PT's Coffee Roasting Co.

Lérida is one of the oldest estates in Panama. It was built in the early 1900's by a German engineer named Tollef Monniche. His exportation of coffee back to Germany has been credited with establishing Panama as a source of high quality. His self-designed process for washing coffee is still followed by Lérida Estate to this day. Lérida Estate also benefits from being surrounded by great extensions of primary and secondary forests. These protect the water source needed to process the coffee while also creating one of the richest biodiversities in the region. The high altitude, ample rainfall, and soil quality found near the Barú volcano have created some of the best coffees in the world.

Payacal is part of the Neighbors & Crops coffee relationship program. This program creates a sustainable coffee production model that benefits the welfare of more than 150 coffee growing families in the region. This coffee is grown in the department of Cundinamarca, located on the eastern range of the Colombian Andes. The region has unique microclimates and environments with temperatures averaging 70 degrees, a relative humidity of 75%, and a minimum of 1,600 sunny hours per year. These features make Cundinamarca a land of great biodiversity and ecosystems -- ideal conditions for growing specialty coffee.

This lot of Bourbon, grown at over 1400 meters in the Santiago de Maria region of El Salvador, is processed using a unique method. It is part of Finca Las Mercedes, one of our longest lasting Direct Trade relationships. We have had La Avila as a honeyed coffee in previous years, but were curious what results we would get if we processed the coffee similar to a technique that is often used in Kenya. We refer to it as the "Double Soak." After the success of this experiment last year, we are very excited to be offering this specially processed lot again. -PT's Coffee Roasting Co.

PT’s Coffee Roasting Co. doesn’t just pick the coffees they want — they pick the people who harvest the beans. The roaster describes Sergio Ticas, the owner of Finca Los Planes, as a close friend, and a man who has a passion for his land, his people and his coffee. On a recent trip to the farm, PT’s worked with Sergio to select only the most skilled coffee pickers to harvest this special lot. Those elite hands selected the ripest, reddest coffee cherries, which yield this rich, buttery cup that gently unfolds into flavors of cocoa and butterscotch. Lingering notes of pecan and raspberry fade into a bright, clean finish.

More than a century ago, the owner of Finca Villa Loyola, in the Andean Mountains of Colombia, donated this farm to his church. Today it’s a model coffee farm, with a model product that won the 2008 Cup of Excellence, coffee’s most prized recognition. Local resident and church member, Mauricio Rosero sees to it that the farm continually improves its treatment of workers and its relationship with the surrounding community. Meanwhile, PT’s Coffee Roasting Co. ensures that this complex, sun-dried Caturra coffee treats your tastebuds well: cherry sweetness and lime acidity lead into a malty center and a lingering finish of honeydew melon and brown sugar.

It hasn’t been easy for the farmers of the Kanyovu Coop. For years, they struggled without proper resources, unable to find decent prices for their beans. But since 2007, a partnership with coffee importer Sustainable Harvest has offered education and upgraded technology to the farmers, resulting in better beans and proper wages. This batch, a Bourbon variety grown at 1,500 meters in Tanzania’s Gombe region and roasted by PT’s Coffee Roasting Co. in Topeka, offers notes of tropical fruit, which subside to reveal an earthy tobacco-like sweetness. It’s a feel-good brew that tastes great too.