Cultiva has gained ability to select a wider range of coffees due to an increase in wholesale accounts. This is a great opportunity for everyone! During my visit to Seattle for Coffee Fest last month, I met with Zephyr Coffee and La Minita Importers. Both importers are pushing the envelope for quality coffees, in both flavor in the cup and transparency in it’s exchange. Please link to the following websites for more information on these wonderful coffees! We’ve cupped them all, and found them to be nothing less than spectacular!! These coffees will be available starting 10/12/2009.
Nicaragua Fully Natural Pacamara varietal – Mierisch Estates
Fair Trade Organic Certified; Sumatra Mandago, Mexican Chiapas, Ethiopian Sidamo Shanta Golba (both Natural and Washed selections) – Zephyr
Costa Rican Hacienda La Minita & Colombian Reserva – Minita Estates
New Products!!
We are now offering fully stainless steel Frieling French Presses in two sizes, ceramic Beehouse pour-overs, Cultiva traveling mugs, ceramic Cultiva Coffee instructional mugs (series#1,#2) and the Aero-press coffee maker!!
Come on into Cultiva and stock up for Christmas!
But it only took me one shot to fall in love with the espresso machine…
With that said… my modest wish list for Cultiva’s third birthday would be:
An Anfim grinder, a Guatemalan Malhkonig grinder, and a Slayer or Synesso espresso machine.
This would make Cultiva very happy, and without a doubt, our customers too.
We dream on, and save.
Cultiva would like to announce recent coffee shops and restaurants serving Cultiva Coffee!!
d.beans coffee – 11th & H St. Lincoln, NE
Long Home Coffee Co. – Main St. Nebraska City, NE
Back Alley Bakery – Hastings, NE
Storyteller’s – 10th & P (next to Blue Orchid) Lincoln, NE
The Boiler Room – The Old Market, Omaha, NE
Sister’s – 58th and Adams Lincoln, NE
Cultiva’s Agricultural Scholarship Fund for Women in Honduras
& our connection with the 2009 CoE Honduran Coffees!!
A few months ago, Cultiva began an agricultural scholarship fund for women in Honduras. As of August, we have raised $1275.00, but we still need to raise additional funds to compete our goals. Cultiva has SOLD OUT of Café Femenino coffee! We will not be purchasing more at this time, due to our involvement with another “project” called The Honduran Cup of Excellence Lot#12 !! At it’s arrival to our door, our final cost of this coffee will be $6.00/lb. Normally, most coffees (if they’re Fair Trade and Organic Certified) hover around an average of $2.50 to $3.50 per pound. So, in order to give everyone an idea of the final retail pricing, we’re likely to be selling this outstanding coffee for about $10 for each 8oz bag. Not a bad retail price for some of the best tasting, most traceable and transparent coffee on the planet! Cultiva is dedicated to offering up these coffees at an accessible consumer price, even though we understand we’re practically giving it away at these prices. So please , respect the bean!!
THE SCHOLARSHIP FUND
Many international development agencies are focusing on the role of women in agriculture. Women have proven to be extremely successful in organizing, accounting, and managing micro-lending projects and agricultural cooperatives. Cultiva’s Agricultural Scholarship Fund will concentrate specifically on women in Honduras, who comprise the majority of the nation’s poor and are economically and socially marginalized, especially within the agricultural sector of Honduras. Women have the greatest impact on their communities when given access to greater opportunities, as they tend to return their investments in their families and education for their children. Unfortunately, women have been underutilized as a progressive and necessary source for sustainable development in agricultural sectors throughout the world.
Cultiva specifically recognizes these issues in Honduras, where the owner, Jon Ferguson, developed his passion for ecology and agriculture while volunteering as a Hillside Farming Agricultural Extensionist with the Peace Corps. During his time in Honduras, Jon met several NGO’s, farmer cooperatives, and women’s groups, which showed commitment and progressive change with very little financial backing and plenty of passion. Jon recently began efforts in establishing Cultiva’s Agricultural Scholarship Fund for Women in Honduras. He has waited almost a decade to establish this scholarship, mainly in regards to feeling certain about what good development entailed, how to achieve these goals, and to what end these actions would take.
Implementation of the Scholarship
During Jon’s involvement with the Cup of Excellence International Jury in Honduras, he was able to establish contact with Jorge Ruiz, Ing. Agronomo, the Director for the School of Coffee Processing (Escuela de Beneficiadores de Cafe), affiliated with IHCAFE, the national coffee institution of Honduras. They have been relaying emails continually over the past few months, establishing a dialoge for the distribution of scholarship funds to a student interested in attending the program.
This scholarship fund is an obtainable goal. Cultiva is only months away from actualization. Jon plans to return to Honduras in the fall, if politics and safety permit. He will not only return to finalize the details, but to join in the harvest and learn as much as possible about the processing of coffee on the farm.
The most recent letter from Sr. Ruiz,
“Es un placer dirigirme a usted y me alegra recibir su comunicacion electrónica.
Lastimosamente no se hablar ingles, pero esta en mis planes para el próximo año desarrollar esta meta; pues por razones de estabilidad laboral no he podido cumplir en dos ocasiones anteriores.
Estamos organizando la segunda promoción de la Escuela de Beneficiadores, por ahora se desarrolla la socializacion para la búsqueda de alumnos en todo el país y también se han programado reuniones en diferentes empresas para obtener socios estrategicos para cubrir los costos financieros; se ha previsto iniciar con las clases de la escuela para el mes de Marzo 2,010.
Con tu ofrecimiento de proporcionar becas para algunos participantes, ya te incluye en la lista de socios estrategico.
Pensando en tu visita a Honduras, considero oportuno hacerlo en Noviembre o Diciembre o Enero pues son los meses en que el proceso de beneficiado del cafe esta activo en todo el pais. Me interesa hacer un programa interesante de conocimientos del beneficiado para tu estadia en Honduras.
John, es un placer saludarte y agradecerte tu interes por nuestra caficultura.
Mantengamos la comunicacion para darte mas informacion sobre la escuela, y organizar tu visita a Honduras.
Atentamente
Jorge Ruiz, Ing. Agronomo.
Especialista en Beneficiado Humedo y Seco del Cafe; Asistente del Programa de Beneficiado, Director de la Escuela de Beneficiadores de Cafe.
IHCAFE. “
Donate any amount to Cultiva’s Scholarship Fund for Women in Honduras.
Every dollar will be greatly appreciated. We have raised $1,275.00 for the scholarship fund. Our goal is to raise $2,500.00 for the first year, which includes cost of setting up funds in Honduras. It will change one young woman’s life forever. As the Peace Corps promotes, if you are able to positively change or influence one person’s life, then you’ve done your part and have reason to be proud.
This is a fantastic article addressing the issues at hand
Female agricultural extension agents in El Salvador and Honduras:do they have an impact? by G.A. Truitt, Associate Professional Officer, Women in Development, FAO Regional Office for Europe
Listed below are a few sites relating specifically to women’s involvement in the coffee industry;
I did a bit of time in the Peace Corps in the Northwestern Region of Honduras in the Department of Ocotepeque, outside of Belen Gualcho, a small mountain village known for it’s remote cloud forest terrain and local Lenca indigenous population. I volunteered as a Hillside Farming Agricultural Exenstionist, promoting soil conservation and more sustainable methods of agricultural production (such as the use of natural pesticides and fertilizers, like applying garlic and soap to combat aphids, and leguminous trees as soil retention barriers which also acted to fixate nitrogen and rebuild the biology of the soil, and also avoided the use of urea, a synthetic fertilizer salt known to damage the balance of micronutrients in the soil)
To get back to the point… years later I find myself invited by the Cup of Excellence to Honduras to serve on the international panel of jurors for the 2009 Cup of Excellence Competition in San Pedro Sula. Jon Lewis knew I had hopes in going to Rwanda for the CoE competition, but the competition was cancelled this year, and Lewis remembered I had been in Honduras as a volunteer and though I might have wanted to return. It didn’t take me more than a second to reply to his email…
After a week of cupping 30+ coffees, the panel voted for the top 39 coffees in the country, which ended up a very intense and close competition. After the week long experience, we were able to finally meet the producers. Dallas Folwer (one of the few folks who has significantly help define Cultiva for what it is today, and also my coffee cupping partners in Honduras) and I went to meet one of the producers in La Esperanza, Intibuca. Most of the photos of us on the coffee farm came from this visit. To make a long story a bit shorter, we both learned an intense amount of information over the processing of coffee on a coffee farm (in-transition to organic production none-the-less!!)
After returning to Lincoln, Nebraska, I stayed at Cultiva for a week before traveling to Seattle to visit a few friends and cup the El Salvador CoE at Atlas Importers. At this time, I discovered #29 from El Salvador being one of my favorites. I asked Chris from Atlas to let me know if any other roaster would be interested in splitting this lot number. The next morning I got a call from Chris, hooking me up with Norman from The Roasterie in K.C. Both he and I have similar tastes, so it seems. Unfortunetly for this coffee auction, it was too late in the game to gather enough buyers to cooperatively buy this lot number. Next up was the Honduran CoE cupping in Minneapolis, MN with Café Imports…
I took a small crew of Cultiva employees up to Café Imports to help select our favorite coffee from Honduras. Cafe Imports hosted a cupping of the top 20 coffees. It turned out #12 was one of the top picks out of the 20. We returned to Cultiva, and had all the CoE samples to roast, once again, to judge on our own.. and the results? #12, once again, after cupping BLIND, came out on top!
The luck doesn’t stop there…. Norman emails that #12 is also one of his favorites. So we quickly organize a cooperative buy for the lot number, set our price, and arrange for Norman to do the bidding. Tuesday morning, June 23rd, after a few hours of bidding, our group won the Honduran CoE #12!! and not only was it the best TASTING coffee, but…. you guessed it… it’s from Belen Gualcho, my old Peace Corps site! pure luck.. destiny. I don’t know. I don’t care. It’s just rad!!!!!!!!
check it out.. buy it, drink it, and remember and appreciate the amount of work and love that went into getting this coffee for Cultiva. It’s taken years for it to get here. And the story doesn’t stop there… more to come.
Dallas Folwer (CoE observing cupper, Cultiva barista, and one of the few who have helped define Cultiva's existence) in Belén Gualcho, Ocotepeque, Honduras. This is the home of The Cup of Excellence Lot #12
Cultiva will be relocating and expanding it’s production within Lincoln at the end of 2009! Our lease agreement at our current location will be ending in December of 2009, and since we are currently outgrowing our current space due to increased production, it seems like perfect timing for expansion!
We are currently looking for investors, partners, and/or micro-loan possibilities. Please feel free to call if you have any connections to someone who would be interested in supporting Cultiva in raising the necessary capital to help properly facilitate our expansion and relocation efforts! 402-802-1909
Cupping.
Cultiva’s public cuppings, Honduras CoE, Atlas, Stumptown, Victrola, Moka’s, and Indigo; All have their own style, but all have one thing in common: giving coffee the extra attention is deserves.
Cupping was all over Seattle, and it wasn’t as such a few years past. It seems like Cultiva is on top of things, as far as cupping goes, so be proud Lincoln! I cupped in four different locations during my visit to Seattle, with numerous professionals and beginners. I cupped 49th Parallel, Cafe Vita, Victrola, Stumptown, Vashon, 30+ CoE El Salvador selections sample roasted by Atlas Importers, and a few other local roasts… and the results? I have strengthened my palate to a point where I am able to finally understand the “quality of life” in a cup which brings me happiness. This trip inspired me to re-organize the layout of Cultiva’s roasting facility on South Street, now catering to larger group cuppings, sacrificing yet another table for customers to sit around.
Which brings me to the most current issue of the day: We need to expand. Cultiva will be planning to expand and relocate (within Lincoln!) at the end of the year. We are looking for investors, partners, and retail and/or warehousing spaces. Please feel free to call me if you have any connections which would benefit Cultiva in raising the necessary capital needed to do this properly!! Micro-loans would be a wonderful option for us. 402-802-1909
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- Perry, Victrola Coffee
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- Wolfgang (Stumptown, Left) & Chris (Atlas, Right)
Somehow I ended up in Seattle cupping the 2009 El Salvador Cup of Excellence samples with Atlas Importers. Although this was not the purpose of the trip to Seattle, it has been the highlight of experiences this week, mainly due to meeting the coffee professionals who participated in the cupping and also discovering that being in 1st place doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the only, or even best, choice at hand. There were 33 CoE lots to choose from, and the blind cupping revealed a few of the top ranking coffees coming out lower than expected. This could have been due to the sample roasting, but what struck me the hardest was Lot #27! Discovering CoE coffees not even ranking in the top 20 gave me hope for bidding on the Honduran CoE on June 23rd. I have my favorites, and will cup them again, hopefully honing in on one special, and affordable, Honduran coffee for all of us in Lincoln, Nebraska to enjoy. My next step is to call around and make connections with other roasters who are interested in buying CoE’s. This would make purchasing these coffees much more possible.
Let’s just say it’s complicated, logistically and financially. Things move quickly, yet slowly, with CoE auctions. It’s likely the most progressive form of coffee trading to date, yet has many logistical battles to overcome, from seed to cup. It’s not easy, and no one ever said it would be either. These are special coffees, not only due to the quality of the coffee itself, but for the passion and dedication of everyone involved in the process, from the growers, organizers, cuppers, exporters, importers, roasters, and the barista who present the final product. If Cultiva purchases any CoE’s this year, I guarantee… you will hear about it.
I met Jose Ramon Molina at the Cup of Excellence “meet and greet” between producers and COE judges in San Pedro Sula. I took his information and photo, called him two days later, and took a six hour bus ride to La Esperanza to visit with him. José Ramon Molina helps manage six different cooperatives in Intibuca under the name LIDERS. He gave us an amazing tour of a very small coffee farm, the Cup of Excellence warehousing unit for LIDERS producers, and a processing center in Siguatepeque. I can’t thank him enough for his hospitality.
La Mohaga, May 19th 2009
We took a short, yet memorable trip to La Mohaga today. Most importantly I was able to reconnect with familiar faces and update contact information. There is a lot of progress happening in La Mohaga.
