Brazil - Cerrado Mineiro
Country: Brazil
Region: Cerrado Mineiro
Process: Natural
Varietal: Red Catuai
Altitude: 1100 m.a.s.l
Flavours: Orange, Caramel, Hazlenut
Brewing method: V60, Aeropress, Kalita
Cerrado Mineiro
The Cerrado Mineiro region, located in northwest of Minas Gerais State is a world-recognized, high-quality coffee producing origin and became the first Protected Geographical Indication in Brazil in 2005, with full Designation of Origin in 2013. A strong characteristic of this region is its well-defined seasons—a hot, wet summer followed by a pleasantly dry winter. The dry climate during harvest eliminates potential problems with humidity during the drying process.
Minas Gerais is Brazil’s principal agricultural state, and the Cerrado is home to many of the country’s celebrated coffee estates, with expertise in planting, harvesting, drying, and sorting. We love Cerrado coffees for their big body, rich chocolate notes, and velvety texture when pulled as espresso.
Today, the area’s 4,500 farmers produce a combined average of 6 million bags per harvest, with an average of 35 bags per hectare. To reach these production levels, producers had to first adapt to the region’s conditions. Coffee farmers first arrived in Cerrado in the 1970’s, after being pushed out of the state of Parana by frost and out of the state of São Paulo by nematodes. They found the soil in Cerrado to be very acidic, which they rectified with the application of calcium to create the healthy soils they enjoy today.
Cerrado coffee farms are cultivated in areas with elevations varying between 800 and 1,300 meters above sea level and are known for consistently producing high quality coffees with a repeatable profile. Independent of farm size, the spirit of professionalism is present throughout Cerrado’s coffee producers. Entrepreneurialism is part of farmers’ DNA, and many producers are second or third generation growers who also hold degrees in agronomic engineering, business management, and administration. While each family narrative is different, Cerrado is characterized by an enterprising attitude.
Farm Information
Mr. Assis was born in the town of Paranavai and graduated as an agricultural engineer in Bandeirantes, Paraná. In the 1980s, problems with frost and nematodes on Paraná’s coffee plantations forced him to look elsewhere. He moved to the Cerrado Mineiro region of Minas Gerais where he found plots of lands at good prices to continue his agricultural work. He got married and began a partnership with his father-in-law. They bought Fazenda Terra Rica in Monte Carmelo and started planting coffee across 503 hectares of the 715 hectare property.
When he and his wife were first establishing Terra Rica, they carried bags of coffee to the trucks themselves. Over time the hired employees to help with the farm’s operations. Mr. Assis managed to maintain his crop and to cover all his debts, even in periods of frost causing great losses in the region. Despite periods when the price of coffee fell, his farms have remained stable and he has invested in new technologies since the early 1990s. He is a leading innovator of methods for pruning trees to maximize production.
This lot of Red Catuai coffee underwent Natural processing. Catuai was made by the Instituto Agronomico (IAC) of Sao Paulo State in Campinas, Brazil by crossing Mundo Novo and Caturra varieties. Catuai coffees are cultivated widely across Brazil, and are known for their high productivity potential.
Barista life
Baristas today have access to a wide variety of high quality, speciality coffee producers and can hone their craft with a great variety of brewing methods. Barista Life works closely with these producers to deliver the finest beans around and not only that, can provide essential training to you and your staff to ensure the perfect cup of coffee reaches your customer, every time.
Join Our Journey
To date our Head Barista Aron has made over a million of coffees during his time, that’s a lot right? His dedication and skill has benefited coffee shops around the E.U., Canada, New York & his home city London. In 2010 Aron started with a mobile espresso van which taught him just how difficult it can be to manage different bean densities in England’s inclement weather. Determined to master the art of consistency, he spent days testing coffees from around the world, roasting different blends to formulate a recipe that would deliver a consistent base flavour within a temperature range of -5’c to 35’c. Most coffee shops are fitted with air conditioning units which assist in maintaining that consistency, but without that luxury Aron’s understanding of the volatility of coffee grew considerably.
The business expanded in 2011 when both Aron and his wife, Clare, took on a failing coffee shop after the recession with aim to give it life. With previous experience in hospitality and business management, their dedication and hard graft paid off and The Espresso Lounge Tring is a successful coffee shop and cafe with several TripAdvisor awards and fantastic reviews.
They remain within this lucrative industry to date and can offer invaluable knowledge to new business start ups or those wishing to train their baristas to the highest possible standard. Barista equipment, coffee machines, sales training and business consultancy are all available through Barista Life and can set your business on the path to success.
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