Touching down in Bolivia is always a little disorienting, never easy to get there from San Diego and with the elevation at La Paz at almost 12000 feet, the altitude sickness usually hits you while you are in the customs line — a headache and slight dizziness until your first cup of coca tea at the hotel.

On my second sourcing trip to Bolivia, I again met up with my friends and guides from 2010 Mariela and Ackbar from ARCO, a USaid funded group that works to connect Bolivian Farmers (coffee, bananas, pineapples) with buyers.  This group also helped organized the national Cup of Excellence competition when it was held in Bolivia so they have good relations with excellent coffee farmers in the country.  The goal of this trip was again to hook up with Carmelo Yurja and buy more of his coffee and to meet new farmers with the same quality-forward approach to coffee growing.  Some of you may remember his coffee from last year, rated 93 on Coffee Review and one of the highest scoring Bolivian coffees on their site.

 

 

The day after I arrived in Bolivia we headed off by car to Caranavai region, a long journey on a tiny road full of tricky turns (but not the Road of Death – yet).   Once in Palmar Colama we cupped coffee at Carmelo’s farm.  In 2010, I was unable to visit his farm because a cocoa farmers’ strike sealed off a section of the country so I was looking forward to visiting during this trip. As fate would have it, many of Carmelo’s neighbors grow fantastic coffee as well so this turned out to be the best cupping table on the trip.  We are buying all the coffee, from 4 different farms, we cupped here.  It was nice to spend some time with Carmelo and learn more about his farm and the process he goes through to produce exceptional coffee.

From there we traveled a couple hours to visit Finca Golondrina in Copacalfiana; one of the more impressive farms I have seen; their organic coffee plants were beautiful and full of perfect deep red cherries.  We did cup some wonderful coffee from this farm but we could not bring any in this year.  Sometimes, though, these trips help us to lay a foundation for future partnerships so we hope that is the case for Finca Golondrina.

 

 

From there, we were off to meet farmers and cup in Typiplaya and Amor de Dios before heading back to La Paz.  Once back in La Paz, we hooked up with Marcial Huanca, one of our featured farmers from last year.  Marcial set up a cupping for us from farmers at the Mejillones Cooperative.  Again, all good cups but the standout, again, was coffee from Marcial, with which he had just won a Mejillones cupping competition.  While a very small lot, we purchased this coffee from him as well.

That night, we met Carmelo and his farming partner Rene at Rene’s coffee house in La Paz.  After a long negotiation, we came to a great sustainable agreement to purchase all of Carmelo’s coffee for the next three seasons.  We are proud to feature his coffee this year and in the future and very excited to have a deal in place that will give Carmelo a good price for his coffee and stabilize a supple of great Bolivian coffee for us.

This write up would be incomplete without mention of the Road of Death.   Yes, we did travel on this notorious road en route back to La Paz.   Often referred to as the most dangerous road in the world, I can tell you I have been on worse, and hairier road trips on origin – a drive in Ecuador with a crazed Italian driver comes to mine–but I have been on few with the dramatic views and scenery we experienced on this day.   The Road of Death is not as dangerous as it used to because other routes have been constructed connecting La Paz with Coroico.   Prior to the construction of a “safer” alternative route a couple years ago, 200-300 people would die every year on this road.

Luckily, we did not see much traffic the day we traveled it so the driver was enjoyable.  Actually, most of the traffic we saw were support vans for biking tours.  I am sure, btw, biking the El Camino de la Muerte seems like a good idea when you are planning a trip to Bolivia using a guidebook and checking out cool pictures on the internet.  I can tell you, though, the look on some of the faces of the tourists who where careening past on mountain bikes in the opposite direction certainly did not seem to say, “Wow, this was a great idea.  I am so glad I am risking my life right now. ”

And a write up of Bolivia would not be complete without at least a mention of the Cocoa industry.   As many are aware, cocoa production is legal for tea and for chew.  But, cocoa production in Bolivia is currently out of control and much is going towards illegal cocaine production.  This is the first time I had seen an abundance of cocoa farms –everywhere we went.  Unfortunately, the increased cocoa production is having an impact of the coffee industry.  Many coffee farms are now having difficulty finding labor during the harvest season as the cocoa farmers are paying more money and offering an easier job to those needing work, leading to poor harvesting of coffee and higher costs for the farmer.

Bolivia is not an easy country when it comes to establishing direct relationships with farmers.  Unlike, Guatemala, for example, the infa-structure for coffee is not as advanced.  Add that Bolivia is land-locked without a port, and moving coffee out of the country can be difficult and more expensive as well.  This year, it took a bit longer to actually get our coffee here.  But, we think it is worth the investment on our part.  Great coffee from Bolivia can be as good as any of the major coffee-growing countries and things will get easier.  Each origin trip is a learning experience and we hope to feature coffee from Bolivia for years to come. The shipment of coffee arrived today at BRCR and we will be roasting it next week.

La Jolla, CA: November 1, 2011

Bird Rock Coffee Roasters in La Jolla, CA won the 2012 Micro Roaster of the Year award in the annual national competition hosted by a panel of experts and two separate coffee labs administrated by the coffee trade magazine, Roast. This is the first time that Bird Rock Coffee Roasters has achieved this award, and the first time any roaster in the San Diego region has won this prestigious award.

The award was developed to inspire further excellence and success in the roasting industry.  Winners are chosen based on the company’s commitment to categories including sustainable practices, commitment to employees and educational practices, innovations in roasting, and of course, the excellence of the coffee.

In terms of quality and taste, coffees are judged blindly by two separate labs, Lab International in Vermont, and Atlas Coffee Importers in Seattle. Experts judge the coffee on aroma, color, imperfections, bean size and flavor profile. One notable coffee varietal that secured the award for Bird Rock Coffee Roasters was the Sumatra Lake Tawar. Unlike most coffee from that area, this varietal has been meticulously processed at origin. This unique effort produces a coffee that is intense, earthy yet clean, full-bodied and dense, and slightly sweet.

“Many roasters are sourcing directly from farmers and enhancing the coffee experience for their customers, elevating the experience to that of a high end wine bar…so to be recognized as the best, at a time when so many are doing incredible work, is a humbling honor,” says Chuck Patton, owner of Bird Rock Coffee Roasters. “We were competing against roasters from all over the nation and to be located in San Diego, which has never been known for its coffee like Seattle or Portland, is an added bonus.”

Bird Rock Coffee Roasters has consistently achieved 90+ scores (out of a scale of 100) from Coffee Review for many of their roasted varietals, but this is the first time it has outperformed national competitors based on several categories.

Coffee is available for purchase on line and shipping is within 48 hours in the United States. To order, visit the Bird Rock Coffee Roasters COFFEES page.

About Bird Rock Coffee Roasters

In 2002, Bird Rock Coffee Roasters (BRCR) opened for business as a strictly grass-roots company. Coffee was roasted in a sublet restaurant kitchen using small one-pound capacity air roasters. At that time, BRCR coffee was sold at farmer’s markets and through home-delivery service. In 2006 the retail shop on La Jolla Boulevard in Bird Rock was opened directly across the street from a Starbucks. In 2008 BRCR expanded their retail location to increase seating, free wireless connection and a children’s play area. They also offer free coffee ‘cupping’ experiences and live music on weekends. Awards and recognition of BRCR to date include: 2012 Micro Roaster of the Year as well as 16 highly rated coffees in Coffee Review scoring 90 and above (out of a 100 point scale).  Locally, in San Diego, BRCR won Best Organic Coffee in 2008 San Diego Magazine and was rated Best Coffee Shop in 2010 in the La Jolla Light.

About Chuck Patton

Chuck Patton, owner and principle roaster of Bird Rock Coffee Roasters, describes his relationship with coffee beans as equal parts passion and obsession. Chuck started roasting in 2001 with a DIY home coffee roaster, a fateful gift from his wife, Elke. He quickly expanded his vision and became the first licensed wholesaler in San Diego selling 100% organic and fair trade coffee.

Chuck is a former community college English teacher (in San Diego, he taught at Grossmont and San Diego City Colleges), loves acoustic blues from the 20’s and 30’s. He acts humble, but plays a mean slide guitar. His involvement with the local community extends from helping improve traffic, aesthetics, business practices to non-profit fundraising in Bird Rock and other organizations in San Diego, Ca. In his spare time he loves to body surf, drink great beer and perfect the art of pork-smoking. He lives in La Jolla with his wife, Elke and their Australian Shepherd, Roscoe.