Love the low tech un-clover like counter! I do wonder if the secretary has more jobs to do than that and what she looks like though!
I saw on Sweet Maria's that Brauna sold their lots to Illy this year which made me sad. That is my favorite Brazil and maybe my favorite bean period. Were you there Trish?
I remember on the Podcast when you had a terrible time trying to get to Minas region w/your passport issue and thought instantly of the Brauna estate.
HIs secretary has a lot to do! Afonso has a small roasting company on the farm site, so she works a lot with that stuff. Saw her labeling bags among other things when I visited. Afonso's brother runs their retail coffee shops in Vicosa.
Yeah, sad that the coffee went to illycaffe in the sense that we all can't have some Brauna, but Afonso is happy, for sure. I actually don't know about what's happened to this year's crop...but if Thompson Owen said so, I believe it. Brauna is a unique coffee indeed (lime citrus with buttery nutty finish. smooth and bright balance). It was my hope to continue to buy it for Zoka, but I had to build momentum for it. It wasn't so easy as it does not fit the mold of a classic Brazil. Afonso asked me not to buy small lots of it; he needed it for his solid relationships. At to be truthful, it is not so fun for producers to try to piece together a bunch of "boutique" buyers. Because of illycaffe, Afonso can stay in business, to be frank.
Yes, this was a little film I took while visiting Brauna in December 2006...I did finally make it there after a "layover" in DC when I did the podecast with Nick and Jay. Good times!
I bet his secretary makes coffee. This is what Thompson said about the Brauna: "Thompson Feb 11th, 2008 at 6:32 am
Interesting you should mention Brauna Estate - some problems this year with a small crop and the coffee was sold bulk to Illy. So it looks like we won’t have it, and I just found that out myself. It’s tough when you work with a farm for years, pay a premium, visit them, and then they do this. But then again, it’s a farm, it’s a crop, and nothing’s for certain. -Tom"
I had a feeling I was right about the timing of that visit to Brazil. I bet that was an awesome trip. Thanks for the reply.
Afonso emailed me this morning about this pf post. He says:
"Hi Trish, thanks for your comments in the blog. Really Braúna was not aviable in the U.S. market cause our crop was very small. In this oportunity we sended a lot of Braúna to Illy that was elected the number one in their competition(see atached) and making our coffee the best in Brasil at this year. Our crop will be very good and we start it in may, of course our intention is offer the Braúna to our friends like Tom, Andrew, Zoka and others in this year. We started a program for digital inclusion in the farm, we have twoo computers and twelve childrens having computer classes and everybody are very happy. A program to invite clients and coffee lovers to pick, process and roast your own coffee picked in Braúna's farm is our next step to make this people closer to us, I'll keep you informed about this. Kisses from me and my familly to you waiting your next visit in our home. Regards Afonso"
Love the low tech un-clover like counter! I do wonder if the secretary has more jobs to do than that and what she looks like though!
ReplyDeleteI saw on Sweet Maria's that Brauna sold their lots to Illy this year which made me sad. That is my favorite Brazil and maybe my favorite bean period. Were you there Trish?
I remember on the Podcast when you had a terrible time trying to get to Minas region w/your passport issue and thought instantly of the Brauna estate.
Matt Sonneborn
HIs secretary has a lot to do! Afonso has a small roasting company on the farm site, so she works a lot with that stuff. Saw her labeling bags among other things when I visited.
ReplyDeleteAfonso's brother runs their retail coffee shops in Vicosa.
Yeah, sad that the coffee went to illycaffe in the sense that we all can't have some Brauna, but Afonso is happy, for sure. I actually don't know about what's happened to this year's crop...but if Thompson Owen said so, I believe it.
Brauna is a unique coffee indeed (lime citrus with buttery nutty finish. smooth and bright balance). It was my hope to continue to buy it for Zoka, but I had to build momentum for it. It wasn't so easy as it does not fit the mold of a classic Brazil. Afonso asked me not to buy small lots of it; he needed it for his solid relationships. At to be truthful, it is not so fun for producers to try to piece together a bunch of "boutique" buyers. Because of illycaffe, Afonso can stay in business, to be frank.
Yes, this was a little film I took while visiting Brauna in December 2006...I did finally make it there after a "layover" in DC when I did the podecast with Nick and Jay. Good times!
I bet his secretary makes coffee. This is what Thompson said about the Brauna:
ReplyDelete"Thompson
Feb 11th, 2008 at 6:32 am
Interesting you should mention Brauna Estate - some problems this year with a small crop and the coffee was sold bulk to Illy. So it looks like we won’t have it, and I just found that out myself. It’s tough when you work with a farm for years, pay a premium, visit them, and then they do this. But then again, it’s a farm, it’s a crop, and nothing’s for certain. -Tom"
I had a feeling I was right about the timing of that visit to Brazil. I bet that was an awesome trip. Thanks for the reply.
Matt
Niiiice use of "appropriate technology"!
ReplyDeleteAfonso emailed me this morning about this pf post. He says:
ReplyDelete"Hi Trish, thanks for your comments in the blog. Really Braúna was not aviable in the U.S. market cause our crop was very small. In this oportunity we sended a lot of Braúna to Illy that was elected the number one in their competition(see atached) and making our coffee the best in Brasil at this year. Our crop will be very good and we start it in may, of course our intention is offer the Braúna to our friends like Tom, Andrew, Zoka and others in this year. We started a program for digital inclusion in the farm, we have twoo computers and twelve childrens having computer classes and everybody are very happy. A program to invite clients and coffee lovers to pick, process and roast your own coffee picked in Braúna's farm is our next step to make this people closer to us, I'll keep you informed about this. Kisses from me and my familly to you waiting your next visit in our home. Regards Afonso"
I love this article.
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