India: Ratnagiri Estate — Red Honey Microlot

India: Ratnagiri Estate — Red Honey Microlot

Natural Process ∙Medium Roast

Delicate sweetness and winey acidity with praline, amaretto, and grape flavors.

Grown at 1355 Meters Above Sea Level (MASL)

Our Origin Select coffee this month comes fromthe Ratnagiri Estate in the Karnataka Region in Southwest India.This is the first time we have offered a coffee from India as part of our Origin Select program. As much as 75% of the coffee grown in India is lower-quality “robusta” coffee, so finding a farm dedicated to production of Arabica beans, and high quality ones at that, is rare! The Patre family founded Ratnagiri Estate in 1927, and Ashok Patre assumed ownership in 1989. Since then, he has revolutionized coffee production on his farm and in India. After taking over the farm in 1989, Ashok only practiced washed processing like his family before him. In 2010, though, he noticed the single-origin trend in cafes and the industry’s push for higher-quality offerings. In 2016, Ashok produced his first honey-processed coffees and slowly started adapting production toward specialty to meet this demand.

     Today, every aspect of production and process is controlled at Ratnagiri Estate, and 60% of the 117-hectare farm’s volume is specialty grade. Ashok is focused on eco-friendly farming: “The only thing we use is fertilizers, and in case we have a pest attack, it is always biological control… I have seen a lot of farms all over the world [who] by indiscriminate use of pesticides and herbicides…ruin their farms.”

The Karnataka state in southwest India produces 65% of India's coffee, especially in the Sahyadri Mountain Range, or Western Ghats. The mountain range intercepts the westerly monsoon winds that carry rain from the southwest. This contributes to the temperate rainforest climate that receives 120-160 inches of rain during the monsoon season, with certain areas of the mountain range receiving over 350 inches. Coffee thrives in this moist deciduous forest in the mountains, explaining why this is India's coffee production's birthplace.