the device, it’s important to look for a thick copper cezve with a silver lining to avoid corrosion. Both Yıldızlı and Tarykina partner with SOY, which makes cezves by hand in their Istanbul factory. (Specialty Turkish Coffee is SOY’s U.S. distributor, and Tarykina works as a brand ambassador.) “These cezves are made from a single piece of copper, which allows for good thermal conductivity,” she says. “Each detail is very unique.” At a time when pour-overs are passé and latte art is commonplace,

Yıldızlı sees an opportunity for cafés to create memorable, interactive coffee experiences for their customers with Turkish coffee. Although it’s one of the world’s oldest brew methods, it has an enduring intrigue both for those who grew up with it or without. While traditional Turkish coffee is served either black or sweetened with sugar, Tarykina sees signature beverages as a great way to introduce cezve coffee to a new audience. “I like to brew cezve with pink peppercorns, grated dark chocolate, and dried cherries,” she says. “Cezve is a method you shouldn’t be afraid to experiment with.” FC

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I F I NCA , which launched October 2019, is blockchain technology that is currently being used by over 14,000 farmers.

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF IFINCA

he coronavirus pandemic is taking a toll on coffee farmers. As cities went into lockdown and coffee shops and restaurants closed, sales plummetedâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and growers feared coffee prices would follow. In coffeeproducing regions, 68% of coffee growers cited the price of coffee as one of their biggest worries and 21% called COVID-19 one of the greatest issues facing smallholder farmers, according to research from Hanns R. Neumann Stiftung, a German nonprofit organization supporting grassroots projects on coffee farms across the globe.

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Blockchain Benefits Coffee Farmers

offee farmers also struggled with disruptions to the global supply chain as workers contracted COVID-19, processors closed, exports stalled, and farmers lost access to valuable international markets. A burgeoning technology called blockchain could help. The protected digital ledger could provide much-needed transparency that helps everyone from farmers to roasters anticipate and prevent disruptions to the supply chain. Blockchain may also help farmers streamline operations and increase revenues. Blockchain serves as a protected digital ledger, according to Alexander D. Barrett, CEO of the data verification firm iFinca. Once information is entered into the platform, it cannot be altered. “If you write something down on a piece of paper, hand it to someone else who writes something down and it goes to eight more people who all write something down on the same piece of paper,”

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he explains. “With blockchain, the tenth person who receives that piece of paper knows that nothing has been changed.” A new report, Food for Thought: Mapping the Food and Beverage Supply Chain with Blockchain, notes that, “Rather than being stored in one place, data is distributed on an open, peer-to-peer network…creating a permanent data log that can easily be tracked and referenced.” Blockchain was introduced long before the global coronavirus pandemic took hold. Now, the platforms are helping growers innovate and pivot by sharing data, helping farmers connect directly to shippers, distributors, and retailers, and distributing funds. These four companies have created blockchain platforms aimed at supporting coffee growers.

IBM FARMER CONNECT: Tech giant IBM created a traceability platform called Farmer Connect that

IBM FAR MER CONNECT interface.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF IBM FARMER CONNECT

uses blockchain to improve efficiencies and fairness in the coffee supply chain. Farmers can use the Farmer ID app to prove their identity and income to lenders, increasing access to loans; Farmer Connect also allows growers to store and share information about their products with co-ops, exporters, importers, and tradersâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;all on a safe, secure platform. Top coffee organizations such as The Colombian Coffee Growers Federation, Sucafina, Yara International, and RGC Coffee have collaborated on the blockchain solution that IBM launched earlier this year. As part of a partnership with J.M. Smucker, Farmer Connect is being used to trace a single-source coffee brand. Consumers who purchase the Folgers 1850 single-origin Colombian coffee can use the QR code on the packaging to access information about the origin of the beans, roasting dates, shipping ports, and more. Farmer Connect also provides details about projects such

IBM FAR MER CONNECT aims to improve efficiencies and fairness in the coffee supply chain.

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Blockchain Benefits Coffee Farmers as sustainable agriculture initiatives and other sponsored efforts to support coffee producers. “The aim is humanizing each coffee drinker’s relationship with their daily cup,” says David Behrends, head of Sucafina and founder and president of Farmer Connect, in a press statement. “Consumers now can play an active role in sustainability governance by supporting coffee farmers in developing nations. Through the blockchain and this consumer app, we’re creating a virtuous cycle.”

To ensure that blockchain would benefit the farmers that supplied coffee to Starbucks, Michelle Burns, Starbucks senior vice president of Global Coffee & Tea, says, “We’re…interviewing coffee farmers in Costa Rica, Colombia and Rwanda, learning more about their stories, their knowledge and their needs in order to determine how digital traceability can best benefit them.” Starbucks rolled out its blockchain technology tool to consumers in August.

STARBUCKS: In 2019, Starbucks announced a partnership with Microsoft to trace beans from farm to cup—and share that information with consumers. The international coffee company works with 380,000 coffee farms across the globe and blockchain can provide secure data and real-time traceability to consumers who are interested in knowing more about the origins of their coffee beans. Blockchain also benefits farmers by providing details about where their beans go after they leave the farm. In a press statement about the innovation, Starbucks quotes Marcel Kadende, a coffee farmer from Kigali, Rwanda, who used blockchain to trace coffee from his farms across the globe to the United States.

“I didn’t know my coffee left the country,” he says. “Access to knowledge is powerful….A farmer who doesn’t know their coffee left the country might not know their coffee is export quality. Knowing your coffee quality as a farmer is important.”

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GRAINCHAIN: Honduran coffee farmers have long struggled with falling prices, lack of investment, and unstable markets; a blockchain-based tool wants to change that. GrainChain uses blockchain to minimize risk and encourage reinvestment in coffee farms in Honduras. The platform includes a digital wallet so farmers in remote regions without access to banks can apply for loans and banks can ensure the capital is applied to projects that improve farming conditions and crops; insurance companies can use tools to automate the underwriting of loans; and exporters use the tool for contracts and settlements. Farmers can also cut out middlemen and sell directly to buyers, increasing their earnings. An estimated 10% of Honduran coffee growers have signed on to use blockchain in their operations and the platform has completed more than 84,000 transactions representing in excess of 5.2 million pounds of coffee. “Our platform provides guarantees and visibility through the entire process, which empowers growers and vendors while reducing risk to bankers and buyers,” says Luis Macias, CEO of GrainChain, in a statement.

“We believe that building agricultural industries with blockchain tools will encourage reinvestment and improve quality throughout by giving people a single platform they can trust.”

IFINCA: Blockchain solutions have the power to keep track of a complex paper trail, creating a digital file that tracks information about prices, moisture levels, weight, and cupping notes and traces coffee beans through the entire supply chain. The iFinca platform launched in October 2019 and has grown to include more than 14,000 farmers as well as 38 exporters, 14 importers, 26 roasters, and 19 cafés in seven countries, including Colombia, Guatemala, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Uganda, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. Barrett believes that creating a single, accessible ledger to verify purchases and reduce inefficiencies could help coffee farmers earn a larger share of the overall value of their crop. The biggest benefit: access to farm-gate prices. iFinca is in the process of aggregating data about prices by country, varietal, and cup score, and working hand-in-hand with CoffeeChain to disclose prices so farmers have transparent access to pricing data. Barrett compares the tool, which rolls out later this year, to the Kelley Blue Book pricing for cars. “We want farmers as equal stakeholders; they get information on pricing that gives them a much more powerful position for bargaining; it levels the playing field,” he says. “When consumers can see what the farmer was paid, they don’t mind paying an extra five cents on their $4 cappuccino.” Blockchain doesn’t guarantee transparency or traceability; it simply provides protected data. But, when properly leveraged, Barrett notes that it could be used to ensure that farmers are properly compensated for their coffee beans. “I’d love to be able to touch all of the small stakeholders globally,” he says. “This will be a new industry standard.” FC

PHOTO OF RWANDAN COFFEE FARMER COURTESY OF STARBUCKS, GRAINCHAIN LOGO: FACEBOOK @GRAINCHAINIO

n 1804, the world’s first Black republic won its independence from France. Haiti is the only country born of a successful slave revolution. From the first day of its existence, its leaders defied world powers by abolishing slavery and the slave trade. Unbeknownst to many, prior to 1804, Haitians produced half of the world’s coffee through extreme labor exploitation and systematic violence. The history of coffee cannot fully be appreciated without an appreciation and understanding of coffee’s origins in Haiti. Slavery and systemic racism were inextricably intertwined with every bean of coffee produced before 1804 and, in some cases, even after it.

The New Black Republic Once Haiti acquired its independence it was not eagerly welcomed into the community of nations. In Europe, the new Black republic was considered a threat to the global social order where Europeans

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A FAR MER on his way home from the market in Thiotte, Haiti.

PHOTO BY DAVID DÁVILA

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Haiti sat at the top of the hierarchy. On the other side of the Atlantic, slave owners in the south of the United States did their best to ensure that the Black enslaved were kept in the dark about their freed brothers and sisters in the Caribbean. In fact, Thomas Jefferson imposed an embargo on Haiti, cutting off trade with the country from 1806 to 1808; the U.S. did not recognize Haitian independence until 1862. The success of the Haitian Revolution, however, demonstrated to Latin America and even to the Black enslaved in the United States that freedom, for all, could be attained. Through his leadership, Haiti’s liberator Toussaint L’Ouverture inspired Simón Bolívar of Great Colombia and San Martín of Argentina to lead their own independence movements in South America. It was L’Ouverture who inspired Emeterio Betances, the Father of Puerto Rico’s independence movement, to launch El Grito de Lares, which united all Puerto Ricans against Spanish colonial rule. Haiti’s game-changing revolution inspired the birth of true liberty for all, no matter the color of one’s skin, in the Western Hemisphere and around the world. This cannot be emphasized enough. TOUSSAINT L’ OUVERTUR E

In an effort to restore both French rule and slavery, Napoleon Bonaparte sent his brother-in-law, General Charles Leclerc, and 43,000 French troops to

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VIEW from Haiti’s Blue Pine Forest, the cradle of Haitian specialty coffee.

capture L’Ouverture and wage a war of extermination. In a letter to Bonaparte in 1802, General Leclerc wrote, “Here is my opinion on this country, we must destroy all of the black people in the mountains — men and women — and spare only children under twelve years of age. We must destroy half of those in the plains and must not leave a single person of color in the colony who has worn an epaulette.” Following L’Ouverture’s imprisonment in France, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, one of L’Overture’s generals and himself a former enslaved person, led the Haitian revolutionaries to victory against the French on January 1, 1804, declaring, “Freedom or death.” After the 13-year revolutionary war, Haiti’s military elites, including Dessalines, tried to revive coffee production and economic activity by managing the formerly enslaved through the use of coercive measures. The strategy failed and led many to flee to the mountains where they focused on small-scale farming. Other formerly enslaved Haitians burned coffee labor camps to the ground because they reminded them of their sadistic oppressors. Economic sanctions by the West also caused widespread abandonment of coffee farms on the island. Then in 1825, 21 years after independence, the French sent 14 warships to

Port-au-Prince, the nation’s new capital, and threatened to attack. Freedom had not fully arrived. Instead of physically attacking, they coerced Haitian leaders into an economic agreement that would have lasting repercussions. For diplomatic recognition as a free nation, Haiti’s president agreed to pay France roughly $21 billion in today’s terms, which is more than double Haiti’s current GDP as of November 2020. It’s not uncommon to hear Haitians say that they paid for their independence twice—once with their blood and again with their money, which included heavy taxes on coffee exports. The legacy of this so-called “economic exchange” remains contentious. Despite herculean challenges, Haiti’s rich coffee heritage has survived the ebb and brutal flow of economic sanctions and instability, foreign occupation, dictatorships, state-sanctioned monopolies, unfair trade practices, weak infrastructure, environmental degradation, and natural disasters.

Cultivating Against All Odds Today, against all odds, Haiti continues to cultivate its Arabica Typica, one of the oldest coffee varietals still in production, and mostly unchanged since it was brought to the Western Hemisphere from Ethiopia. This Typica is an

TOUSSAINT L’OUVERTURE: JOHN CARTER BROWN LIBRARY/WIKIMEDIA, PHOTO BY DAVID DÁVILA

heirloom of one of the first coffee varietals found suitable for human consumption—consider it time travel. Unlike many of the varietals that have since evolved and mutated from the Typica cultivar, the Haitian varietal is susceptible to pests and fungal diseases that plague coffee plants, resulting in an uphill battle for Haitian coffee producers. Furthermore, Haiti continues to produce some of the best-tasting Arabica Typica as a result of having some of the highest mountains in the Caribbean. In fact, for Coffee Review’s August report, a blind review from licensed Q-graders awarded Haitian coffee beans grown in the region of Thiotte a whopping score of 90. It’s important to note that Haiti’s current farming culture has roots in pre-independence times, so farming methods have remained mostly unchanged for more than three decades. The traditional name for its diversified farming culture is “jadin BANANAS are part of Haiti’s diversified farming culture. Kreyol,” or Creole garden. In simple terms, this kind of farming involves growing a variety of vegetables and subsistence crops on family-owned plots while also growing cash crops like coffee, mangos, cocoa, and others at a small scale. It’s widely believed by farmers that this form of diversified farming will minimize the personal risk that may accompany focusing on coffee alone. As such few, if any, Haitian coffee producers describe themselves solely as “coffee farmers.” In an effort to leverage these Creole gardens and gain better access to resources and capital, coffee producers on the island have created growing numbers of coffee cooperatives that are attracting foreign buyers from the U.S., Europe, and Japan. Members pay a fee that allows them access to foreign markets, marketing, research, and education. Coffee cooperatives lend well to Haiti’s collectivist culture, particularly in rural areas. In these areas, unlike individualistic cultures, farmers are more likely to be motivated by group goals and long-term relationships. On the ground, the cooperatives are often made up of folks who grew up together, attend church together, and farm with each other. Unfortunately, these cooperatives face their own set of challenges, which include but are

PHOTO BY ALAIN DAVID LESCOUFLAIR

F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 47

Haiti Haiti’s coffee industry must be placed squarely in the hands of young farmers who will work to build a sustainable and equitable future. The world’s first Black republic needs buyers who believe in its products and are committed to dismantling the neocolonial narratives that have for too long robbed it of its potential. What Haiti doesn’t need is another NGO or handout. It needs committed investors. DAVID AND GAÏNA DÁVILA at the Panthéon museum in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

HARVEST: Arabica Typica green coffee beans.

not limited to coffee price fluctuations, pests and coffee diseases, and internal turf conflicts that are tied to corruption. Although needed and necessary, even cooperatives that are ethically managed can have some drawbacks such as a lack of transparency in regards to wages and gender equity. To overcome these challenges, it’s important that foreign buyers and investors resist outsider-driven solutions and invest in learning about Haiti’s history, culture, and local context rather than accepting stereotypes steeped in neocolonial narratives.

Coffee is Culture We can all accept that, like all nations, Haiti is layered with complexity from beginning to end. However, one aspect of life that is uncomplicated on the island is the relationship that most Haitians have with their drink of choice: kafe. In Haiti, coffee is culture. To be Haitian is to drink coffee—usually, black. You’d be hard-pressed to find a Haitian citizen who doesn’t enjoy a freshly brewed sugary cup of black cof-

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fee every morning with a piece of bread and avocado. Whether in the city or countryside, Haitians often roast their coffee at home and finely grind it with a mortar and pestle. This daily activity is deeply weaved into the country’s cultural fabric. During our trips to both the capital and countryside, we’ve been struck by the reverberating entrepreneurial spirit found on every street corner, from the sugarcane juicer to the start-up founder. Unfortunately, many young Haitians have left their family farms in pursuit of opportunities in Port-au-Prince. To make matters worse, coffee producers are beginning to age out without passing on their skills. In light of this, a new generation of producers must be properly incentivized to continue Haiti’s rich coffee heritage. Without the right incentives, Haiti’s farms will once again be abandoned. The next generation of coffee farmers need access to capital, fair prices for their work, committed researchers who will help prevent coffee diseases, as well as funding to test soil conditions that will yield competitive results. The future of

Since its inspirational fight for independence, Haiti has shown the world that it will not quit. Its relentless dedication to self-determination is why we insist on ending the erasure of its critical role, both in coffee and world history. Coffee, as we know it today, would not exist without the stony road trod by Haiti. Even in the midst of a global pandemic, Haitian coffee producers continue to work tirelessly to improve the quality of their coffee production, and their earnest efforts and contributions must no longer go unnoticed. Haiti’s story is one of revolution and inspiration at origin; may it inspire and fuel you. FC

COFFEE BEAN PHOTO BY DAVID DÁVILA, PHOTO OF THE DÁVILAS BY ABIGAIL DUBUISSON

KOPI GU YOU: brewed coffee with butter

SINGAPORE KOPI CULTURE

Coffee culture in Southeast Asia | By Sierra Yeo

ith the global rise of third-wave coffee in the last decade and a half, it’s natural that the focus of the industry has prioritized quality, purity, and provenance. We tend to evaluate a coffee based on its proximity to perfection—the perfect terroir, the perfect roast profile, the perfect brew recipe. Whole brands, competitions, and companies are built around arabica coffees, prizing their complexity and cup quality. We even go as far as to insist, as an industry standard, that coffee tastes best unsullied—so no cream, no milk, no sugar, please! We’re also often under the (misguided) impression that specialty coffee, as we understand it, is a relatively young industry, with its roots in Antipodean coffee culture that then spread to other Western countries and took off in popularity. In fact, the spread of coffee across the world from its birthplace of the African continent centuries ago to the producing countries we know today, in order to supply coffee to developed consuming countries, is a modern dynamic deeply entrenched in colonialism. Governing bodies like the Specialty Coffee Association, World Coffee Research, 50 ] NOV/DE C 2 0 2 0 » f r e sh cu p. com

and the Coffee Quality Institute, among others, espouse standards of evaluating coffee that are Eurocentric in nature, without necessarily taking into account the differences in experience, metrics of quality, and tasting backgrounds of coffee professionals the world over. We thus run the risk of having a myopic view of what constitutes “good coffee,” according to an insular and homogenous experience. What does that mean, when coffee is as diverse a product as they come? What does that say about our ability—or lack thereof—to understand that while we have engineered standards and systems to objectively evaluate the quality of coffee, there is a far more nebulous factor at play: the subjectivity of experience, coupled with the context of occasion? This is evident when we take into account the ways in which coffees have been lovingly interpreted and embraced by the cultures into which they were introduced, outside of the Western experience. I have the pleasure of interviewing Robert Chohan, founder of Kopi House U.K., dedicated to showcasing the diasporic Nanyang kopi heritage of Singapore in London, as well as Pamela Chng, cofounder of the Bettr Group in Singapore, a coffee organization dedi-

cated to bettering the lives of women and marginalized youth in the country through vocational programs.

Coffee & Colonization In order to understand how communities all over the world, and, in this instance, Singapore, came to have their own coffee cultures, it’s crucial to trace the spread of the crop via colonization. “Early Singapurah [Singapore] and Southeast Asia in general has had much influence from European and Western powers throughout its history,” says Chohan. “The most notable influence comes from the Portuguese in the 16th Century, the Dutch in the 17th, and the British in the 18th.” To maintain their supply of readyto-drink caffeine, the Portuguese brought with them arabica coffee, which had been roasted and sugarcoated—known today as torrefacto roasting—to survive the long journey to Southeast Asia. The thin coating of sugar served the purpose of sealing the roasted bean, preventing oxidization that would turn them stale. Without any express shipping, their supplies would be expected to run low before new incoming shipments would PHOTOS COURTESY OF KOPI HOUSE

arrive, especially with an ever-growing colonial community. In Southeast Asia, the Dutch proceeded to introduce Arabica to Indonesia (then named Batavia) in the late 17th century, followed shortly by the French, who introduced Robusta to Vietnam, with the intention of implementing plantations where the cash crop would be grown with forced native labor. Gradually, British colonization in Singapore (then named Malay Singapurah) and Myanmar similarly influenced coffee production within the region. There was also forced coffee production by the Spanish in the Philippines. Today, you will find varieties like Arabica, Robusta, Liberica (also called Barako), and Excelsa grown across the region, with Robusta being the predominant variety due to Southeast Asia’s equatorial terroir.

The Roots of Kopi With the crop now established across Southeast Asia, it stands to reason that domestic consumption began to take root and evolve according to the regional practices and habits of people. Today, we’re talking about kopi (coffee) culture within Singapore—but what is kopi? “Kopi is the heritage style of coffee made in Southeast Asia, with variations in each country,” says Chng. While kopi may go by different monikers in different countries, the method of preparation is similar: brewed with a large sock filter and drunk black, with condensed or evaporated milk. Kopi can be prepared either hot or cold, all possessing very intense, bitter, heavybodied profiles, with little to no acidity. “The simplest answer would be [that] kopi is the local traditional coffee of Singapore (and Malaysia), but this simply doesn’t do it justice,” adds Chohan. “With millions of drinkers in the region, it deserves better even though it is only found in the Southeast Asian region. Plus, there is also a small but noticeable difference between Malaysian and Singaporean Kopi.” In Singapore, it’s usually found in hawker centers (a large, sprawling collection of open-air food and drink stalls) and kopitiams (coffee shops) all over the country. Ubiquitous and affordable, kopi

is the drink of choice for a large population of the country, particularly the older demographic. But how did such a drink come to be a staple in the hearts—and diets—of Singaporeans? Chohan thinks it started all those centuries ago, with the shortfall in supply of torrefacto arabica for the initial group of Portuguese settlers; the indigenous Malay population, seeing the opportunity to move the early Western colonizers from roasted arabica coffee to the local “lower-quality” robusta coffee, are credited with the invention of local kopi culture in Singapore. “This took place in Singapurah and this is where [early] kopi has its origins,” he says. “The Portuguese loved this new style of coffee—different to their own, similar in some ways but just as delicious.” R OBERT CHOHAN, founder of Kopi House U.K.

The local Malays roasted the robusta coffee in large woks over a charcoal fire, and mimicked the torrefacto principle by caramelizing the intensely roasted coffee in molten sugar. They could not afford expensive European filters, so innovated by filtering the coffee grounds with a piece of cloth. “This also produces an incredible and smooth mouthfeel, and even amongst some of the coffee community today it’s believed that cloth filters provide the best mouthfeel,” says Chohan. And thus the earliest rendition of kopi was born, an amalgamation of the European love of coffee meeting the local Malay palate.

Kopi: A Melting Pot Beverage While the Malays are considered the originators of kopi, the drink now

proceeds to go through several evolutions as it begins to spread to different diasporas, including across the Straits of Johor into mainland Malaysia, with the country putting its own unique spin on the beverage. For example, Malaysian coffee is regularly roasted with salt, in addition to sugar, to boost the umami profile of the kopi; and certain places, such as the town of Ipoh, have chosen to deviate from traditional torrefacto roasting, instead including butter at the point of roasting. They were also the first to add sweetened condensed milk to the bittersweet beverage, cleverly accounting for the humid tropical climate in which the storage and usage of fresh milk was not as viable as in colder climes, as well as boosting the mouthfeel of the drink. This “milk and sugar” practice then made its way back to Singapore, where it evolved into the kopi we know today, formally named Nanyang kopi. The etymology of the beverage gives us clues as to the diverse and complex history of the drink upon reaching Singaporean shores: “Nanyang” literally means “Southern Ocean,” and is a Mandarin term referencing the warm lands of the South China Sea, an homage to the immigrants of Southern Chinese descent that arrived en masse in Malaysia and Singapore. “Kopi,” in turn, is Bahasa Melayu for “coffee,” and a nod to the enterprising indigenous Malays who are credited with creating torrefacto robusta all those centuries ago. Thus, “Nanyang kopi” is literally “Southern Ocean Coffee,” and its multicultural history is a culmination of the efforts of several key parties: the Malays, Teochews, Fujianese, Fuzhounese, and, perhaps most importantly, the Hainanese. With the mass immigration of Southern Chinese populations, such as the wealthier Teochews, Fuzhounese, and Fujianese into Singapore around the time the British had colonized the country in 1819, there was an influx of trade in textiles, spices, and manual labor as these communities began to contribute to the local economy. By the time the Hainanese arrived, between 1850–1900, there were limited options as to economic expansion that the wealthier Chinese communities hadn’t F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 51

Singapore Kopi Culture capitalized on, so the Hainanese turned to a (then) underrated staple: coffee. “The habit of drinking kopi arose in the early 20th century, with over 200 of these coffee shops—kopitiams—registered in Singapore in the 1920s,” says Chng. These shops were set up primarily by the Hainanese, followed by the Fuzhounese. The Hainanese began as service workers for British colonial officers and families, and subsequently transferred their service skills and knowledge to opening Hainanese coffee shops for the local population. They provided not only coffee, but food highly affordable for the local immigrant communities, such as the traditional “national breakfast” of halfboiled eggs, kaya (coconut jam), and butter toast, and a sweet, strong, and fragrant cup of kopi, along with other famous staples of Hainanese cuisine, such as chicken rice or pork chops. Kopitiams, adds Chohan, “are endearingly called Hainanese kopitiams today because of how affiliated the Hainanese are with this trade in Singapore. “They continued to develop the roasting and brewing method [of kopi] and…along the way, the ‘piece of cloth’ turned into a formal coffee ‘sock’—a cloth filter sewn into a sock-type shape, with its open end attached to a metal hoop with a handle. This allowed it to be easily handled, and also put into the opening of a large pot into which brewed coffee complete with grounds would be poured,” he adds. “The sock would allow the brewed coffee to filter through and retain all the coffee grounds in a convenient-to-dispose-of way.” Running the kopitiams on low profit margins meant the Hainanese had to develop more cost-effective ways to feed a rapidly growing population. The development of Nanyang kopi saw the addition of maize, as a bulking ingredient to lower the overall cost, and margarine, to help separate the sticky, caramelized beans as they cooled. Adding maize, paired with the intense sugar-roasting process, resulted in a distinctly robust and unique flavor—a happy accident that defined the tasting profile of an entire diasporic coffee culture. 52 ] NOV/DE C 2 0 2 0 » f r e sh cu p. com

Kopi Today Today, kopitiams still use coffee processed in this manner. Over the years, blends containing different compositions of robusta, liberica, and arabica have been introduced for complexity and variety. “All are considered ‘Nanyang kopi,’” says Chohan. “However, for many, particularly the older generation, Nanyang kopi is not Nanyang kopi unless the strong pungency of maize is part of the flavor. They are so accustomed to this from their youth that it is part of the drink.” Nanyang kopi must be brewed in batches in order to attain the right concentration, and it must be filtered in PAMELA CHNG, cofounder of Bettr Group

a cotton cloth sock to create its iconic smooth mouthfeel. Unlike espresso, a brewed kopi “base” is almost always diluted to a more “drinkable” strength; the robusta concoction already contains a staggering amount of caffeine and sugars combined. But arguably the most interesting part of drinking Nanyang kopi is the 132 configurations of the drink, constructed from the same kopi base. Ordering the drink you want from this dizzying array is as much a part of the experience as drinking the beverage itself, for Nanyang kopi has its very own lingo with which to articulate what you would like. It’s impossible to place the order in English, Mandarin, or any of the other main dialects. Kopi lingo is a creole—an amalgamation of the dialects of the ethnicities and cultures that were instrumental in making Nanyang kopi what it is today, primarily grounded in

Hokkien and Malay. With such a code, most experienced kopitiam operators can whisk up your drink within 30 seconds. “When you consider how complicated an order may be in a Western coffee shop…it may likely turn into a conversation and a long-winded description,” says Chohan. “With Nanyang kopi, considering it is churned out in unbelievable quantities, plus the need for a quick turnaround of clientele to keep the kopitiam business profitable, there is a highly structured process to place an order which is as much part of the Nanyang kopi experience as the coffee itself.” The ordering format tends to follow the pattern: Coffee-Milk-StrengthSweetness-Temperature. “In a nutshell, you simply state you want kopi—which by default means you will receive coffee with condensed milk and two sugars,” he continues. “You can then add any additional modifying terms. If I said I want ‘Kopi-C Gao Siew Dai Peng,’ I am asking for a coffee, with evaporated milk instead of condensed milk; on the stronger side, with more brewed coffee and less water to dilute it; and less sugar (one sugar instead of two), and iced.”

The Fabric of a Diaspora With such a rich and unique coffee culture, I was curious to know why kopi was so important, personally, to each of my interviewees, as well as the importance of kopi in the social fabric of diaspora. “For Singaporeans, kopi is a collective memory,” says Chng. “The thick, bitter, yet smooth liquid can be enjoyed by everyone, regardless of age, social status, race.” There is a quintessential image of an elderly uncle or aunty (an endearing term for older men and women) behind the counter, pulling a kopi tarik (the Malay word for “pull,” a technique in which the kopi brewer stretches and aerates the kopi by pouring it from a height) from the traditional sock filter, pouring a fast, steady stream through the long spout of the traditional kopi pot. “Brewing an excellent cup of kopi requires trial and error of many genera-

PHOTO: INSTAGRAM @BETTR.GROUP

tions,” says Chng. “It requires accuracy, practice, and dexterity to deftly handle the velocity of the liquid pouring out through the elongated spout of the stainless steel pot. “The best time to drink it is in the early morning, in a traditional kopitiam,” she continues, “while listening and observing other customers chatting or reading the newspaper. This is the snapshot of daily life in Singapore/Malaysia, and kopi holds a collective memory for us. Many of our trainers recount tasting the bitter black liquid as toddlers in their grandparent’s lap, and hating that first experience. Yet they have come to encompass and share the importance of kopi as trainers.” “I grew up in the U.K., so my first experience of kopi was in 2016 in Singapore,” says Chohan. “I did not know what Nanyang kopi was back then, and even when I had seen a few kopitiams I didn’t understand, nor appreciate, the importance of the ‘odd-looking’ coffee being sold there. “It was only when I returned in 2016 that I decided to try it,” he says. “I was, quite simply, blown away by the strength and depth of flavor. I instantly fell in love with it.” As a result of Chohan’s love of kopi, his awareness that the art of making the beverage is on the decline with younger generations preferring the trendier, Western-style specialty coffee scene, and kopi’s relative anonymity outside of Singapore and Southeast Asia in general, he decided to devote his life to promoting this beverage outside of its home country.

Kopi vs. Specialty: A Paradox? It’s interesting to observe the dynamic between traditional kopi culture, so deeply embedded in the collective psyche of Singaporeans, and the newer, younger specialty coffee scene, with which Chng and Chohan are both involved. I was curious to know if they were able to reconcile their love for both distinct coffee styles. “I really started getting into coffee in the mid-90s when I moved to Melbourne,” says Chng. “The coffee culture there was completely different and still very much in the Italian tradition. I missed my $2 cappuccinos when I returned to Singapore and could never quite find decent Italian-style renditions of coffee here.” It was only when specialty coffee shops started popping up in Singapore around 2008 that she returned to specialty coffee, spending the next five years diving deep into all things specialty. “I traveled the world learning about the specialty coffee industry, from brewing to cupping to roasting as we started up Bettr Barista,” she says. “I didn’t drink much kopi during this period as I became very sensitive to the bitter and earthy notes in kopi as I developed my sensory palate. F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 53

Singapore Kopi Culture “It’s only been in the past three to four years that I reconnected with kopi and started to enjoy it for what it is, taking off the critical lens of specialty coffee quality standards,” she adds. “My tolerance has never been wider or more inclusive than at this point, as I recognize the characteristics of every quality of coffee for what it is and am able to enjoy both at the same time very easily now.” With a firm eye on the systemic issues in the coffee value chain, Chng believes that coffee needs to be much less snobbish and exclusive—and being able to appreciate coffee in its myriad interpretations is a key component of accessibility and openness. “We need to be more equal and inclusive across the entire chain if we want to be able to create more sustainable and equitable conditions for all segments of the coffee industry,” she says. “Like many people who get into highquality arabica, you often tend to go down a certain route,” agrees Chohan. “This is the problem with specialty coffee—your palate improves so much as you progress through the world of good coffee, that at some point you ruin it for yourself because you yearn for a higherquality arabica every time. “This is also what made Nanyang kopi so easy for me. It is a totally different world,” he adds. “With most blends being based primarily (or wholly) on robusta coffee, the ‘fussiness’ of a profile isn’t important. You do not need to worry about floral notes, or fruit notes, or milk chocolate notes. That is because those notes aren’t there to begin with, in robusta Nanyang kopi....You do not need to train your palate to pick out delicate flavors as you would do with speciality arabica coffee.” Chohan bemoans the snobbery that he has encountered from Western-skilled baristas about Nanyang kopi, stating, “it is truly unbelievable. Simply because it is not the conventional espresso-style and because it’s Asian, it’s dismissed as being poor quality. The reality however is that those who do decide to sit down to try Nanyang kopi and approach it with an open mind, understanding it is outside 54 ] NOV/DE C 2 0 2 0 » f r e sh cu p. com

the world of flat whites, or V60s, actually really like it.” And perhaps the key isn’t to reconcile their approaches to both specialty and kopi, but rather simply to understand that these are two different products, to be enjoyed in entirely different contexts and occasions. Chohan is also keen to challenge the notion that Eurocentric standards of coffee are the yardstick by which we measure the quality of all coffees around the world. KOPI PENG: iced coffee

“I am a lover of all things coffee, and I would like to believe I am open-minded enough to treat coffee cultures from around the world as distinctly different, so that one doesn’t influence my opinion of the other,” he says. “Sure, Western coffee places importance on the origin of a coffee, the altitude [at which] it’s grown, the varietal…and the only reason espresso-based coffee is popular the world over is because it’s Western, not because it’s incredible.” ”

The Best of Both Worlds It is precisely that sentiment that drives both Chng and Chohan in the work they do today, to promote and preserve a vibrant diasporic coffee culture. “The first and second waves of coffee transformed the colonial cash crop into a ubiquity in nearly every country. It’s important to preserve traditional diaspora coffee cultures—like kopitiams in Singapore—to keep brewing diversity

within coffee,” says Chng. “Similarly, while the terms americano, latte, and French press are widely known, a sockfilter kopi would be harder to order at coffee shops outside of these diasporic coffee cultures, so it’s vital to preserve these practices and traditions.” And sometimes the approach can simply lie in giving people a choice through exposure. Chng’s company, Bettr Barista, installed Singapore’s revolutionary first hybrid bar in their Facebook Singapore café in 2018, a setup which offered customers a choice between both specialty and local coffee. “We trained our baristas in both [styles of coffee] and discovered that it was a great way for our young (16-yearolds) and old (55-year-olds) baristas to learn with and from each other,” she says. “We have since converted six of our bars into this hybrid format.” In addition, Bettr Barista has also begun offering formal classes in which students can learn to brew traditional kopi. “[This is] so that we can encourage more young people to pick up the skills and craft to ensure we preserve this precious heritage of ours right alongside specialty coffee,” says Chng. “We have the best of both worlds right here in Singapore—why not enjoy and celebrate it fully, much like how we celebrate our multicultural, multi-racial existence?” Even though Nanyang kopi in its current form has been around less than a century, it has thoroughly defined Singaporean society. “It is highly affordable...and also embodies the togetherness of society by offering a real food-and-socializing experience,” says Chohan. But above all, he concludes that the best thing about kopi is that it’s distinctly Southeast Asian. “This alone makes [kopi] worth preserving—it offers an alternative coffee world outside of the predominantly espresso-based market,” he says. “It embodies the effort of multiple ethnicities in producing what millions of people now drink as their daily hot beverage, and in doing so is a reminder of the journeys of those people when they arrived in Singapore.” FC PHOTO COURTESY OF KOPI HOUSE

F R E S H CUP M AGAZI NE [ 55

COUNTER INTELLIGENCE

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Whether you’re introducing menu options for takeout or searching for your standard to-go products, Barista Pro Shop stocks supplies ranging from FoamAroma’s innovative hot cup lid to classic Chinet 4-cup carriers. Need more? Your customers can stock up with the brand-new 96-oz. beverage to-go carafes! Find to-go products and much more for your coffee shop at baristaproshop.com/wholesale.

OH MY, CUSTOMIZED SURPRISE Custom Imprinted Mugs & Bottles Zojir ushi zojirushi.com Increase your brand exposure with customized mugs and bottles! Whether it’s your logo on an insulated mug as a retail item or an anniversary logo to celebrate a milestone, the options are endless. Most Zojirushi vacuum insulated products can be imprinted with design up to four colors. Orders start at 48 units. Act now for a special pricing offer for Fresh Cup readers—just mention “ Fresh Cup” when inquiring at zojirushi.com/captcha/imprint.php.

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THE (VEGAN) SPICE OF LIFE Spiced Macadamia Creamers Milk adamia milkadamia.com Plant-based, eco-conscious brand Milkadamia is releasing two new flavors of creamers, cinnamon and chai, just in time for the holidays. The naturally flavored cinnamon and chai releases join Milkadamia’s line of creamers that includes unsweetened and vanilla options. Made from raw macadamia nuts, the company’s completely dairy-free products deliver rich and creamy satisfaction with every pour. Ethically driven, the company is committed to sustainable farming techniques including regenerative agriculture, which can help to reverse climate change. Find recipes, and learn why “ moo is moot,” at milkadamia.com.

MAKING SPIRITS BRIGHT Red Eye Rye Standar d Pr oof Whiskey Co. standardproofwhiskey.com Standard Proof Whiskey Co. crafts an expression that will warm you up this season. The Nashville company’s Red Eye Rye infuses its premium rye whiskey with 100% arabica coffee sourced from South America. Aged in new American oak barrels for 18 months, the whiskey delivers an invigorating spice and oak balance. Enjoy Red Eye Rye neat, on the rocks, in a cocktail, or as a splash in your cup of coffee! Find recipe inspiration at standardproofwhiskey.com.

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Counter Intelligence

GO GREEN Hojicha Classic Hojicha Co. hojicha.co With at-home tea consumption on the rise, Hojicha Co. aims to bring the distinct flavor of Japan to your cup with its release of Hojicha Classic, a Japanese roasted green tea crafted in Kyoto. Green tea leaves grown on the hillsides of Kyoto, Japan, are roasted at a high temperature to bring out a toasted aroma and a taste that is sweet, smoky, and without a hint of bitterness. Hojicha Classic can be prepared hot, iced, or cold-brewed, or enjoyed as a tea latte. The tea is sold in resealable 80-gram bags exclusively at hojicha.co.

BLEND A BREAKTHROUGH BEVERAGE Frappés Monin monin.com You’re one scoop away from delicious and decadent frappés with Monin’s new Natural Frappé Bases. Four clean label powdered frappé bases, made without any artificial ingredients, are now available in Vanilla Bean, Mocha, Chocolate, and Cream (Plain). Blend with ice to enjoy or add a shot of espresso (or coffee) for a caffeine-friendly option. Each frappé pairs well with several Monin Syrups, Sauces, or Purées, which makes it easy to offer numerous flavor options to your customers. Each bag makes approximately 30 16-oz. beverages, and all four are available now on monin.com.

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CAN YOU DIG IT? Canned Cold Brew Moder n Times moderntimesbeer.com Cold brew fans across the country won’t have to look far for ready-to-drink cans of single-origin or barrel-aged coffees. After spending years refining its methods of sourcing, roasting, brewing, and canning, the popular West Coast brand Modern Times is expanding into Sprouts Farmers Market stores across the U.S., where customers will find a rotating selection of both single-origin and barrel-aged cold brews. Whether you’re an existing fan or an uninitiated cold brew newcomer, learn how to get your hands on a can at sprouts.com/stores or moderntimesbeer.com.

LIMITED EDITION, LIMITLESS SUPPORT Roasted Rick’s 2nd Edition Food 4 Far mer s food4farmers.org Food 4 Farmers and Vermont Artisan Coffee announce the second release of Roasted Rick’s, a series of limited-edition coffees that honor the work of the nonprofit’s founder, Rick Peyser, and the farming families at the heart of the coffee industry. Roasted by Vermont Artisan Coffee, this release is a sweet and fruity blend of coffee from Fazenda São Francisco in Brazil and the small farmers of Anserma Cooperative in Colombia. Selling for $20, all proceeds support food security work with coffee-farming families in Latin America. Order your bag today at the roaster’s website, vtartisan.com.

HOMAGE TO HERITAGE Gourmet Coffee Series Turk ish Cof f ee Lady turkishcoffeelady.com Turkish Coffee Lady has launched a new gourmet collection of coffee blends aiming to highlight Turkey’s heritage. Inspired by the country’s rich cultural inheritance, eight different flavors represent historical regions of Istanbul, Mardin, Cappadocia, Aegean, Zeugma, Göbeklitepe, Patara, and Ephesus, with flavors including traditional, mixed, mastic gum, cardamom, caramel, chocolate, hazelnut, and strawberry. Created in partnership with Göksu Global, this series also supports women empowerment in the post-COVID-19 era: 5% of the sales from each blend for one year will support the mentorship and leadership development programs of TCL Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization. Order today at turkishcoffeelady.com.

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SUSTAINABLE MATTERS

A Call for Racial Equity Coffee Industry Takes a Stand Against Racism By R obi n R oen k er

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PHOTO BY JOE YATES

n June, amid the national—and international—protests against systemic racial injustice following the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and others, BD Imports cofounder and president Phyllis Johnson issued an open letter to the U.S. coffee industry. Her message was raw and clear: “Racism and police brutality towards Black Americans are our reality. We cannot wish it away; nor can we continue to avoid the necessary work required to build a more equitable and just society,” she wrote. Johnson, a longtime supporter of women’s equity within the global coffee industry, urged her colleagues to now turn their attention to issues of race equality. “NOW is our opportunity for building partnerships to combat racism,” she continued, before signing off with a call for others to join her. After issuing the letter, Johnson founded the new Visit cof f eef or equit y. or g Coffee Coalition for Racial to learn more. Equity, or CCRE, which officially launched in October. “When you’re focused on the survival of a business, what happens is, sustainability issues and racial equity issues can sometimes get sidelined,” she says. “I realized there needed to be an organization whose mission was focused solely on [racial justice in the coffee industry] all day, every day.” With a board of 16 members from Kenya, Rwanda, Brazil, Canada, the U.S., and more, representing everything from small coffee entrepreneurs to larger industry players, CCRE’s leadership is intentionally diverse. (After reading her open letter, many CCRE board members reached out to Johnson to ask how they could help.) “Our board looks how it should look to be representative of a global issue,” says Johnson. The coalition intends to address the role that race has played in the coffee industry head on. “As an industry, it’s sometimes hard for us to face how racial inequality completely follows the line of how coffee is

LOGO COURTESY OF COFFEE COALITION FOR RACIAL EQUITY

traded and where the biggest value ends up,” she says. “It’s hard for us to accept that, but it’s as true as true can be.” One of CCRE’s first priorities is building new pathways for Black people to join the industry—including, for example, through mentorships and entrepreneurial program partnerships with students at historically Black colleges and universities. The group also hopes to help reframe coffee history to “present it in a way that offers empowerment and respect to people who have never been given real respect for their contributions to the industry,” says Johnson. “[In the past] we have given respect to the colonizers and missionaries who carried the bean from here or there, but CCRE will embrace a history of coffee that recognizes the people, the growers and farmers, who were the most vulnerable—yet also most important part—of its story.”

Working Toward Equity Since tens of thousands of protestors took to the streets this summer, coffee businesses like Californiabased Bird Rock Coffee Roasters and Kansas-based PT’s Coffee Roasting Co., along with many others across the U.S., have publicly pledged to take a stand against racism and work toward greater social equity. “Racism, racial injustice and discrimination have absolutely no place in our society or our company,” Bird Rock Coffee Roasters posted on the new “Anti-Racism” tab of its website, which also notes a commitment to “equality, justice and treating each other with dignity and respect.” In New York, Brooklyn Roasting Company is taking this mission to heart as well. There, founder Jim Munson has recently partnered with syndicated radio

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Sustainable Matters host Angela Yee and Brew 112, Brooklyn Roasting Company’s new coffee start-up run by people of color, to launch CUP (Coffee Uplifts People), a new coffee line that promotes equity, inclusion, and diversity.

A percentage of proceeds from sales of the new line will go to Angela Yee’s nonprofit, WellRead.org, to help support voter registration and voter awareness initiatives in advance of the upcoming presidential election. Helping give voice to BIPOC voters is the collaboration’s first goal, but as the partnership continues, Munson hopes it will help “empower the development of new Black- and women-owned coffee businesses,” he says. “In the wake of the enlightenment that’s happening now to recognize the disparities and inequalities and prejudices that have historically singled out people of color, we wanted to partner and help in an effort to erase some of those inequalities and inequities,” he adds. While plans for the establishment of Brew 112 are still being developed (the start-up’s name is a nod to the Brooklyn zip code starter 112), Munson hopes the new venture may have storefront space by next year. In the meantime, Brooklyn Roasting Company has been hosting a series of Tuesday pop-up events at its cafés where Brooklyn-based businesses owned by people of color can share their products. Recent attendees include Flatbush Granola Company, Shaquanda’s Hot Pepper Sauce, Sofia & Grace Cookie Co., Island Pops, and The Bakery on Bergen. “It’s products that pair well with coffees, but it also seeks to put the spotlight on businesses that have been disenfranchised,” says Munson. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, while Brooklyn Roasting Company is still only operating at 25% dine-in capacity due to social distancing guidelines, making connections with nearby BIPOC-owned businesses to arrange the pop-up partnerships has required some intentionality. But Munson feels the effort has been worth it. “This work is important and it’s ambitious,” he says. “We’re trying to accept the challenge that’s floating in the air around the country to address critical issues of race and inequality by working directly with people in the Black- and minority-owned businesses community.” FC

COFFEE UPLIFTS PEOPLE PHOTOS: BROOKLYNROASTING.COM

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ADVERTISER INDEX

To view our advertiser list and visit the websites listed below, go to f reshcup.com/resources/f resh-cup-adv er tisers

ADVERTISER

CONTACT

ONLINE

1883 Maison Routin

800.367.1883

1883.com

AeroPress

650.493.3050

aeropress.com

Arzum Electrical Home Appliances

833.733.OKKA (6552)

okkaforus.com

Barista Pro Shop

866.776.5288

baristaproshop.com/ad/fresh

Café Femenino Foundation

360.901.8322

cffoundation.org

Canadian Barista & Coffee Academy

canadianbaristaacademy.com

Coffee Fest

425.295.3300

coffeefest.com

Custom Cup Sleeves

888-672-4096

customcupsleeves.com

Davila Kafe Co

267.971.0781

davilakafe.com

Ditting

810.367.7125

ditting.com

Divinitea

518.347.0689

divinitea.com

Fresh Cup Magazine

503.236.2587

freshcup.com

Ghirardelli Chocolate

800.877.9338

ghirardelli.com/professional

Golden Bean

503.706.1330

goldenbean.com

Gosh That’s Good! Brand

888.848.GOSH (4674)

goshthatsgood.com

Hershey Foodservice

800.468.1714

hersheyfoodservice.com

Huhtamaki

913-583-3025

us.huhtamaki.com/comfortcup

Java Jacket

800.208.4128

javajacket.com

Malabar Gold Espresso

650.366.5453

malabargoldespresso.com

Maya Tea Co.

520.918.9811

mayatea.com

Mighty Peace Coffee

info@mightypeacecoffee.com mightypeacecoffee.com

Milkadamia

630.861.2102

milkadamia.com

Monin

800.966.5225

monin.com

Mountain Cider Co.

800.483.2416

mountaincider.com

One Stripe Chai Co

509.818.0516

onestripechai.com

Pacific Foods of Oregon

503.692.9666

pacificfoods.com/foodservice

SelbySoft

800.454.4434

selbysoft.com

Service Ideas

800.328.4493

serviceideas.com

Show Me Your Beans

showmeyourbeans@gmail.com innovatedproductsmfg.com

Simpson & Vail

800.282.8327

svtea.com

StixToGo

800.435.6789

stixtogo.com

Tea & Trumpets

707.799.7188

tea-and-trumpets.com

Tea Trade Show

973.551.9161

teatradeshow.com

TeaSource

855.320.4832

teasource.com

Theta Ridge Coffee

800.745.8738

thetaridgecoffee.com

Toddy

970.493.0788

toddycafe.com

Torani

800.775.1925

torani.com/puremade

Turkish Coffee Lady

202.492.4429

turkishcoffeelady.com

Your Brand Cafe

866.566.0390

yourbrandcafe.com

Zojirushi America

800.264.6270

zojirushi.com

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