Roasting Artisan Coffee in the Tug Hill Region
OUR PARTNERS
One would think that direct trade coffee is like going to the farmers market and purchasing a tomato from a farmer. Going to a coffee farm handing the farmer money and driving off with his or her coffee. Unfortunately, coffee and international trade are not that simple. Some countries allow you to purchase coffee directly from farmers, in others you have to work with a state sanctioned exporter. Until relatively recently all coffee from Ethiopia (with a handful of unique exceptions) had to clear the national exchange.
At Tug Hill Artisan Roasters, when we use the term “Direct Trade” it implies two things. Click the button below to learn more about the ins-and-outs of Direct Trade here at Tug Hill Artisan Roasters.
Finca El Jardin, Guatemala
Our first direct trade partner. We met at a festival in Northern NY in 2018. Pablo and Eva were at the French Festival in Northern NY selling their hair accessory the “Fun Bun” raising money to improve the operations at their farm in Guatemala. Since then, It’s been fun watching each others businesses grow over the years. We first purchased coffee directly from Finca El Jardin in 2019. In 2024 Pablo and Eva had one of their coffees take third place at the Guatemalan Cup of Excellence in the “One of a Kind” category. We look forward to releasing amazing micro lots from Finca El Jardin every year.
Finca la Moradita, Honduras
A friend of a friend told us that we needed to check out Finca La Moradita in the Copan region of Honduras. At first, we were a little hesitant just because we didn’t know what the level of quality was going to be. Armando Rodgriguez sent some analysis of his coffee from IHCAFE and we were pretty impressed. After the Producer Roaster Forum, Pablo, Vanessa, Noah and I drove across the border to Honduras and met with Armando. We didn’t have a lot of time, but we were able to sample coffees, see the farm and get the ball rolling on figuring out how to export and import coffee from Honduras. Armando’s passion for growing great coffees became very evident to us during our visit. He was the recipient of a scholarship which allowed him to study coffee cultivation at a local college. Upon completion of his degree, he returned to the family farm and started implementing the horticultural practices he had been introduced to and it shows. We’re exciting about continuing this new relationship with Armando and seeing what great coffees we can get from the Copan region of Honduras.
Finca La Serrenia, Guatemala
This is a true story of collaboration. At the Producer Roaster Forum in Guatemala City we met Maria from Finca La Serrania. She was carrying around a few coffees from her family farm and was hoping that we would cup them. Pablo and Eva opened up their booth to Maria so she could let others also cup her coffees. We were very impressed. As we talked about the coffees we learned that they had a natural mutation occur on their farm and as far as we know, it’s the only place where you can get this new coffee called the “Kimono” varietal. It’s called that because the coffee cherries are so big and heavy that they cause the branches of the coffee tree to droop down and is reminiscent of a Japanese Kimono. Pablo and Eva also graciously offered to help Maria export her coffee. Tug Hill Artisan Roasters is grateful for this collaboration and the opportunity to bring these coffees to market here in New York.
interested in becoming a partner?
Direct Trade is one of those terms that’s thrown around without a consistent definition.
One would think that direct trade coffee is like going to the farmers market and purchasing a tomato from a farmer. Going to a coffee farm handing the farmer money and driving off with his or her coffee. Unfortunately, coffee and international trade are not that simple. Some countries allow you to purchase coffee directly from farmers, in others you have to work with a state sanctioned exporter. Until relatively recently all coffee from Ethiopia (with a handful of unique exceptions) had to clear the national exchange.
At Tug Hill Artisan Roasters, when we use the term “Direct Trade” it implies two things. Click the button below to learn more about the ins-and-outs of Direct Trade here at Tug Hill Artisan Roasters.
