Inspiration

Coffee origins

Colombia

The Waitrose Colombian Supremo and Mainstream Colombian coffees come from the El Encanto farm owned by brothers Alesandro and Andres Restrepo. El Encanto - meaning 'the enchanted' - is located in Periera, the main coffee region of Colombia, 1800 metres above sea level. The larger beans produce an exceptionally high quality Arabica coffee with a rich, smooth flavour and slightly nutty aftertaste. This coffee is ground for use in either a cafetiere or filter machine.

The Waitrose Organic coffee comes exclusively from Café de Los Santos farm, based in the Bucarmanga region of Colombia. This organic coffee is grown using only natural fertilisers and spring water, which enhances the delicious natural flavour and aroma of Colombian coffee. There are six families on the farm who each share responsibilities and carry out the daily chores. Their benefits include free housing and utilities, social security, and safe working and living conditions. Every house has land for cultivating food. Follow this link to visit the farm's website: www.cafemesadelossantos.com (this link opens in a new window).

Ethiopia

Waitrose Mocha Sidamo coffee comes from smallholder farms in the province of Addis Ababa, close to where the original coffee bushes were first discovered. The coffee is grown on more than 70,000 hectares of land and is planted at low densities, ranging from 1000 to 1800 trees per hectare. The farms are members of a local cooperative called the Sidamo Coffee Farmers Cooperative (SCFC), which comprises of 39 members. The major goal of the coops is to invest the profit into sustaining the environment in which the coffee is grown. Follow this link to visit their website: www.sidacoop.com (this link opens in a new window).

Kenya

Waitrose are working closely with Nyambene and Ruera farms to ensure the finest quality Kenyan coffee is produced for our customers. The Ruera farm is part of the Socfinaf estate and coffee on this farm is grown over 442 hectares of land between the Theta and Mugutha Rivers. Ruera farm produced around 750 tons of fine Kenyan coffee last year which was sold at the Nairobi coffee exchange on a weekly basis.

Indonesia

Waitrose Java coffee is grown on two farms, Blawan and Jampit. The farms are situated on the ljen plateau in East Java near the Kawah ljen volcano and the coffee is grown and processed at 4800ft altitudes. The coffee is specially produced from eco-friendly cultivation which preserves a sustainable coffee cycle that produces a better quality coffee. Blue Mandheling also comes from Indonesia and is grown on 15 small holder farms in Sumatra. Beans from Mandheling have been described as the most full bodied Arabica coffees in the world.

India

Waitrose Monsooned Malabar coffee comes from the Kulverdikhan farm in the Bababudangiri region of the Karnataka state, South India. The original estate house was founded in 1950 and the original owner was Gregory Joseph Coelho, whose name was used to set up the company, Coelho Coffee Exports, in 1991. This coffee is famous for the special way it gains its flavour characteristics. The beans are seasoned and aged in the humid monsoon air before being left to dry in the warm winds, creating a unique and distinctive flavour.

Follow this link to find out more about Waitrose Monsooned Malabar coffee.

Waitrose Brazilian Fazenda Transwal

This coffee was the gold medal winner of the Brazilian Cups of Excellence competition 2002. Waitrose purchased the full production of 84 bags. The Fazenda Transwal farm is owned by the Barros family who specialise in the production of quality speciality coffees. They adopt conservation practices in all areas of their farm, applying organic systems and producing coffee by processes that minimise the effects of the environment. The coffee is picked manually which means that the best beans are selected and are placed on a cloth to avoid the beans coming into contact with the soil. On the day of picking, the beans are washed and pulped and taken to the terraces to be dried. Once dried the beans are stored in high bins made of and lined with wood.

Waitrose Costa Rica La Laguna

Waitrose Costa Rican coffee in grown exclusively on the La Laguna farm on Don Fernando's family owned estate which dates back to the 1880s and is based in the Tres Rios district of San Jose, Costa Rica. The coffee is hand processed at the end of the season when the weather is fair, and is then sun dried on the terraces, in a traditional manner. Costa Rica is generally recognised as the best of Central American coffees, La Laguna coffee is grown on fertile soils at high altitudes to provide a rich full bodied coffee with a sweet flavour.