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Almost Home - 2/21/2012
Posted By: Steve Hawthorne
I’m winding down my 17 day voyage around Africa. While this trip has been really educational and a lot of fun, I starting to hear a Stone Creek latte calling my name!
After wrapping up the EAFCA Conference on Saturday evening, I took off for southern Ethiopia to visit the Sidamo and Yirgacheffe growing regions. We’ve had coffee from these regions for many years, so it has been great to finally see where these coffees come from.
Most of the coffee has already been bagged and sent for export this year, so I didn’t get to see much coffee. I did have the opportunity to tour the washing stations that handle the majority of the coffee from these regions. Ethiopian processing is slightly different than other parts of the world. I’ve appreciated learning about what makes this coffee what it is.
What I didn’t get to see in coffee, I made up for in meeting people. I’ve been all over the world now, and I can honestly say that people in Ethiopia are some of the friendliest that I’ve ever met. Anyone that knows even a few words of English has tried to have a conversation with me.
Today I am heading to the Ethiopian Commodities Exchange warehouse to cup some coffees before going to the airport for my 1:30am flight home. In just under 38 hours, I will finally be crawling into my own bed to bide time until I can get a delicious latte from the Bay View store.
I’ll have a recap report for my entire trip once I get settled into the office. See you state side!
Sip slowly,
Steve
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Eastern Africa Fine Coffee Association - 2/17/2012
Posted By: Steve Hawthorne
Greetings from Addis Ababa! I arrived in the birthplace of coffee, Ethiopia, two days ago to attend the 9th Annual Eastern Africa Fine Coffee Association Conference and Exhibition. It's been an amazing experience to learn from so many great African coffee producers.
After spending the last week in Tanzania learning about the dynamics of coffee production in Africa, I wasn't sure what to expect coming to Ethiopia. Addis Ababa is one of the more developed cities in a coffee origin that I've traveled to. There are many large office buildings, hotels and cars everywhere. The United Nations has a complex here...which is where the conference that I'm attending is being hosted.
I've been to dozens of coffee conferences in my career, but this is the first that I've attending in an origin country where the bulk of the attendees are coffee producers and exporters. It has been an amazing experience to learn about the industry from their point of view and be able to share my experiences as a roaster and retailer with them.
So far, I have attended sessions discussing the global coffee market and where coffee prices may or may not go. I also attended discussions about climate change and the impact on production as well as a presentation on how to improve crop yields in Africa. Fortunately I was provided a notebook when I registered for the conference as I filled up the one that I brought after the first day!
I'll be here in Addis Ababa for another day to wrap up the conference and meet some more producers. On Sunday morning, I'm getting out of the city and up into the mountains to visit the coffee producing regions of Yirgacheffe and Sidamo. I can't wait to get back and share what I've learned with my coworkers and customers.
Be good to each other.
Sip slowly,
Steve
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@StoneCreekSteve Heads to East African Fine Coffee Conference - 2/15/2012
Posted By: Eric Resch - Founder
Steve Hawthorne (@StoneCreekSteve)
2/15/12 2:44 PM
The top of My Kilimanjaro - more than 5500 meters. instagr.am/p/HCkeTajypA/
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