Addis is hot and smelly, I'm wearing clothes I've been swapping on my body for two weeks in sweaty conditions, I'm sitting with a group of guys who, despite the fact that they are nice guys, I've been with nonstop for, like, eleven days. This group of guys includes my boss, who seems to be duplicating my job wherever we go. The crowd has thinned to five. Four of us are on the same KLM flight this evening, so we'll get to ride to the airport together, and sit (for hours) in Amsterdam together - Yippee!!
And through the magic that is Facebook chat I just learned that E-Taylor will be transiting through Addis the same time I'll be there tonight. So I'll get to see him!
Ethiopia has been a great experience, but its time for me to get home, or at least onto the plane where I can put my earbuds in and close my eyes so people quit talking to me.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Friday, February 27, 2009
boundaries
I've spent almost two weeks straight with the same batch of seven to ten people, and It finally got to me last night. I skipped dinner with the crowd to hole up and read, catch up on some news, and begin packing for the trip home. I always appreciate having a group like this to travel with, because you get new people to bounce ideas off, share problems with, and generally commiserate and find comfort in the fact that other people in your line of work face all the same issues as you.
One of the things we've talked about is staying connected. On a trip like this, halfway around the world, and with the technology most of us now own, where do you stand on calling home, checking e-mails, and generally keeping your life in motion? There is one end of the spectrum that argues when you're gone you're gone, and you simply can't be reached. The older guys usually fall into this camp. The other end is someone who has cell service wherever you are, sending and receiving calls, texts and e-mails at close to the same speed as usual, and loves getting back into the city so he can really get down to business with a high speed internet connection. Everyone sits somewhere between these two extremes, and I think maybe it's becoming a generational thing.
Me, I like to stay connected on a trip like this. This is my job, not a vacation, and while I'm spending a good twelve to eighteen hours each day pretty much living work, I figure checking e-mails and dealing with work stuff is just another part of the gig. Larry argues its important to disconnect so people learn to deal with their work problems without you. I've got a whole different view of that, even when I'm at work, so it has absolutely no relevance to where I am in the world - I trust people to deal with their problems without me even when I'm sitting in the next chair.
On the other hand, I happen to be someone who can completely disconnect on the weekend and evenings. The same guys who say they never call home or check e-mails on trips are the guys who go in to work on Saturday, send e-mails on Sunday, and call your cell at night. This I don't get. And I also happen to subscribe to the notion that just because someone is trying to reach you doesn't mean you have to answer. In the world of e-mail, texts, facebook and twitter you've got a reliable connection to the world, but you still have the right to interface with it on your own terms. I think it's important to learn to find comfort and balance between knowing what's going on to stay informed and actually getting buried underneath a bunch of useless crap. It seems like most people end up buried, and I think that's too bad.
In the end, it's your life, right?
One of the things we've talked about is staying connected. On a trip like this, halfway around the world, and with the technology most of us now own, where do you stand on calling home, checking e-mails, and generally keeping your life in motion? There is one end of the spectrum that argues when you're gone you're gone, and you simply can't be reached. The older guys usually fall into this camp. The other end is someone who has cell service wherever you are, sending and receiving calls, texts and e-mails at close to the same speed as usual, and loves getting back into the city so he can really get down to business with a high speed internet connection. Everyone sits somewhere between these two extremes, and I think maybe it's becoming a generational thing.
Me, I like to stay connected on a trip like this. This is my job, not a vacation, and while I'm spending a good twelve to eighteen hours each day pretty much living work, I figure checking e-mails and dealing with work stuff is just another part of the gig. Larry argues its important to disconnect so people learn to deal with their work problems without you. I've got a whole different view of that, even when I'm at work, so it has absolutely no relevance to where I am in the world - I trust people to deal with their problems without me even when I'm sitting in the next chair.
On the other hand, I happen to be someone who can completely disconnect on the weekend and evenings. The same guys who say they never call home or check e-mails on trips are the guys who go in to work on Saturday, send e-mails on Sunday, and call your cell at night. This I don't get. And I also happen to subscribe to the notion that just because someone is trying to reach you doesn't mean you have to answer. In the world of e-mail, texts, facebook and twitter you've got a reliable connection to the world, but you still have the right to interface with it on your own terms. I think it's important to learn to find comfort and balance between knowing what's going on to stay informed and actually getting buried underneath a bunch of useless crap. It seems like most people end up buried, and I think that's too bad.
In the end, it's your life, right?
FInal cupping at Trabocca
Cupped eighteen samples today at the Trabocca office in Addis. Both washed and naturals, much of which was picked up as we drove round and round to all the co-ops they do business with. Winners? Eh. There were a few good coffees. I liked two Shilcho coffees, a washed and a natural. (this natural Shilcho was a coffee I bought in the second eCafe auction in 2006 but rejected it once it came in - it didn't get to the US until four months after the auction and the arrival sample was total garbage.)
Anyway, I requested a few samples be shipped to me at home so I can take another look at the ones I found interesting. I've got a ton of work to do also to figure out which importers are working with which exporters, and who can get their hands on coffees from these co-ops.
Cupping today was tough. Power was out at the office until around noon, so we had to kill time until it came back on and they could get everything roasted. Then we cupped coffees that had been roasted only hours before, many of which were still early samples and will undoubtedly settle as they rest a little more. There were a number of assumptions I had to make about these coffees regarding their true character. I am, of course, a professional, and have all confidence I didn't throw out anything worthwhile.
Anyway, I requested a few samples be shipped to me at home so I can take another look at the ones I found interesting. I've got a ton of work to do also to figure out which importers are working with which exporters, and who can get their hands on coffees from these co-ops.
Cupping today was tough. Power was out at the office until around noon, so we had to kill time until it came back on and they could get everything roasted. Then we cupped coffees that had been roasted only hours before, many of which were still early samples and will undoubtedly settle as they rest a little more. There were a number of assumptions I had to make about these coffees regarding their true character. I am, of course, a professional, and have all confidence I didn't throw out anything worthwhile.
my good travel stuff
I love my new duffel bag. REI. Sixty bucks, baby, with wheels, a sturdy handle, and compression straps. It eats up my stuff and there are no pockets to lose things in, except the front pouch that has become my dirty laundry slot. It will hold 36" rod tubes. It is definitely my new suitcase for fishing excursions or long trips, especially when paired with this next item.
My Eagle creek folding shirt pack. It would probably hold twenty folded shirts, and in about two weeks on this trip it's kept everything relatively wrinkle free and contained. Beautiful.
ipod. duh. Do you have any idea how many hours I've spent on airplanes and in cars since February 14th? My favorites on this trip: 6 hours of the first season of the Ricky Gervais podcast, and Jenny Lewis and the Watson twins.
Gerber paraframe pocketknife. I can't fly standby anyway with my big duffel bag on a long trip like this, so I figured I'd bring this along. I've used the hell out of it, and flicking it open and closed under the table is a wonderful nervous habit that works in lectures, meetings, you name it.
Alka Seltzer. My magic cure-all. When people find out you have some, they will bum these off you to no end. I carry a lot.
High speed 8 GB SD card. How can something smaller than a square inch possibly make life so much easier on a guy? You can go days of snapping 300+ photos without downloading, and once you do they move in a flash.
My Eagle creek folding shirt pack. It would probably hold twenty folded shirts, and in about two weeks on this trip it's kept everything relatively wrinkle free and contained. Beautiful.
ipod. duh. Do you have any idea how many hours I've spent on airplanes and in cars since February 14th? My favorites on this trip: 6 hours of the first season of the Ricky Gervais podcast, and Jenny Lewis and the Watson twins.
Gerber paraframe pocketknife. I can't fly standby anyway with my big duffel bag on a long trip like this, so I figured I'd bring this along. I've used the hell out of it, and flicking it open and closed under the table is a wonderful nervous habit that works in lectures, meetings, you name it.
Alka Seltzer. My magic cure-all. When people find out you have some, they will bum these off you to no end. I carry a lot.
High speed 8 GB SD card. How can something smaller than a square inch possibly make life so much easier on a guy? You can go days of snapping 300+ photos without downloading, and once you do they move in a flash.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Forrest warned me against slipping into journal-mode when I write. I noticed that the notes I've been taking and the snippets I've been getting down into word before constructing these posts have been just that. So instead of simple reporting, and giving you a chump list of what I did today on the coffee tour, I'm going free-form.
I'm back in Addis now, and the last of this trip's work ought to be completed today - we will be cupping all the samples we've collected in the last four days of driving all over hell and gone Sidamo. It was an amazing experience for me to be able to bask in this glorious and storied coffee region; I will never forget what I've seen here. But long trips have a way of screwing up your sense of what you've accomplished, and having the Sidamo and Yirgacheffe tour fresh in my mind, it makes Harar and the conference seem like last year's news.
I've learned a massive amount of stuff about Ethiopian coffee, much of which has solidified things I'd suspected or had only fuzzy notions about. I'm bound to be a better buyer of Ethiopian coffees because of what I've been able to piece together, and I can be a much better contributor to our marketing efforts when we present what I've bought to our customers. I've taken over sixteen hundred photos of Ethiopia that we can use on the website and on printed materials. I've made numerous new industry connections both in Harar and in Sidamo, as well as in Addis, not to mention made a few new U.S. roaster friends.
So, overall, very much a worthwhile trip.
I'm back in Addis now, and the last of this trip's work ought to be completed today - we will be cupping all the samples we've collected in the last four days of driving all over hell and gone Sidamo. It was an amazing experience for me to be able to bask in this glorious and storied coffee region; I will never forget what I've seen here. But long trips have a way of screwing up your sense of what you've accomplished, and having the Sidamo and Yirgacheffe tour fresh in my mind, it makes Harar and the conference seem like last year's news.
I've learned a massive amount of stuff about Ethiopian coffee, much of which has solidified things I'd suspected or had only fuzzy notions about. I'm bound to be a better buyer of Ethiopian coffees because of what I've been able to piece together, and I can be a much better contributor to our marketing efforts when we present what I've bought to our customers. I've taken over sixteen hundred photos of Ethiopia that we can use on the website and on printed materials. I've made numerous new industry connections both in Harar and in Sidamo, as well as in Addis, not to mention made a few new U.S. roaster friends.
So, overall, very much a worthwhile trip.
South to Sidama!
Today (Feb 23) starts the second phase of this trip – we drive south to yirgalem, visit one cooperative mill, and see some sorting. Coffee is over, cherries are gone, milling is finished, only a little hand sorting is left. There are groups of women left doing this work. This is not the best time of year to be here to see picking and milling. Now is the best time to be here to cup rested coffees, which we’ll do on Friday. We see coffee in warehouses getting ready for either the ecx or for transport to Addis. Trabocca does a lot of double certified coffee, so those will bypass the ecx anyway, but there are other lots that people are afraid will be held up.
Just as I anticipated, the area is far different from the eastern part of Ethiopia. In the south there are rolling hills and actual mountainous areas, plus a lot more water. There are streams flowing through many areas and while pollution doee seem to be a pretty big problem, at least there is water to keep things green.
The farmers around here seem to know what they’re doing – maybe not as good agronomists as id like, but they seem to understand intercropping, rotation, a little conservation, and at least basic farming techniques to keep subsistence crops and make a little cash while they’re at it. People have been around this part of the world for a long time and have probably figured out a lot of how to get farming at least a little right. Everything seems to be in neat rows, and there are avocados, pineapples, bananas and false bananas, and timber – lots and lots of wood stacked up in areas. Deforestation has to be either a real problem here now or it will be very soon. There is very little chat in these areas – the demand isn’t there like it is in other parts of the country, so there doesn’t seem to be the pressure to replant coffee with this mild drug.
*interesting note – we are told there is some pressure to replant coffee with chat but that Ethiopians are afraid, since coffee is such an important part of these people’s cultural traditions or heritage, that replanting with chat loses them face – so they stick with coffee. Maybe, maybe not, but it’s a decent story.*
We sleep in an old college – tiny little dorm rooms, pretty sparse and minimalist, (and not just a little freaky, since they put us all in separate buildings!) though I experience the best night’s sleep of the whole trip so far – despite the midnight rousting – it sounded like there were a dozen women in high heels leading a shoed horse through the tiled halls. Malaria medication-induced dream, ghosts, or reality?
Just as I anticipated, the area is far different from the eastern part of Ethiopia. In the south there are rolling hills and actual mountainous areas, plus a lot more water. There are streams flowing through many areas and while pollution doee seem to be a pretty big problem, at least there is water to keep things green.
The farmers around here seem to know what they’re doing – maybe not as good agronomists as id like, but they seem to understand intercropping, rotation, a little conservation, and at least basic farming techniques to keep subsistence crops and make a little cash while they’re at it. People have been around this part of the world for a long time and have probably figured out a lot of how to get farming at least a little right. Everything seems to be in neat rows, and there are avocados, pineapples, bananas and false bananas, and timber – lots and lots of wood stacked up in areas. Deforestation has to be either a real problem here now or it will be very soon. There is very little chat in these areas – the demand isn’t there like it is in other parts of the country, so there doesn’t seem to be the pressure to replant coffee with this mild drug.
*interesting note – we are told there is some pressure to replant coffee with chat but that Ethiopians are afraid, since coffee is such an important part of these people’s cultural traditions or heritage, that replanting with chat loses them face – so they stick with coffee. Maybe, maybe not, but it’s a decent story.*
We sleep in an old college – tiny little dorm rooms, pretty sparse and minimalist, (and not just a little freaky, since they put us all in separate buildings!) though I experience the best night’s sleep of the whole trip so far – despite the midnight rousting – it sounded like there were a dozen women in high heels leading a shoed horse through the tiled halls. Malaria medication-induced dream, ghosts, or reality?
Back in Addis. Again
It's Thursday night, we had a long drive today back north to Addis. I've got lots of pictures posted on the picasaweb page. I've had an amazing journey through the great rift valley. The areas of coffee here are magnificent! The people are friendly, kind, and gentle, and many are in great need. I'll post thoughts form each of the last few days as time allows - meanwhile - enjoy the pics.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Heading south today
I'm glad I was able to do this data dump; the connection here in the Jupiter seems to be working fairly smoothly, and I've got new albums posted. I have no idea if you can access all of the folders I've uploaded by clicking on the slideshow, so if not, here's a link.
Lois, I've fulfilled half your requests so far. Though I've seen the translation many different ways, including Harar, Harrar, and Harer, you can find the correct spelling in one of those albums. In Amharic, there are three characters you put together to sound out the word. The region is different, that one comes with an extra sound, a ghe sound, and so they spell the region either Hararge, Hararghe, Harerge, or Harerghe. I've seen a few roasters use the ghe addition, to signify their use of coffee from the region, as opposed to the city, but I'm going with the mill - as long as MA Ogsadey spells it Harar on his bag, I'm cool sticking with Harar.
And the group is complaining about the dust, how it's in their hair, their clothes, everything. Me, I've got a long way to go before I complain about dust again. Bob and I were on a Nicaragua trip that kicked my ass from a dust perspective. I lost my voice for four days, and my bag was spouting dust for a YEAR after getting home from that trip. So yeah, eastern Ethiopia is dusty, but I've had it worse.
Today we're splitting from the big group (hooray) and going south to Yirgalem. We'll be visiting farms and washing stations and mills in Sidamo and Yirgacheffe. I'll continue to take lots of pictures (Forrest's 8 gig card has been very nice to have) but I am not counting on any sort of internet service for another three or four days, so I hope this little blast of news can hold you.
Lois, I've fulfilled half your requests so far. Though I've seen the translation many different ways, including Harar, Harrar, and Harer, you can find the correct spelling in one of those albums. In Amharic, there are three characters you put together to sound out the word. The region is different, that one comes with an extra sound, a ghe sound, and so they spell the region either Hararge, Hararghe, Harerge, or Harerghe. I've seen a few roasters use the ghe addition, to signify their use of coffee from the region, as opposed to the city, but I'm going with the mill - as long as MA Ogsadey spells it Harar on his bag, I'm cool sticking with Harar.
And the group is complaining about the dust, how it's in their hair, their clothes, everything. Me, I've got a long way to go before I complain about dust again. Bob and I were on a Nicaragua trip that kicked my ass from a dust perspective. I lost my voice for four days, and my bag was spouting dust for a YEAR after getting home from that trip. So yeah, eastern Ethiopia is dusty, but I've had it worse.
Today we're splitting from the big group (hooray) and going south to Yirgalem. We'll be visiting farms and washing stations and mills in Sidamo and Yirgacheffe. I'll continue to take lots of pictures (Forrest's 8 gig card has been very nice to have) but I am not counting on any sort of internet service for another three or four days, so I hope this little blast of news can hold you.
Two days at the conference
0219
The first day of the Conference – the presentations are good, a certain US coffee reviewer has some notions, but I think he forgets stuff. Initial impressions of the new ECX system are that it seems pretty fucked up for specialty and can potentially grind everything to a standstill this year while they try and get things figured out as pertains to quality. Mr Coofee is in rare form, trying to stir things up.
Meanwhile, I got to go to Ogsadey’s dry mill and office, which is an enormous treat. I saw the entire operation, all the mechanical sorting and then the hand sorting that goes on. I took tons of photos, hopefully more than just a few will be keepers. * Turns out, quite a few are keepers, and the ones I’m uploading for public viewing now are not even the best ones – I’m saving those for later…*
Also meanwhile, I’m getting texts from both Jackson and Hunter, as well as Michelle, letting me know they miss me and are taking good care of the dog. My sister, on the other hand, texts me with REALLY important news, that Ken Griffey Junior is once again a Seattle Mariner! For some strange reason, I can’t get anyone here in Dire Dawa to react with the same sort of enthusiasm this news had on me.
0220
I order a breakfast traditional to the Harar area – fetira, which is a lovely pie-shaped flatbread, and either plain or filled with egg. Then you put the curry-spiced butter on it or fresh honey. I get the one with egg and smear both all over it. It is delicious, especially after last night’s oily goat-fest dinner. I was introduced last night to a sort of ketchup for the meat, a monstrously spicy and hot affair that I liked quite a bit.
The conference wraps up, not too many conclusions drawn, but a number of situations very much worth monitoring here in Ethiopia, especially in the next few months as the ECX complications continue to unfold or resolve somehow. The main worry is the homogenization of Ethiopian coffee. Immediate reactions by the buyers here is near panic – why, when all the world is moving in the opposite direction, towards greater transparency and delineation of coffees at extremely micro levels, back all the way to individual plots of land, why does the Ethiopian government feel that this clearinghouse ECX system is the proper way to do business? Well, it has to do with many factors. I tend to be one of those not shouting “fire” at this point. The greater good of the peasant Ethiopian coffee farmer will ultimately be served by the ecx system, in my opinion. This does not mean that specialty lots will benefit, or specialty roasters, they will suffer because the transparency is lost, and there is no way to be assured the lot you want is the lot you will get. This is indeed a scary notion, and enough to keep specialty buyers from doing business in Ethiopia in the near term. We’ll see. Perhaps this ecx can be a temporary step in the right direction, providing these peasant farmers with the incentives they need to realize decent prices and begin to understand how they can participate in the business of coffee without being taken advantage of. That’s a big perhaps.
I don’t have great fears because I want to buy certified organic coffee anyway, which actually can NOT trade through the ECX because of the traceability requirements.
After the conference wraps we drive to the city of Harar. Wow, the ancient walled city of Harar, built in the mid 1500’s. I took lots of pictures, we walked through the market and the old city. After dinner we drove out to see the hyena feeding. Anybody see “The Great Outdoors” with John Candy and Dan Akroyd? The Hyena feeding was like going to the bear dump. They’ve got a big bag of meat strips and you hold a stick (about the size of a pencil) out, they lay a strip of meat on it, and about six hyenas start jumping up, a foot in front of you, to get to the meat first. Yes, I took a turn. I fed four hyenas, they look like they could be sort of cute, in a doggish sort of way, but they are really actually pretty damn ugly and all kinds of meesed-up shaped, what with the shorter back legs than the front. All in all, a fairly dumb touristy-type gig, but interesting nonetheless to be in such close proximity to the beasts with no fence or anything.
The first day of the Conference – the presentations are good, a certain US coffee reviewer has some notions, but I think he forgets stuff. Initial impressions of the new ECX system are that it seems pretty fucked up for specialty and can potentially grind everything to a standstill this year while they try and get things figured out as pertains to quality. Mr Coofee is in rare form, trying to stir things up.
Meanwhile, I got to go to Ogsadey’s dry mill and office, which is an enormous treat. I saw the entire operation, all the mechanical sorting and then the hand sorting that goes on. I took tons of photos, hopefully more than just a few will be keepers. * Turns out, quite a few are keepers, and the ones I’m uploading for public viewing now are not even the best ones – I’m saving those for later…*
Also meanwhile, I’m getting texts from both Jackson and Hunter, as well as Michelle, letting me know they miss me and are taking good care of the dog. My sister, on the other hand, texts me with REALLY important news, that Ken Griffey Junior is once again a Seattle Mariner! For some strange reason, I can’t get anyone here in Dire Dawa to react with the same sort of enthusiasm this news had on me.
0220
I order a breakfast traditional to the Harar area – fetira, which is a lovely pie-shaped flatbread, and either plain or filled with egg. Then you put the curry-spiced butter on it or fresh honey. I get the one with egg and smear both all over it. It is delicious, especially after last night’s oily goat-fest dinner. I was introduced last night to a sort of ketchup for the meat, a monstrously spicy and hot affair that I liked quite a bit.
The conference wraps up, not too many conclusions drawn, but a number of situations very much worth monitoring here in Ethiopia, especially in the next few months as the ECX complications continue to unfold or resolve somehow. The main worry is the homogenization of Ethiopian coffee. Immediate reactions by the buyers here is near panic – why, when all the world is moving in the opposite direction, towards greater transparency and delineation of coffees at extremely micro levels, back all the way to individual plots of land, why does the Ethiopian government feel that this clearinghouse ECX system is the proper way to do business? Well, it has to do with many factors. I tend to be one of those not shouting “fire” at this point. The greater good of the peasant Ethiopian coffee farmer will ultimately be served by the ecx system, in my opinion. This does not mean that specialty lots will benefit, or specialty roasters, they will suffer because the transparency is lost, and there is no way to be assured the lot you want is the lot you will get. This is indeed a scary notion, and enough to keep specialty buyers from doing business in Ethiopia in the near term. We’ll see. Perhaps this ecx can be a temporary step in the right direction, providing these peasant farmers with the incentives they need to realize decent prices and begin to understand how they can participate in the business of coffee without being taken advantage of. That’s a big perhaps.
I don’t have great fears because I want to buy certified organic coffee anyway, which actually can NOT trade through the ECX because of the traceability requirements.
After the conference wraps we drive to the city of Harar. Wow, the ancient walled city of Harar, built in the mid 1500’s. I took lots of pictures, we walked through the market and the old city. After dinner we drove out to see the hyena feeding. Anybody see “The Great Outdoors” with John Candy and Dan Akroyd? The Hyena feeding was like going to the bear dump. They’ve got a big bag of meat strips and you hold a stick (about the size of a pencil) out, they lay a strip of meat on it, and about six hyenas start jumping up, a foot in front of you, to get to the meat first. Yes, I took a turn. I fed four hyenas, they look like they could be sort of cute, in a doggish sort of way, but they are really actually pretty damn ugly and all kinds of meesed-up shaped, what with the shorter back legs than the front. All in all, a fairly dumb touristy-type gig, but interesting nonetheless to be in such close proximity to the beasts with no fence or anything.
Transit day - Wednesday
Did I say six hour drive? Well, it may be a six hour drive, but it takes what it takes. In this case it took eleven. We got two fifteen minute pee breaks and had about an hour and a half stop for lunch to mac some goat. The hotel here in Dire Dawa is nice. That is, of course, if your definition of nice is cold water only, no electrical outlets, and obviously no high speed internet. No low speed internet either; the lady at the desk told me they had one computer everyone could share, but the connection didn’t work, but if I had a phone cable I could plug it into their wall, and then gave me a big shrug. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, I’ve stayed in way worse joints than this. I’ve got a big lumpy bed and there aren’t any obvious bugs, the toilet flushes and the one lamp has a great bright bulb.
So here I sit in the Salam Hotel in dire Dawa Ethiopia, it’s a beautiful day at 7:38 AM, there is a group of US military dudes sitting with us in the bar drinking cokes and eating pancakes. We’re preparing for day one of the conference, and I think there are supposed to be a few field trips this afternoon. I am looking forward to getting this show underway. I’m feeling pretty caught up on the whole “halfway around the world” thing and what time zone I’m in, though I still wake up way early every day after very fitful nights of sleep and grinding my teeth. It’s times like these that I totally crack up to myself when people at work tell me they want my job. Really?
I took lots of pictures yesterday, mostly from the bus window, so the jury is out on how well they will turn out. I enjoyed the sights along the way – the little villages, the fields, the hills, the wildlife. The two big ones for me were the camels, that were dispersed through the scrub brush like deer, eating leaves off trees like giraffes. The small ones were very cute, even though they weren’t really very small. The other thing I saw was a baboon. Pretty good-sized sucker, too. They have a number of primates throughout this area that live mainly around the national parks (we were near the Awash national park when I saw this dude) including colobus monkeys and two types of baboons.
So I crossed from one side of the Great Rift Valley to the other. Where we are now is smack in the middle of where they’ve traced coffee back as far as they can. From this side of the valley, coffee spread northeast to Yemen before being taken to Amsterdam and then the rest of the world. That’s all good, but can a guy find a decent semi-washed Djimma anywhere?
So here I sit in the Salam Hotel in dire Dawa Ethiopia, it’s a beautiful day at 7:38 AM, there is a group of US military dudes sitting with us in the bar drinking cokes and eating pancakes. We’re preparing for day one of the conference, and I think there are supposed to be a few field trips this afternoon. I am looking forward to getting this show underway. I’m feeling pretty caught up on the whole “halfway around the world” thing and what time zone I’m in, though I still wake up way early every day after very fitful nights of sleep and grinding my teeth. It’s times like these that I totally crack up to myself when people at work tell me they want my job. Really?
I took lots of pictures yesterday, mostly from the bus window, so the jury is out on how well they will turn out. I enjoyed the sights along the way – the little villages, the fields, the hills, the wildlife. The two big ones for me were the camels, that were dispersed through the scrub brush like deer, eating leaves off trees like giraffes. The small ones were very cute, even though they weren’t really very small. The other thing I saw was a baboon. Pretty good-sized sucker, too. They have a number of primates throughout this area that live mainly around the national parks (we were near the Awash national park when I saw this dude) including colobus monkeys and two types of baboons.
So I crossed from one side of the Great Rift Valley to the other. Where we are now is smack in the middle of where they’ve traced coffee back as far as they can. From this side of the valley, coffee spread northeast to Yemen before being taken to Amsterdam and then the rest of the world. That’s all good, but can a guy find a decent semi-washed Djimma anywhere?
I'm still kickin
We just rolled back into Addis, after another eleven hour bus ride from Dire Dawa. The Jupiter Hotel's sketchy internet service is a welcome relief from, well, nothing. Dire Dawa and Harar were amazing places; I have longer posts to make and plenty of photos to upload after I get a beer into me and knock some of my road dust off.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
technology challenges
Can a guy get a break? Anything having to do with photos so far doesn't go down well with my sweet internet connection. If I can even get the site to load I try and make changes and the whole thing gets hung. When the connection does seem to be responding I work quickly to get as much written or loaded as I can. I even went to the trouble of setting up another blog site on wordpress but even though that site lets me load fast and write quickly there is no relief with the photos. But - I guess I'm worrying prematurely. I do that.
Because: Even though I've gotten a bunch of posts up, I really haven't taken any pictures. So starting tomorrow I'm a photo hog, and not going to worry about anything else really. If they upload great, if not, I'll just have to try again later.
Because: Even though I've gotten a bunch of posts up, I really haven't taken any pictures. So starting tomorrow I'm a photo hog, and not going to worry about anything else really. If they upload great, if not, I'll just have to try again later.
photo link
I can't seem to get any sort of decent connection to this stupid blogspot for long enough to link photos. Try this - go to my public picasaweb page.
Hopefully this post will make it up and tomorrow I'll end up in a new hotel - but I guess there's a pretty decent chance the internet connection there will be worse than here. It would be easier on me if it didn't work at all, then I wouldn't spend so much time trying and re-trying to get this done.
Tomorrow we pile into a couple buses and head to Dire Dawa. Rumor has it it is a six hour drive.
Hopefully this post will make it up and tomorrow I'll end up in a new hotel - but I guess there's a pretty decent chance the internet connection there will be worse than here. It would be easier on me if it didn't work at all, then I wouldn't spend so much time trying and re-trying to get this done.
Tomorrow we pile into a couple buses and head to Dire Dawa. Rumor has it it is a six hour drive.
Cupping at Trabocca and the market in Addis
We made it to the offices of Trabocca to cup a few newly arriving coffees. These coffees were fresh - a couple naturals had been delivered to the office in dried cherry just that morning - they had to hand hull and roast the coffee before noon for us. Not exactly the most ideal conditions for evaluating coffee, but here we go right? What a treat to taste coffee so incredibly fresh - it happens every time I travel anywhere. It's smart to cup coffee at home before pulling the trigger and buying, but it's always eye-opening to taste coffee so close to harvest before it's faded at all. The naturals were like a slap in the face, and there were two very nice washed coffees: an organic Sidamo and a FTO Yirg. Trabocca works with a lot of cooperatives, washing stations, and private mills so they have access to a lot of different coffees. We'll be back in Addis around the 23rd and then again on the 28th so we'll have more chances to taste other coffees they have been receiving. I think it's still a teeny bit early to be cupping some of these so I'm glad I'm not on the hook for choosing coffee to fulfill a contract.
After cupping a few of us took off to explore the big local marketplace in Addis. It was indeed big. I took a few snaps here and there, but mostly people didn't want us taking a bunch of pictures with them around, except for the groups of young boys who let Tom take pictures if he gave them money. I was carrying Forrest's heavy little camera and I think I may have effed it all up. * Dude - it's like crazy dusty here, good thing you gave me that cute little brush!*
After cupping a few of us took off to explore the big local marketplace in Addis. It was indeed big. I took a few snaps here and there, but mostly people didn't want us taking a bunch of pictures with them around, except for the groups of young boys who let Tom take pictures if he gave them money. I was carrying Forrest's heavy little camera and I think I may have effed it all up. * Dude - it's like crazy dusty here, good thing you gave me that cute little brush!*
Monday, February 16, 2009
Tuesday morning in Addis
I've heard all about the Addis Ababa Sheraton. And no, that's not where I'm staying. Here in my hotel they are attempting some most assuredly vital repairs to the elevator lights, you know, the lit up arrows showing either up or down? Well, in order to get at these bad boys they need to drill through the marble. Of course, this work started at around five-thirty this morning. No matter to me, I was wide awake anyway, my body feeling like it was yesterday afternoon. This is when trouble brews on a trip, when days into it you still aren't sure what time it is or ought to be, and you wonder how long the adrenalin and caffeine can keep you up with the program. A tip? Don't think about it too much or else you're screwed. Press on, there's always time to sleep on the plane home, isn't there?
Today there might be some cupping, but maybe not. I love how this works. Seems that people in Ethiopia share commonalities with coffee professionals I know in Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, and Sumatra, and pretty much everywhere outside the United States. There is always the sense that you are working from a plan, but there is also always the overlaying sense that at any moment the whole thing could go up in smoke and you're flying blind. I have to admit I admire the ability people have to live like this, to accept this day after day.
So maybe we'll hit the market. Its supposed to be very cool.
On the cuppings - I'm not really pressed into these at all. I don't have any open contracts with this exporter, and so unless I'm dying to commit to a box of something that's not already in my purchasing plan (I'm not) there is limited upside to cupping today.
Today there might be some cupping, but maybe not. I love how this works. Seems that people in Ethiopia share commonalities with coffee professionals I know in Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, and Sumatra, and pretty much everywhere outside the United States. There is always the sense that you are working from a plan, but there is also always the overlaying sense that at any moment the whole thing could go up in smoke and you're flying blind. I have to admit I admire the ability people have to live like this, to accept this day after day.
So maybe we'll hit the market. Its supposed to be very cool.
On the cuppings - I'm not really pressed into these at all. I don't have any open contracts with this exporter, and so unless I'm dying to commit to a box of something that's not already in my purchasing plan (I'm not) there is limited upside to cupping today.
a few random thoughts on ethiopian coffee
Ethiopian coffees can be great. Ethiopia was the first country that taught me how distinct and wide-ranging differences in region could mean to a cup. And was instrumental in helping me teach my palate about coffee as I went along my path towards, well, what? Wherever I am now, I guess. Harar was what I really knew from my first impressions, it was what we sold and roasted, it was always easy to pick out on the cupping table blind. When you did this, you felt like you really knew what you were doing, but as long as you had half an ounce of ability you could pick harar out of a lineup, so it wasn't really as meaningful as all that. It was still a good teacher as I think having a few slam dunks along the way to any sort of education can do wonders for confidence and getting a guy on the right track. But once you go past Harar, which is always a natural, you've got a huge array of other sorts of tastes and characteristics. And those coffees may be naturals too, though more than not they'd turn out to be fully washed coffeees, which gives you an even wider range of beauty to discover in Ethiopia. So this is why it helped me - when I was learning, picking out Tarrazus from Tres Rios coffees seemed like graduate school, while with a table full of Ethiopians a guy could pretty much always pull out the Harar, and more often than not, at least be able to describe the Yirg from the Sidamo, and tell which ones were naturals.
This conference is supposed to be focusing on the now-elusive taste of Harar. While I agree it's been more elusive lately than it was ten years ago, I know it can still be found. I look forward to the discussions of why people think this is. Want my theories? I think its complex. C'mon, I went to Evergreen - what did you expect? It's the condition of the soil and how, after all these years of calling Ehtiopian coffees passive organic, or traditional organic, the soil isn't made of the same stuff it used to be. I have every chance to stand corrected on this point, because I haven't actually been here to confirm for myself until now, but I know this about soil - you have to pay great attention to it whenever you're growing anything. My hunch is that the soil here has been left to its own for too long and has been depleted of enough of its important components to produce great coffee that it simply can't in the same volumes as it once did. It's also the weather - and how it impacts not only growing and drying in Harar, but the impact it has also on coffee as it waits to be transported or sits in warehouses. The weather can change everything. It can extend or shrink a growing season, it can rain too much or too little, early in the process, as well as late. It can also screw things up after picking as we learned in 2007. Basically, I'd ask to see the charts for the last thirty years regarding rainfall amounts and general times of year, as well as charts showing temperature swings from high to low and how those curves have changed from year to year. SO you're not expecting me to really prove anything to you here, do you? That's why I'll continue to call these thoughts hunches.
This conference is supposed to be focusing on the now-elusive taste of Harar. While I agree it's been more elusive lately than it was ten years ago, I know it can still be found. I look forward to the discussions of why people think this is. Want my theories? I think its complex. C'mon, I went to Evergreen - what did you expect? It's the condition of the soil and how, after all these years of calling Ehtiopian coffees passive organic, or traditional organic, the soil isn't made of the same stuff it used to be. I have every chance to stand corrected on this point, because I haven't actually been here to confirm for myself until now, but I know this about soil - you have to pay great attention to it whenever you're growing anything. My hunch is that the soil here has been left to its own for too long and has been depleted of enough of its important components to produce great coffee that it simply can't in the same volumes as it once did. It's also the weather - and how it impacts not only growing and drying in Harar, but the impact it has also on coffee as it waits to be transported or sits in warehouses. The weather can change everything. It can extend or shrink a growing season, it can rain too much or too little, early in the process, as well as late. It can also screw things up after picking as we learned in 2007. Basically, I'd ask to see the charts for the last thirty years regarding rainfall amounts and general times of year, as well as charts showing temperature swings from high to low and how those curves have changed from year to year. SO you're not expecting me to really prove anything to you here, do you? That's why I'll continue to call these thoughts hunches.
Monday night in Addis
The hotel we're at here in Addis is nice, the bed is as hard as the one Michelle bought in Atlanta, that is, it's a little like sleeping on a pool table. Not that I've ever slept on a pool table. I have slept on a picnic table in Colorado. But I digress.
Dinner in a restaurant. How civilized! We've met up with a few people who are attending the conference, and a small group of us enjoyed a lovely evening at a somewhat touristy but nevertheless charming and interesting place. Local beers, wonderful injera and delicious piles of spicy meat pastes made up the nicely traditional Ethiopian meal. There was a live band, with strong drums, some flutes, and lots of singing, and wild dancing by a man and two women. The dude looked like he was trying to shake his own shoulders right off his body - I thought he was going to make it a couple times too. The women shook too, but a little less violently, they used their arms more for smooth swinging than an attempt at dismemberment. Anyway, a lovely meal. I'd hate to blame how good the food was on the fact that I hadn't eaten anything in the past two days besides airplane food, airport food, and a cliff bar, but the meal was delicious.
Tomorrow is a full day here in Addis. We're going to try and arrange a cupping in the morning with a local exporter, and venture out to the local market, which I hear is amazing.
Dinner in a restaurant. How civilized! We've met up with a few people who are attending the conference, and a small group of us enjoyed a lovely evening at a somewhat touristy but nevertheless charming and interesting place. Local beers, wonderful injera and delicious piles of spicy meat pastes made up the nicely traditional Ethiopian meal. There was a live band, with strong drums, some flutes, and lots of singing, and wild dancing by a man and two women. The dude looked like he was trying to shake his own shoulders right off his body - I thought he was going to make it a couple times too. The women shook too, but a little less violently, they used their arms more for smooth swinging than an attempt at dismemberment. Anyway, a lovely meal. I'd hate to blame how good the food was on the fact that I hadn't eaten anything in the past two days besides airplane food, airport food, and a cliff bar, but the meal was delicious.
Tomorrow is a full day here in Addis. We're going to try and arrange a cupping in the morning with a local exporter, and venture out to the local market, which I hear is amazing.
arrived in addis
Finally made it into Ethiopia. A ten hour flight, three hours in amsterdam, eight hours to nairobi and a long overnight there before this morning's two hour kenya air flight into addis ababa.
Sunrise from the Nairobi airport was terrific, as the low-lying clouds melted away and the land came into clear view. The muzak system in the gate four waiting area played Rocky Mountain High as I watched all this unfold out the big windows. Nothing like a little John Denver to make me feel like I'm halfway around the world.
My bag showed up in Addis, which is always a relief, no matter where in the world you are, and the trip into town was as easy as it gets. So now, in a hotel room with a shower and a bed, 39 hours after leaving my house, I think its time for a nap.
Sunrise from the Nairobi airport was terrific, as the low-lying clouds melted away and the land came into clear view. The muzak system in the gate four waiting area played Rocky Mountain High as I watched all this unfold out the big windows. Nothing like a little John Denver to make me feel like I'm halfway around the world.
My bag showed up in Addis, which is always a relief, no matter where in the world you are, and the trip into town was as easy as it gets. So now, in a hotel room with a shower and a bed, 39 hours after leaving my house, I think its time for a nap.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Happy Valentine's day
Ready for twenty-plus hours of travel time before hitting Nairobi Sunday night. Everyone's said their goodbyes, my kids ask me: "what, you're going somewhere?" and the mopiest one in the house is the dog. Like I'm the only one who ever gives her treats or scratches behind her ears.
There's still snow on the ground at my house, and whenever I travel in February I come home surprised at how spring-like everything has become in my neighborhood during my absence.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Background on Ethiopia
WARNING: don't think you're reading all of these, unless you're retired or home sick with a cold. The cheap google blogging software doesn't seem to want to let me set these links to open in new tabs, so beware.
The wiki travel page on Ethiopia is informative and you can actually read the whole thing. If you want to go deeper - the regular Ethiopia wiki page will keep you pretty busy.
The US State department keeps tabs on every country on the planet. Hey, its their job. I check this site often before traveling anywhere, even simple little zips down to Mexico or Costa Rica. The page on Ethiopia is good. Retirees can go ahead and read the boring stuff here.
The Ethiopian embassy in Washington DC also has a webpage.
Cartman went to Ethiopia too.
My friend Forrest runs our Batdorf & Bronson blog at dancinggoatsblog.com
The wiki travel page on Ethiopia is informative and you can actually read the whole thing. If you want to go deeper - the regular Ethiopia wiki page will keep you pretty busy.
The US State department keeps tabs on every country on the planet. Hey, its their job. I check this site often before traveling anywhere, even simple little zips down to Mexico or Costa Rica. The page on Ethiopia is good. Retirees can go ahead and read the boring stuff here.
The Ethiopian embassy in Washington DC also has a webpage.
Cartman went to Ethiopia too.
My friend Forrest runs our Batdorf & Bronson blog at dancinggoatsblog.com
more pre-trip
From the invitation I received in December:
For those of you who have never been there, Dire Dawa and Hararge province are a world apart. While many are familiar with the lush green coffee regions around Sidamo, the Harar region is starkly beautiful, with red and white canyons cut through the land and caravans of camels along the roadside. The walled city of Harar itself is astonishing: painted in white, turquoise, and blue, and dotted with over 150 mosques. Dire Dawa is a bustling city, with a surprising nightlife, and home to the coffee trade for the entire eastern part of the country.
Attendees to the conference will be getting an in-depth look at what makes Harar coffee unique, the intricacies of the supply chain, and the special cup qualities that make it a sought-after coffee from Seattle to Riyadh. Learn Harar from the farm to the cupping table. Presentations by local and international experts give an opportunity for an exchange of coffee knowledge, and discussions in the hallways and over injera and shiro are a fantastic opportunity to forge new and lasting relationships with coffee professionals in Ethiopia and around the world.
For those of you who have never been there, Dire Dawa and Hararge province are a world apart. While many are familiar with the lush green coffee regions around Sidamo, the Harar region is starkly beautiful, with red and white canyons cut through the land and caravans of camels along the roadside. The walled city of Harar itself is astonishing: painted in white, turquoise, and blue, and dotted with over 150 mosques. Dire Dawa is a bustling city, with a surprising nightlife, and home to the coffee trade for the entire eastern part of the country.
Attendees to the conference will be getting an in-depth look at what makes Harar coffee unique, the intricacies of the supply chain, and the special cup qualities that make it a sought-after coffee from Seattle to Riyadh. Learn Harar from the farm to the cupping table. Presentations by local and international experts give an opportunity for an exchange of coffee knowledge, and discussions in the hallways and over injera and shiro are a fantastic opportunity to forge new and lasting relationships with coffee professionals in Ethiopia and around the world.
Pre-trip announcement
Ethiopian coffee has held a place of distinction at Batdorf & Bronson since its founding. Naturally-processed Harar continues to be a staple for us as a single origin offering and an extremely important blending component. It is consistently a favorite among employees and customers alike. Other Ethiopian coffees from Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, Limu, and Djimma have made repeat appearances over the years and can be some of the world’s most distinct and engaging coffees.
In all my years of traveling for work, visiting coffee farms and mills outside of the United States, I’ve never made it to this most mystical of coffee places. Until now. I’m leaving on Saturday for my first trip to Ethiopia and I’m very excited!
I have been invited to participate in a roundtable conference to discuss the recent diminishing of the trademark flavors of Ethiopian Harar coffee. The conference is sponsored by a US consulting firm in collaboration with USAID Agribusiness and Trade Expansion Program; attendees will include exporters, importers, roasters, consultants, producers, agronomists, marketers, and state dignitaries. Scheduled to last four days in the town of Dire Dawa, in the Harar region, the conference will include lectures, presentations, cupping sessions, tours, and discussions. I’m anticipating the discussions: Can the true flavor of Harar coffee be revived? Is it really gone? What can be done to address the current quality of Harar coffee? How can we develop new strategies for marketing coffee from Harar? How can increased demand for Harar coffee worldwide translate into quality improvements? We’ll see.
After the conference I will be linking up with a smaller group of U.S. coffee people and heading south to explore the growing regions of Sidamo and Yirgacheffe. Together with Harar these regions make up the most important coffee producing areas in the country. I anticipate lots of windshield time, many miles of walking, hundreds of cups of coffee, and unforgettable experiences that will last my lifetime.
I expect my first visit to the birthplace of coffee to be nothing less than a magical experience, and can’t wait to relate it all to you!
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