Africa: The second largest continent and the oldest inhabited 
      territory on earth, Africa is comprised of 46 countries including Ethiopia;  
      the birthplace of coffee. The history of coffee can be traced at least as
      early as the 9th century in the highlands of Ethiopia.
      Mané, founder of Vermont Artisan Coffee, has personally visited all of 
      the countries and regions in Africa where these coffees originated.

• Ethiopia; The majority of the coffee grown in Ethiopia actually stays in the country and is celebrated with great ceremony rather than treated as a commodity on the world market. Arabica coffee actually grows wild throughout the country but it is cultivated on plantations in the highlands.  Flavor characteristics vary exceedingly from the different regions. Examples of this are our Yirgacheffe & Harrar; one has citrus notes, the other has chocolate.
  
  
  • Yirgacheffe, Idido Misty Valley, Hand picked and natural processed. One of the best Yirgacheffe coffees, known for its unique citrus notes.
    
    
  • Harrar,  Organic Fair Trade  Expect a natural mocha-chocolate note due to the drying process where the fruit is dried on the bean. 
    
    
• Kenya, Kiriani Peaberry
  Kenya is Africa's second largest producer of coffee, just behind Ethiopia. The main growing region is around Mount Kenya, where coffee thrives in rich volcanic soil with very little water.  Growing at this high altitude, the Arabica fruit matures and ripens slowly resulting in a bean with thick body and intense berry/winey flavor.   
  
      ~what is a peaberry anyway? a peaberry is a type of bean that is technically a defect, generally caused by natural stress to a coffee tree. Typically a coffee cherry contains 2 halves of a bean but every so often the fruit will mature with a single fused, pea shaped bean (the peaberry). Does it have more flavor? That's a common debate-you decide.
  
  Nomad Blend
  A blend of East African coffees (Ethiopia/Rwanda/Kenya). This is an extremely difficult blend to achieve as we are mixing similar coffees. Usually these excellent coffees are sold straight on their own but we decided to blend to see what was possible. We started with the best of Yirgacheffes, but not a classic one. The Yirgacheffe we picked goes through a special process and is a natural coffee. The Rwanda was from a cooperative that began three years ago and has consistently produced the best coffee and the Kenya has come a Kiriani cooperative. You'll find this a rich blend, full of body with a fruity/winey flavor.
  
  
• Rwanda, Coopac Organic, Fair Trade transition
  This coffee comes from the banks of Lake Kivu, one of the largest bodies of water in Africa, bordering Rwanda, Uganda, and Congo.  The coffee is of Bourbon varietal, one of the best in terms of sensory. Coopac is a cooperative which aggregates most of the farmers from the lake Kivu area. This area was wiped out during the civil war conflict between the Tutsi and Hutus.  This cooperative is a great story of cooperation between the two tribes. Fruity fragrance and flavor with a citric aftertaste. Extremely heavy body and clean cup.
  
  
• Tanzania Songea Peaberry;
  This coffee grows at 6500 feet and originates on several mini lots of small producers from the town of Vwawa at the High Plateau.  Extraordinarily balanced cup, very sweet with fruity-berry taste notes.  Very bright, strong heavy body.
  
  
  
  We purchase at the height of harvest which means, depending on the growing season, a specific coffee may not be available. If what you are looking for is not currently available, don’t be discouraged, it’s just one added reassurance that our coffee is as fresh as it can be.