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    • Coffee Should Be $8 Per Cup
      • Coffee Should Be $8 Per Cup By Richard Corney Managing Director of Flight Coffee 28th August 2024 The State of Play On the 12th of September 2024 our flagship café, The Hangar, celebrates its 12th birthday. It seems like a lifetime ago and given what hospitality has endured over the last 4 years, it’s no surprise that for the first time in 20 years, the number of cafés and restaurants in New Zealand has shrunk compared to the year before. It's a tell-tale sign of the times and if you ask any hospitality operator, they likely all agree the current climate is worse than Covid. The Hangar started 2024 (which happens to coincide with the start of our financial year) strong. We beat our Quarter 1 revenue budget by 1.3% and while that’s not anything to write home about, to start the year on track was a great result given the previous 3. Our 2024 budget is an honest one, a true representation of where we thought we’d land and what we could achieve with no fluff. Imagine our shock that came with our April result - 5% behind budget, then May 22% behind and June 10% behind. The cumulative total netting out at 11% behind our Quarter 2 Budget. July was worse, 25% behind. All our operating profit from a well-managed Q1, gone. We expected headwinds this year but nothing as drastic as a reduction of revenue by 20-25%. A confluence of reasons, not least of which the impact that public sector layoffs have had within Central Wellington (and Auckland), a recession and the lag impact of high interest rates impacting discretionary spending. It’s a perfect storm coupled with the cost-of-living crisis. The Hangar will finish the year in the green, we have no doubt – it must - it just won’t be as green as we had hoped. The issue facing cafés and operators is that most costs are fixed or pegged to revenue. For most operators rent doesn’t decrease according to revenue, it’s a fixed cost, and relative to a budget, the cost of employment goes up when revenue is down. The volatility and unpredictability of the hospitality market at this time makes it near impossible to run a café with any certainty of a profitable outcome. This, coupled with over supply, is why we are seeing the closure and sale of so many cafes and for the first time in 20 years, a contraction of the hospitality market in New Zealand. Volatile and unpredictable revenue is just one side of a much more sinister coin facing our industry. In the case of coffee roasters and cafes, it has never been more expensive to manufacture a kilo of coffee or as costly to make a cup of coffee and there’s a common fear amongst the industry, cafés in particular, that by passing on price increases, they will lose business. As of the 1st of September 2024, The Hangar will be increasing cup prices by $0.30 per cup. A regular black coffee will be $5.60, and a regular dairy milk white coffee will be $6.10. We are doing so because we cannot afford not to. Why Such High Prices? The Arabica Coffee Futures market is at historic levels. Only two other times since 1980 has the market been above the levels it has traded at for the last several months, in 2011 and in 1997. A snapshot of the Arabica Futures Market since 1980. Supply of Robusta, the usually reliable cheap cousin of Arabica that multinationals and commodity buyers rely on for low-cost coffee is highly constrained and trading at historic levels. For the first time it is trading above the Arabica market as buyers gobble up stocks of low grade Arabica in lieu of Robusta supply. The mind boggles, objectively lower quality coffee is fetching higher prices than Arabica. A snapshot of the Robusta Futures Market since 2008. Compounding and contributing to this is the rush to fill European warehouses before new European Deforestation Regulations come into force come January 1st 2025. With the fear that some producing countries will not be EU compliant in time, they will no longer be able to export their coffee to Europe until compliant stoking fears of further short supply of some origins. Typically, at this time of the year there are about 4.5 million bags of coffee afloat heading to destination ports, currently, this number about 6.8 million bags. From multinationals to boutique roasters, there is no escaping the fact that coffee is the most expensive it’s ever been to produce, especially so when coupled with increase in operation costs and other factors like freight and increased utility and manufacturing costs. What does this mean for cafes and consumers? The price of coffee must go up both by the kilo and the cup. The coffee industry cannot sustain the cost pressures on their own. This is one of the reasons why we’re putting our cup prices up at The Hangar by $0.30 per cup. By The Numbers When we opened The Hangar in 2012, we charged $3.50 for a regular black coffee and $4.00 for a regular dairy milk white coffee. Our September 1st price increase represents an increase on our 2012 price of 53% for a regular white coffee at $6.10. Since opening our rent has increased 134% and minimum wage has increased from $13.50 per hour in 2012 to $23.15 in 2024, or 71%. Given The Hangar pays Living Wage, come September 1st, this will go to $27.80 per hour or an increase of 106% on 2012. Our increase in cup pricing is no less than half of what other major cost centers have increased over the same 12-year period relatively speaking. If our cup price increased at the same rate, we should be charging >$8 per cup, and this isn’t even in consideration of the cost of goods, simply representative of the increased operating cost of the café. $8 per cup isn’t something sustainable for consumers to endure out right but there must be a balance, a reconciliation of sorts, as cafés and hospitality cannot continue to absorb these sorts of costs without reasonably passing them on. It’s irrational to think otherwise. There’s a notion amongst consumers that coffee is immune to inflation. We see this whenever there is a news article about coffee prices and the subsequent commentary of keyboard warriors on social media linked news articles. If you’ve ever read the comment section of a 1 News, Hearld or Stuff article about the price of a cup of coffee (don’t for your own sanity’s sake) you can see why some operators are so reluctant to do what’s right by their business. A particular sample set I admit, however, it’s fair to say its representative of many consumers. This has permeated through the minds of some café operators and there is a real fear that if they pass on prices, even as little as $0.10-$0.20 per cup, they will lose business. The truth is, if we don’t pass these costs on, the face of our coffee industry will look very different in the years to come, and operators will face losing their business. Lessons Learned I opened my first café in 2006 and by 2009 it was a statistic. It failed and I was personally in debt as a result. I know what it’s like to throw your heart and soul (and money) into something you love and for it to struggle and ultimately fail. One of my favourite authors and podcasters David McRaney once said something I’ll never forget: “Those who are successful rarely get paid to talk about how not to fail, which is a great shame… Success boils down to serially avoiding catastrophic failure while routinely absorbing manageable damage”. There are several reasons why my first café failed. One of the most pertinent lessons was at the time I believed the value of my offering was one derived through price point. I falsely thought that if my prices were low enough, competitive enough, I would win customers over other cafes and be successful. Very rarely do cafés ever win on price. I believed in a fallacy. I should have focused on the quality and consistency of my coffee and food and at margins that allowed my café to run at a sustainable operating profit rather than to scrape what I could from the bottom of the barrel. Coffee is not immune to inflation. Cafes should be passing on reasonable price increases in line with their increased costs. And consumers should pay more for a cup of coffee.

    • Sunset Run with RUN4 Auckland
      • Yesterday the epic Sunset Run took place thanks to our fam at RUN4 Auckland. Over 120 runners assembled at our 222 Dominion Rd Studios to stretch and hydrate before the slow and steady climb up to Mt Eden and back down again. We can't wait to do it all again soon. RUN4 is a running community for all fitness levels. Every Sunday morning at 8:50am you can join a run from Victoria Park in Auckland. For more details visit their IG page here

    • Our 1kg bags get turned into fence posts
      • Flight Coffee is excited to announce to the world our own recycling system. We've partnered with Future Post, a grass-roots recycling company founded in the Kiwiest of spirits, up there with No. 8 wire. Future Post takes soft plastics from around the country and transforms them into fence posts. Not only does this create a solution for soft plastics, but it also avoids trees being cut down to make fences with. Future Post stood out to us for a number of reasons, apart from being an awesome sustainable company that supports industries from orchards to dairy and sheep farming. It’s a great product – it doesn’t split, rot or crack. The fence posts don’t leech contaminants into the soil (certified for use on organic farms), they're UV stable, have a 50+ year life expectancy, and a particular favourite – they are 100% recyclable. If need be, they can take an old post, and turn it into a new post! More importantly, all research pointed to one thing. If any plastic is to be recycled, the most responsible method is for the plastic to have a long second incarnation, and not be used to create anything with a high likelihood of winding up in landfill, like clothing, or other packaging. Instead – we should be looking for options like resurfacing roads, park benches, or in this case – fence posts with a lifespan of more than 50 years.We have done comprehensive research over the last 6 months around quality-driven, sustainable wholesale packaging, and we’re immensely proud of this outcome. The bags are completely aluminium-free and are a thicker polypropylene to ensure freshness for longer, which was step one. The next step was making sure these bags weren’t just going to wind up in landfill – which is where we need your help.We chose not to be a part of other recycling schemes because we want to know exactly where the bags are going. By owning this system, we can have a better understanding of the impact of our business - and the best way to offset this. “Future Post takes soft plastics from around the country, and transforms them into fence posts. Not only does this create a solution for soft plastics, but also avoids trees being cut down for this reason.”

    • Reserve - Wush Wush
      • We're chuffed to introduce you to our first Reserve coffee for 2022, Wush Wush. An insanely rare and high-quality variety of coffee known for its floral and fruity cup qualities - In the words of our production team, "it's a real banger". This is the 4th time we've released a Wush Wush and if you were lucky enough to get your hands on some before, we're sure you'll be nodding along and agreeing that this coffee variety is definitely something special and something different. Tastes like: HONEYSUCKLE | LEMONGRASS | RED CURRANT | MAPLE SYRUP Producer: Agemiro Hernandes Region: Tolima, Colombia MASL: 1800 Process: Washed Variety: Wush Wush Roasting Profile: Filter, Pour Over, Aeropress, French Press This Wush Wush was produced by Argemiro Hernandez, on his farm La Esperanza, located in the Conbeima Canyon, in the department of Tolima, Colombia. This micro-lot was prepared using a unique processing method; it was fermented as whole cherries in Grain Pro bags for 24 hours. Following this, the cherry pulp was removed, and the coffee was submerged in it's fruit mucilage for an additional 48 hours of fermentation. This has created a hybrid processing method, adding some characteristics of natural processed coffee, with the clean refreshing qualities you get from a washed process. Argemiro dried the coffee for 8-12 hours each day in Grain Pro bags. This technique allowed him to prolong the drying process to last 25 days, this lengthened drying time helps to create clarity in the cup, and a long-lasting sweetness. Originally from Ethiopia, Wush Wush is a low-yield, rare variety that has become popular in specialty coffee. Wushwush is a smaller area in southwest Ethiopia, known for its fertile highlands, vibrant tea production, and natural coffee forests. Following the path of Geisha, another famed coffee variety, also hailing from Ethiopia, Wush Wush arrived in South America around 30 years ago. Today, it can be found in Colombia where the altitude and fertile growing conditions support the delicate, and floral cup profiles that come from these rarer, highly sought-after varieties.

    • Rwanda & Burundi
      • Rwanda and Burundi, neighbouring East African countries, land locked between the Democratic Republic of Congo to the west, Tanzania and to the east and Uganda to the north, are perhaps two lesser-known coffee producing countries of Africa. We have been using a Rwandan component in our blends since 2017 and as of December this year, we will supplement the Rwandan components seasonally with coffee from Raw Material projects in Burundi. Though they are neighbouring countries, the timing of their respective harvests allows us to have fresh coffee cycle biannually in our blends while also extending the reach of our buying. Coffee is an integral sector for the economies of both countries and Raw Material has been supporting projects in both since 2016. Rwanda Known infamously for the horrific genocide of 1994 which claimed the lives of over 800,000 people, coffee continues to play a crucial role in the development of the country. With over 400,000 families relying on coffee for their primary source of income, coffee is vital for the monetization of the rural economy. The country has experienced incredible growth and development since 1994, with a strong tourism sector, energy and hospitality are also important income earners for the country. Despite this, Rwanda is ranked the 21st poorest country in terms of GDP per capita by the International Monetary Fund. It is heavily dependent on agricultural exports, with coffee making up the leading agri-export, it is ranked 30th on the index of coffee producing countries by volume. Raw Material has been working with Muraho Training Company (MTCo) since 2016. MTCo, one of Rwanda’s first fully dedicated specialty coffee producers and exporters, has blazed trails in the Rwandan coffee sector. In 2016 they were the first company to legally produce and export natural and honey processed coffee, developing all new flavour profiles for the country and setting new quality standards. Raw Material has shared learnings from Colombia and helped provide market access for MTCo’s coffee throughout New Zealand, Australia, the UK, UAE, Europe and Asia. MTCo support over 3000 coffee farming families throughout the Nyamasheke, Gakenke and Nyabihu districts. As well as providing seasonal employment for hundreds of people across these regions, MTCo have developed a payment model specific to the Rwandan coffee value chain that ensures producers are paid above market rate and premiums for their higher-grade coffee. MTCo pay above minimum wage for their season workforce and provide insurance and social security benefits. In addition to this they support producers through the distribution of coffee seedlings in the off season as well as providing best practice agronomic support and training. Together with Raw Material, MTCo and the local government supported the Nyabihu communities who experienced devastation in May 2020 when mudslides ripped through the hills around Shyira and Vunga, destroying homes, lives and crops. Over $170,000 was raised, 25 new homes built and thousands of coffee and other sustenance crops were planted and replaced. You can watch the incredible results of the international fundraising efforts can be viewed here. Phase 3 funding for building resilience programmes is still underway. As well as operating 5 of their own washing stations, they are the export partner for the Vunga Cooperative, a female lead, 260-member cooperative. Since partnering in 2017, MTCo have worked with members of Vunga on quality initiatives and as a result have received the highest and most consistent price for their coffee since its founding in 2009. In addition to the export price per kilo, Raw Material have contributed to Vunga’s washing station regeneration fund. Prior to their partnership with MTCo, the cooperative received insufficient funds from the sale of their coffee and had very little means to invest in the upkeep of their station. As a result, the facilities became dilapidated. Vunga have since completely rebuilt their washing station, extended their warehousing capacity and increased the number of drying beds, this has increased their capacity and provided important quality control elements for their production. Flight Coffee has been supporting MTCo since their very first season in 2016. With the first ever harvest from the stunning Kilimbi Coffee Washing Station, we have featured coffee from the Nyamasheke washing stations every year since as well as featured micro lots from other stations. Burundi The histories of Rwanda and Burundi are inextricably linked. Both nations suffered dire consequences of European colonialization in the late 19th century, both have endured catastrophic civil unrest and genocide, both share ethnic ties and history, however, where Rwanda has managed to find relative success in nation building efforts post 1994, Burundi has been much less fortunate. The number of people living below the poverty line is steadily increasing; from 72% in 2013 to 82% in 2019, it is expected to reach 85% in 2022. (Source: The World Bank 2011, PPP adjusted, the international poverty line is $1.90 USD/capita/day). The International Monetary Fund lists Burundi as the poorest country in the world in terms of GDP per capita. 94% of the population live in rural areas and over 800,000 families rely on coffee for their primary source of income. Coffee is the highest agricultural export earner for the country and when including tea exports accounts for about 80% of foreign currency earnings. One of the issues facing the long-term viability of the Burundian coffee sector is the year-on-year decline of production, of the many issues facing country, this is one of the most urgent. Burundi has some of the most ideal conditions for growing high quality coffee yet while the global demand for specialty coffee is expected to reach $84 billion by 2025, up from $36 billion in 2018, producers are unable to capture any of the value in the growth of this demand. The reasons for this are varied and complex; this is one of the main issues Raw Material is working to solve. In 2019 Raw Material established its first coffee washing station in the Kayanza region of northern Burundi. Izuba (The word for “Sun” in the local language Kirundi), purchases coffee from small holder producers guaranteeing prices paid to producers are above market and reflective of quality. In the similar manner to Timor Leste, Raw Material manages processing to maximise the quality and production of coffee. It is early days with this project; however, Raw Material expect that the profitability per kilo will double in the immediate term through channelling the production through the specialty coffee market. The medium-term plan is to address the urgent issue of declining production. By directing profits through pruning, fertilization and other agronomic programmes, Raw Material project an eventual increase in yields 3-4x that of current production, which should result in 5-6x increase in household income when sold through Raw Material supply chains. Following the 2019 season, some important lessons were learned, Raw Material discovered the first and highest-value investment was to provide full health insurance to all households who delivered coffee to Izuba. As the future seasons occur, more initiatives such as this will be rolled out. We have committed to purchase our first full container from Izuba in December this year, it will replace the Rwandan component when this stock runs down and further our buying to communities who need access to the specialty coffee market.

    • Timor-Leste
      • Established in 2002 Timor Leste was the first new nation state of the new millennium, located at the Eastern end of the Indonesian Archipelago, it ranks 37th on the index of coffee producing countries by volume. Cherries being laid out to dry on Raised African Drying Beds Timor Leste endured a 25 yearlong conflict which claimed the lives of 200,000 people and left all infrastructure in ruins. Oil has been the nation's biggest export earner since 2002, making up 95% of its income, and has played a vital role in funding recovery and nation building efforts. However, with oil production winding down in the next two years and the petroleum fund running out in 10-14 years, there’s an urgent need for Timor Leste to diversify its income. Coffee is the county’s second highest export earner after oil and 37% of households rely on it for their primary source of income. Developing the coffee sector is a natural and obvious choice for development but despite having somewhat of an established sector, it faces many challenges. Productivity is extremely low, about 1/5 that of Colombia, and profitability is low and volatile, as almost all coffee is sold in the commodity market at a discount NY ‘C’ price. Ameta (Photo Credit to the one and only Jeff Hann) There is very little incentive for coffee producers to increase the inputs that would render a higher quality product and enable them to receive a higher price. In many instances it is more appropriate to consider coffee producers ‘coffee gatherers’, collecting whatever cherry they can at whatever stage of ripeness in order to sell something to receive some form of income. Given the volatility of the commodity market and the traditionally low prices associated with it, the situation in Timor is fairly unique and one that needs immediate attention. This is one of the core issues that Raw Material are working to solve. Cherries being inspected during the day while out to dry on the raised beds Through several innovative and engaging ways, Raw Material, working with the Asian Development Bank and the Market Development Facility, have made significant headway in increasing the quality of coffee to record breaking levels. As well as carrying out on the ground training with stakeholders and producers, in conjunction with Jeff Hann (the film maker of The Coffee Man film), Raw Material produced a custom 11-part video guide that was translated to Portuguese and Tetun (the local language). There are no data charges when using Facebook and WhatsApp (in fact, Facebook has become synonymous with the term ‘internet’ as used elsewhere when referencing the internet in Timor Leste) and as such is accessible to anyone with a smart phone, resulting in widespread dissemination of best practice processing techniques. Ameta overseeing cherry sorting after a harvest In addition to this Raw Material helped facilitate the production of a Coffee Game Show. Airing on the local TV network baristas and coffee producers traded places in their respective roles within the coffee industry, vying for points against competing teams. The show was designed to make high-quality practices common knowledge and accessible throughout rural households. During the off season in 2019, Ameta travelled to New Zealand and spent four months with us here at Flight Coffee. He practiced English, roasting, cupping, spent time on the bar at The Hangar, and learnt about coffee quality from a roaster and barista point of view. The Baboe Kriak wet mill from the sky In 2018 Raw Material established the Atsabe Community Wet Mill, a first of its kind for the country. It serves as a centralised processing centre for the communities in the Suco Baboe Kraik area, in the Ermera province. It employs about 50 seasonal workers and 4 full time staff and provides a buying point for over 1000 people. Since then, two additional community wet mills have been built, Malabe and Koileki, and construction is underway to establish a cupping and QC lab in Atsabe. The investment in Community Wet Mills was designed, amongst other important reasons, to centralise processing in order to control the variables that ultimately affect the quality of coffee once produced. While these are straight forward in theory, unless there are appropriate facilities available, along with a market willing to pay a reflective price for quality, it is almost impossible for producers to break through this ceiling on their own. Coffee cherries being sorted and checked after a harvest The impact the Community Wet Mills have had on the production of quality coffee has been dramatic. In 2018 Ameta won 1st, 3rd and 6th place in the national annual coffee quality competition, breaking the record of the highest quality score ever attained in the country. In 2019 Ameta placed 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 8th in the competition and in both years set records for the highest prices received at export of 2-3x the national average. The 2020 season saw the team take out 1st, 3rd, 7th and 8th place. We had the 3rd place Parami Natural on our espresso offering during the first part of this year. Raw Material was the only buyer raising the price of cherry post Covid-19, while all others have dropped compared with the 2019 season, Raw Material paid a price that resulted in about 10x the income for producers once costs of production are taken into account. Various different lots laid out for drying 2021 represents a watershed moment for us at Flight Coffee. By replacing a non-Raw Material component in our Bomber and B2 blends with washed coffee from the Atsabe Community Wet Mill, 2 of our 3 espresso blends are 100% sourced through Raw Material. This alone provided market access for over 120 new families. Identified by the Raw Material 100% Logo on the labels, you can rest assured that the coffee in these blends are sourced through maximum impact channels.

    • Stable prices for coffee producers
      • In 2014 we established a green coffee social enterprise, Raw Material. Lead by Flight Coffee co-founder Matt Graylee and our good friend Miguel Fajardo, Raw Material is a dedicated coffee development export and import enterprise where 100% of the profits generated work to provide economic freedom for coffee producers. Ameta - Raw Material - Timor Leste Founded on the principles of Effective Altruism, Raw Material chooses to operate in parts of the world by assessing the importance, neglectedness and solvability of issues facing small holder producers. 60% of global coffee production is produced by about 12.5 million small holder families. Coffee is a commodity and as such is traded in a way where income from coffee is dictated by external factors and not in any way that is tied to the cost of production. This provides little income certainty or stability for producers and in some cases forces them to sell their coffee below the cost of production. Washed coffee being turned on the drying beds in Timor Leste. These issues are pervasive and perpetuate cycles of poverty for some of the most venerable coffee growing communities. 44% of the world's small holder coffee farmers live below the poverty line (by World Bank standards), and 22% live in extremely impoverished conditions. The first major project started in Colombia in 2016 with the successful Kickstarter campaign which raised over $200,000 for the construction of a community wet mill, El Fenix, in Quindio, Colombia. Since then, Raw Material has established operations and partnerships in Rwanda, Burundi, Timor Leste and Mexico. Ameta and Matt. Since 2012, it has been our goal to direct as much of our demand through Raw Material supply chains as possible. Through these channels we guarantee we’re maximising the impact our buying has for the communities who grow our coffee. We recently took an important step toward achieving this with the introduction of Timor Leste from Raw Material Timor Leste into our Bomber and B2 blends. Parchment coffee drying on African raised beds in Timor Leste.. Complementing the Colombian Risaralda Regional Blend and Rwandan Rugali, Timor Leste now makes up equal thirds of Bomber and B2. Two of our three blends are exclusively sourced through Raw Material meaning 90% of our green coffee buying is directed through maximum impact procurement channels. Over the next month we will provide more detail on each of the origins that make up Bomber and B2 and the projects that Raw Material is working on at each origin. Key an eye out for the RM 100% - it means 100% of this coffee is sourced directly via Raw Material.

    • Luise Metelka - 2021 NZ Barista Champion
      • We're beyond proud to announce that Luise (Lu) has taken out the title and is the newly crowned 2021 Meadow Fresh NZ Barista Champion. We've had a lot of people reach out and asking various questions about Lu's performance and the competition in general so we thought it best that we ask Lu a few and let her answer. Your 2021 Champion. You’ve just won the NZBC - Congratulations!! Tell us about the comp for those that may not know about it. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! A competitor has to make 4x espressos, 4x milk beverages and 4x Signature drinks for 4x judges within 15min, while talking about the coffee and explaining the methods. We like to say it’s MasterChef while giving a TED talk! :) Lu serving her milk beverages to the judges. Photo: Andrew Turner - @atphotonz How did you come up with your concept? My favourite part about the champs is that you can tell a story through your coffee. I wanted to talk about positive impact, because this is what drives me the most in this industry. I thought a funny and more interesting way of doing so was by telling the story of superheroes, who use their powers to create a better world. My routine is built on the concept of the “hero’s journey” and leads the audience from the beginning - When I was a child and I thought, I needed superpowers to change the world - To me as an adult / coffee professional, who learnt that everyone can be a hero. We all can have a positive impact at origin by working with powerful coffee and educating our customers. Lu's judges table setup. Photo: Andrew Turner - @atphotonz Can you tell us about your coffee? I used a blend of a Natural Tabi and Natural Gesha from our farm El Fénix in Colombia. The trees are only 3 years old, so I had the honour to represent this coffee on competition stage for the first time. El Fénix and my concept work so well together, because the farm was built on the foundations of doing good. It works as a community wet mill where local producers can process their coffee more effectively than they might be able to on their own facilities, which results into a higher quality coffee and therefore higher wages. Geshas are known to be high quality, very expensive coffees, which not every farmer is able to produce because they are relatively low yielding and hard to grow. In the case of my Gesha though, its reputation of excellence helped to fund El Fénix. Coffee professionals around the world bought it through a kickstarter campaign, so without the Gesha, they have not been enough interest to fund the wet mill! The Tabi on the other hand was the solution by the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia to save Arabica (specialty coffee’s species) from issues aggravated by climate change. It is high yielding, fast growing, disease resistant, accessible to farmers and is also super tasty! What a hero! They are both great coffees on their own, but they are working together like the Justice League ;) Gesha is an excellent coffee, but as an espresso is mostly has a dry aftertaste and a light body. In the combination with the Tabi though, the whole experience was lifted to a juicy and silky mouthfeel and refreshing fruity aftertaste. Lu at El Fénix harvesting ripe cherries Tell us about how you prepared the espresso, what recipe, and tasting notes? I screened the Gesha pre roast to remove smaller beans, because I found out that the larger beans enhance the most fruity and floral flavours. I blended the largest beans of the Gesha and the Tabi post roast. My recipe for the espresso course is: 18.5g in, 40g out to create flavours of pink grapefruit, red cherry and hibiscus. For my milk beverage I use: 19.5g in, 35g out to create flavours of banana, strawberry yoghurt and caramel Lu preparing her round of espresso. Photo: Andrew Turner - @atphotonz Walk us through your sig drink? A signature drink is basically a drink creation, that should predominantly taste like espresso, while forming new flavours. The ingredients that a competitor uses need to be synergistic with the performance and the coffee. For my drink I wanted to tell the story how El Fénix does good: I brewed a tea with cocoa husk and casacara. The cocoa represents the shade trees that Miguel planted at the farm to protect the coffee trees in the longer lasting dry season as a solution against climate change. He planted cocoa trees. The Cascara represents the pulp of the cherries that he composts to feed the coffee tree with to create a sustainable and affordable plant food. I replicated the simple fermentation process on stage that was created by Miguel, so it can be copied by other producers in the region. I made a Elderflower-cherry-fermentation I used Panela, which is a South American Cane sugar, because it belongs into every Colombian dish! Lu starting her sig drink preparation. Photo: Andrew Turner - @atphotonz How does a champ drink coffee at home? I have a Wilfa filter machine at home. Most days I go out for coffee though ;) The dream team. Richard, Nick, Lu, Alan, & Steve. Photo: Andrew Turner - @atphotonz The Flight Coffee Family. Photo: Andrew Turner - @atphotonz From Lu: Especially right after my trip to Colombia, I didn’t feel like the hero that I wanted to be as a kid. I questioned my own position in the supply chain and the impact that I have. But it was this journey which made me discover my own power. We, as coffee professionals can choose to work with coffee that has an impact. We have the power to educate customers face to face, so they learn where their coffee comes from. And we have the power to learn and to grow, to compete and to voice issues to a crowd. We don’t need this one superhero doing everything, but many heroes doing something.

    • Stay Tray
      • A conversation with our mate Kate Steward, Managing Director and Founder of Stay Tray. We're well stoked to be stocking Stay Tray, a reusable tray made from recycled materials designed to improve our on-the-run coffee experiences while being kind to the planet. So, Kate, what’s your elevator pitch, what is Stay Tray? Stay tray is all about reducing single use, all through the humble beverage tray…whilst rehoming some of the world’s waste. How did you come up with the idea for Stay Tray? I’d had an idea for a little while and realised there was an obvious gap in the market. It felt counterintuitive that everyone was shifting their behaviour from single-use coffee cups to reusable, yet, still ended up with a disposable cardboard tray!? That’s how Stay Tray was born. Walk us through how Stay Tray is made? Stay Tray is made using 100% locally sourced recycled material. It is made in Melbourne Australia from 100% recycled polypropylene, items such as bread crates, ice cream containers etc. Tell us how you’ve been seeing Stay Tray used by consumers in the market place. Stay Tray has proved to be far more versatile than I ever anticipated. The uses are practical, sustainable, often inspire and amuse me. Stay Tray is obviously used for the coffee run every day, but people are using it in cars where they don’t have drink holders, drive through McDonald's, at the local football, they’re taking it camping, fishing, down the beach, caravanning, on boats or on the golf course. I’ve even had people use it to carry paint samples from their local hardware store. The best part is, Stay Tray is being embraced by super sustainable savvy businesses, as a way to reduce waste in their workspace, whilst adding their logo to a truly innovative product that is 100% Australian made and made from 100% recycled material. Great way to get them brand reach! What’s coming up next for Stay Tray? We've just launched our much-anticipated Stay tray 2 cup solution. The 2 cup is all about convenience and ease. Super lightweight and really stylish! It’s an absolute must-have! Have you got any hot tips for helping to reduce waste and to reuse products around hospitality? There are so many really innovative and cool ways we can contribute to recycling in the hospitality space. There’s a great company called Closed Loop who run a cup collection clean scheme called Simply cups. They essentially take disposable coffee cups and rehome them into a variety of different items, everything from a Stay tray, to a reusable coffee cup, new road surfaces, and asphalt, the list goes on. There’s also a number of charities who are able to take the milk bottle lids and make prosthesis for children. It’s truly inspiring and so incredibly intelligent. Thanks for your time. Make sure you lock in your Stay Tray today!

    • We bought a roaster.
      •   It’s often said that coffee roasting is part art, part science. This is true now more than ever with recent advances in technology allowing roasters access to more empirical data about each roast than ever before.   Where a traditional coffee roaster would look at, and smell beans, and listen for distinctive ‘pops’ during a roast, we are now able to track temperature changes in real-time and calculate Rate of Rise and development time percentage on the fly. Don’t worry if you don’t know what that means – what’s important is they are better indicators of roast quality than just feeling it out.   We’ve just upgraded our roaster to what is fast becoming the industry standard for consistency and repeatability – Loring.   Our old roaster, Betty (a Probat UG-22), has served us well over the last 6 years and has pumped out almost 25,000 batches of coffee during her tenure. Sadly, time has caught up with her, and it’s time for her to go and live on a farm where we can’t visit her.   Happily, this means that our new roaster, a Loring S70 Peregrine (name TBC), has the space to move in. We didn’t take the decision to replace Betty lightly and we’d like to share with you our decision making.   The first advantage of the Loring is its size. It’s considerably bigger that Betty – a 70kg capacity vs a 22kg capacity. We’re now able to roast around 3 times as much coffee. This means we can meet our weekly quota of roasted coffee with less manpower.   The second advantage is control and repeatability of roast. As great as Betty was, her gas controls were imprecise and difficult to manage – two valves controlling gas flow to three banks of burners, one valve leading to one bank, the other to two. The Loring gives us the ability to make precise adjustments to burner percentage through a computer and repeat them consistently - roast after roast. There’s even the option to go fully automatic once you’ve decided on your approach.   The other big improvement that this upgrade makes is the Loring is much more environmentally friendly. Its unique design means that it consumes approximately 25% of the gas of a traditional drum roaster. In addition to this, we’re now able to burn off more smoke, producing less emissions than before.   Of course, all of this would be for nothing if it didn’t also improve the flavour of the coffee. We’ve already found roasts to be cleaner and sweeter across the board. We’re excited to be working on the Loring moving forward as it gives us the ability to truly highlight each coffee’s unique characteristics better than ever before.  

    • Flight Coffee Infographic
      • Coffee’s journey from farm to cup is complex, varied and crucial to quality. We’ve released an infographic to help show how this journey works and how we do things differently. If you want a little more detail, then read on. Growing Coffea Arabica is a scrupulous plant. It will only grow where the conditions are right. The conditions are only right in a select few places, between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, in an area around the equator known as ‘The Bean Belt’. No, really. That’s what it’s called. Having evolved in the Ethiopian Highlands, coffee has adapted to thrive in specific conditions. It generally grows best at altitudes of between 800 – 2000 metres above sea level. The coffee plant prefers warm temperatures with periods of high rainfall. Central and South America, North East Africa, and South East Asia Pacific all provide these conditions. These regions also offer the volcanic soil that the coffee plant prefers. Coffee plants take 3-5 years to reach maturity. At the end of the rainy season, small white flowers will begin to appear. These will eventually give way to little green buds, which slowly grow into cherries. The seeds of these cherries are your coffee beans. Harvesting Specialty grade coffee is hand-picked. This might seem labour intensive, but it's one of the best ways to ensure quality. The ripest fruit produces the best tasting cup of coffee. The coffee cherries ripen at different speeds, so the same tree may have fruit that is flowering, green, ripe and overripe, all maturing at the same time. Hand picking means the cherries are picked at the optimum stage, and less undesirable coffee goes on to processing. It also leads to larger potential yields. Many coffee producers will then have the cherries sorted again, to remove any unwelcome fruit that may have slipped through. Less quality focused farms may employ strip-picking (hand stripping the branches) or machine picking strategies. These can result in lower quality coffee as more defective cherries can be harvested. Processing Processing is essentially what happens to the coffee cherries after picking to separate the green beans from the rest of the fruit. This is a crucial stage of production, and has a huge influence over the final cup quality. During processing, coffee is fermented, either with or without water. This, coupled with other factors like the duration and temperature of the fermentation, has a pronounced effect on the flavours in the cup. Washed/wet process Washed coffees are pulped and left to soak in tanks of water. The water breaks down and the fruit flesh as it ferments. The fermented beans (still covered in a protective layer known as parchment) are laid out to dry. Typically this will give a clean cup profile, with distinct, refined flavours. Natural/dry process. During this method the cherries are cleaned and laid out to dry in their picked form. Fermentation occurs during the drying process. You might expect a complex cup, with pronounced tropical fruits and berries, heavy body and lots of sweetness. Honey/semi-dry/semi-washed Less common than the other two methods, but no less delicious. Honey processed coffees are pulped before drying, removing the skin and exposing the fruit flesh, which becomes golden and sticky (like honey) as it ferments and dries. The cup profile of Honeys can sit anywhere between a washed and a natural, depending on how much flesh is left on for how long. Drying Drying normally takes place outside with parchment coffee or cherries lying out in the sun. They will be spread out on patios or on raised netted tables (for extra airflow). Over a period of up to four weeks, the beans will be raked or turned to ensure even drying. Once they reach their target moisture content of 10-12% the parchment coffee will be stored until ready for export. In some cases, the drying may be done mechanically. This can have an impact on quality and is usually only done if the weather doesn’t allow for sun drying. Before the coffee is exported the parchment is removed by milling, leaving just the green bean. The resulting beans will be sorted to remove undersized or defective beans, as well as any foreign matter. This process will often be performed by hand. This is an important stage, as these defects directly affect the quality and taste of the coffee, often resulting in a lower price being paid to the farmer. Grading Samples of the coffee will be roasted and ‘cupped’ by green coffee buyers like our old mates at Raw Material. The coffee is roasted in small batches of 100g on a sample roaster 12 to 24 hours before they are cupped. Cupping is a standardised method of tasting and evaluating a coffee’s qualities. The coffee is brewed to exact specifications so as to be a consistent system of testing. The coffee is then tasted and scored on a scale of 1-10 on categories like Fragrance/Aroma, Flavour, Aftertaste, Acidity, Body, Sweetness, Uniformity, and whether or not there are any defects present. There are a total of 100 points available. A score of 80 points or higher means that the coffee is considered ‘Specialty Grade’. This score is linked to the potential price for the coffee. Pricing So, this is where we do things differently. Traditional models of coffee trading have not always been great for coffee farmers. One of the key issues that farmers face is the Coffee Futures Market. The price of most coffee is dictated by some Wolf of Wall Street types snorting cocaine off each others’ Ferraris. Okay, so that’s not strictly true, but the price does change according to what the market dictates – but the market assumes that all coffee is of the same (pretty low) quality. Essentially, this means that the price that a producer can expect to be paid fluctuates wildly. We’re all pretty much agreed that isn’t fair on farmers, since often this means the ‘value’ of their coffee is less than it cost them to produce. Some organisations, such as Fair Trade seek to redress this by paying a premium on top of the market price. This is pretty good, as it means the producer stands to make a little more (or lose a little less) money. The downside is that the actual amount they will receive is still an unknown. The price still fluctuates with the market. Our fixed price model means that no matter what the market is doing, the crop is worth the same. We work closely with farmers to ensure that their crop sits in the Specialty market and even pay bonuses if the quality is particularly high. This model means farmers are better able to plan for improvements to their farm systems, which may increase quality or yield. Roasting Once that sweet green coffee finally makes it to our HQ, we roast it up a treat in either Betty, our Probat UG-22, or Dee-Dee, our Diedrich IR3. We then go through more cupping to ensure that the quality of the coffee is still high. We’ll also try a few different roasts to ‘dial in’ our preferred roast profile for that coffee. Roasting exposes green coffee to heat to encourage a series of chemical reactions within the bean. The process allows much of the material in the coffee to become more soluble, making it possible for the coffee to dissolve in water. Roasting is responsible for the development of much of the flavour in coffee. An ideal roast allows the natural flavours of the coffee to come through, without any ‘roasty’ tastes developing. It’s also important to allow enough development of the roast to ensure there are no green, grassy flavours left hanging around. You can think of it like cooking a steak. You can’t cook great flavour into a low quality piece of meat. But it’s just as true that no matter how good the meat, if you undercook or overcook it, then it’s not going to live up to its potential. But you if you take great ingredients and cook them to perfection, the results can be spectacular. Quality Control The following morning, before any coffee is sent out, we’ll cup samples from each roast to make sure that we’re happy with how every coffee tastes. Once we’re all in agreement, our dispatch team get all the coffee bagged up, boxed up, and shipped out, making sure it arrives fresh to your front door or your favourite café. Brewing Now it’s over to your local barista to make sure that hard work is worthwhile. Specialty baristas will follow strict recipes to bring out the best from the beans again and again. They’ll be controlling grind size, brew time, and coffee-to-water ratio. Alternatively, if you’re brewing at home, that responsibility lies with you. If that sounds a little daunting, don’t worry we’ve got you covered there’ll be some posts to come with the tricks of the trade that we use to get great tasting coffee every time.

    • Rwanda Pt. 2
      • Hey, gang! As promised this is the second instalment of my experience in Rwanda. In this post, we take a closer look at the processing of coffee cherries at the stations and how we select the lots. Cupping Cupping is how we taste coffees to determine the overall quality. Once we taste it, the coffee is graded out of 100, with everything above 80 points being considered “specialty”. In the short space of time we were in Rwanda we tasted close to four hundred different lots, which accounted for the year's harvest. Each one of those lots gets roasted, tasted and graded, so we had a busy first week for sure! Cupping at origin, I quickly saw how different it was to production cupping back at the roastery. Because there were so many samples to get through in a single day, the pace was a lot faster than what I am used to. Every lot needed to be scored fairly as well, making efficiency key. Another key difference was the coffees we tasted were all Rwandan. After the first few tables, the subtle differences between stations became clearer. By the end of the week, we were even throwing out guesses for what stations the different samples were coming from. It was definitely a unique opportunity being able to taste so many coffees in such a short space of time. An opportunity that is hard to experience outside of origin. After cupping, we traveled across the stunning Rwandan countryside with Muraho Trading Company. At the stations, we were introduced to the workers and walked through the different processes. Coffee Growing in Rwanda Typically in Africa, one station will buy coffee cherries from many small-holder farmers. The farmers grow other cash crops as well to subsidise their incomes throughout the year. Farmers deliver their cherry to a central washing station and get paid based on weight. Hundreds of individual farmers often contribute to a single station’s yearly production. When we were at Shyira washing station we were introduced to some local farmers. We "helped out" picking cherries and needless to say the farmers schooled us all on how to pick. Next up we headed down to the stations to see how processing happens. Processing Selective picking and best growing practices are essential for a quality end product. Another key to quality is how the stations process the cherries. Gaudam and Emmanuel from Muraho walked us through the various steps of coffee processing. I definitely had a lot of light bulb moments seeing firsthand how everything comes together. After the farmers bring in the cherries they lay them on tables and pick out any obvious defects. The cherries are then floated in tanks of water, where the “floaters” are removed. Floaters are the cherries that are the lowest density and usually the lowest quality. The cherries then pass through a de-pulper, which removes the skin and most of the flesh from the beans. This process leaves sticky mucilage covered beans, which then go to fermentation tanks. This is where the hard work starts. When the sugars start to ferment the mucilage get’s broken down enough that it can be washed off. To help speed up the fermentation process a team of really fit guys get into the tank to stomp the beans. This process is to help speed up fermentation and help the sugars break down. They stomp the coffee for around 20 minutes or five rounds of the song “Hobe, Hobe, Hobe”. “Hobe” roughly translates to a warm embrace or welcome, which is a word you hear a lot at the stations. After the end of a couple of rounds of “Hobe”, I was shattered! The coffee goes through the grading and washing channels after fermenting. Workers wash off the sticky mucilage from the coffee. The channels also separate the coffee into different density grades. Different gates of increasing height separate the channels. As the coffee travels down the channels the lower densities float over the top of the gates. This system is very effective at separating the different densities and plays a big role in the final score the lots receive. Once the coffee is washed and separated it is laid on raised beds to dry, which can take around a month. The coffee is constantly turned throughout. It is also hand sorted for any defects that snuck through the previous stages of quality control. The coffee then gets bagged up and taken to a central dry mill in Kigali. It get's milled to remove the parchment that surrounds the bean. Finally, the coffee is ready for grading and export. Honey and Naturals The first legally produced honey and natural processed coffees from Rwanda came from Muraho last year. The change in legislation is a massive and very exciting step forward for the Rwandan coffee industry and Muraho has been smashing it with the quality of both. Natural processed coffees skip the pulping, fermenting and washing stages and go straight on to the tables. The sun dries the cherry around the bean like a raisin and the cherry ferments around the beans inside. This procedure takes on average 40 – 45 days. After being fully dried they get milled. Typically naturals have lots of funky fruity flavours and high sweetness. A honey is a somewhere in between a washed and natural. The cherry is pulped and put out to dry with the mucilage left on, skipping the washing and separating stage. The drying process takes on average 35 days. This process also produces some unique and complex flavours. One of the things that struck me the most when visiting the stations was how extensive all the different levels of quality control are. A lot of work goes in to producing these coffees and it translates to the final product. This trip was truly eye opening for me. There is some very exciting stuff coming out of these stations. Full credit goes to Muraho and the teams at the stations who work hard to produce some incredible coffees. Make sure you watch this space as the fresh harvest is almost here and we’ll be releasing the new coffees soon! If you’ve made it this far, thanks for reading and we’ll keep you updated with more origin trips in the future. Both to Rwanda and other coffee producing countries. Nic Rapp

    • Rwanda Pt. 1
      • Hey, guys! It's Nic Rapp here, Head Roaster for Flight Coffee. I’m just checking in to fill you in on my recent trip to Rwanda and my first ever origin experience! I’ll start off by saying, if you have the opportunity, whether it’s coffee related or not, you should definitely visit this truly stunning country! Hopefully, by the end of this post you’ll believe me. Being my first trip to a coffee producing country I really only had a handful of stories and photos from others who had been to Rwanda to go on. I expected a lot of cupping (industry standard method of tasting coffees) and driving off road to various coffee washing stations, which we definitely did. I also had in my head probably the same thing most people think about when they hear you’re going to Rwanda, which was the horrific genocide against the Tutsi minority that started in April 1994, which claimed the lives of an estimated 800,000 Rwandans. While this horrific series of events was just over twenty years ago, my first impression when arriving in the capital city, Kigali, was not of a broken society reeling from past hardships but of a society that is excelling and getting on with life. In the city, it is clear to see that the past has definitely not been forgotten, with memorials and banners preaching forgiveness all over the city. On the other hand to contrast the tokens of remembrance, I saw a huge amount of investment in infrastructure and growth, with buildings and roads being built throughout the city. From an outside and limited view, it looks like Rwanda is seriously kicking some ass. When Richard from Raw Material NZ and Sam from Raw Material UK arrived, who were to be joined by other buyers later, we headed over to the Starbucks cupping lab to cup samples from five different washing stations. The stations are all owned and operated by our hosts the guys at Muraho Trading Company (MTCo.), with the exception of Vunga Cooperative, who they are partnered with. Muraho was set up and run by brothers Gaudam and Karthick Anbalagan, as well as business partner / friend / brother / all-round great guy Emmanuel Rusatira. The first harvest of the first two stations, Rugali and Kilimbi in Nyamasheke was just last year and they have already added to these two by building stations in the regions of Gakenke and Nyabihu, whose first harvests we tasted this trip. Muraho is a young company and is doing a lot for the communities around the washing stations and working to improve quality with innovative processing methods; the first ever legally produced Natural and Honey processed coffees produced in Rwanda come from Kilimbi and Rugali. We are stoked to be working with these guys, as their commitment to quality and sustainable producing practices align with our own values. These guys are also super fun as well, which helps. Cupping with the guys at the Starbucks lab in Kigali was a great first introduction to cupping at origin. We had a stunning panorama of the hills around Kigali (just about everywhere we went had a stunning view) and the lab itself was kitted out with everything we needed. Tasting so many lots from the same washing stations was a unique opportunity. After spending eight days of solid sample roasting and cupping, we came across some great coffees and some truly surprising, some of which you’ll be able to taste very soon! Something that struck me when roasting the coffees was just how clean and free from defects they were, particularly the higher grades. This really highlighted for me the amount of effort the Muraho stations have gone to sorting and QCing their lots. After all the cupping was done, we had a tour through the Kigali Genocide Museum. This was both a very somber and eye opening experience, where we learned about the events leading up to and during the genocide as well as post-genocide Rwanda. Unsurprisingly it emphasised just how much Rwanda has been through, as well as how impressive it was to experience such a sense of unity and forgiveness in the community. The next day we headed to RWACOF’s dry mill where Muraho has all their coffee going through the final milling stage to get ready for export. We had a quick cupping of some early harvest Burundi samples, that GreenCo General Manager Maxime hand-delivered from Ngozi, Burundi especially. After tasting the early harvest samples it was time to see the stations. For eight days we had been roasting and cupping in the lab in Kigali, so we were getting anxious to get out in the field. The road to these stations was insane. Around every corner, there were stunning vistas of hills stretched out beneath us. Everything was either bright green or a rich orange, with many shades in between. Trying to describe it seems ridiculous. Gadz frequently said that the drive to these stations is marketing enough and he was bang on! Bumbogo is one of the new stations whose first harvest is this year, along with Shyira and Vunga. After a relatively quick drive from Kigali of stunning scenery, I was definitely not expecting what came next. We were greeted with the whole station (108 people) singing and dancing with the most incredible energy I’ve ever experienced; it was electric! When we left the station we had an even more ecstatic farewell dance party or “rave” (as quoted by Steve). The energy of the dancing and singing, along with all the dust being kicked up by hundreds of feet left us feeling all pretty emotional. Having the opportunity to be shown through the different processes was pretty eye opening for me and had more than a few moments when things started to click in my mind. Stomping on the pulped beans to remove remaining mucilage was probably the most fun and exhausting part of the processing. It became clear how the quality of the coffees we tasted was so high with all the different levels of sorting and quality management we were taken through, which I will go into more detail in the next blog, so keep an eye out for more. Over the next few days, we visited Vunga and Shyira in the Nyabihu district then drove over to Nyamasheke to see Rugali and Kilimbi. I couldn’t believe it, but we had a similar reception at all the washing stations we went to, each station with its own uniqueness and energy. The way we were all greeted and embraced by the communities I feel speaks massively to how the guys at Muraho have contributed to the local communities, matched by the amount of respect and love that was shown towards them by the workers at the stations. It was incredible to see. Other highlights of being in the field included but not limited to: stopping for meat skewers (Traditional East African style meat skewers called – Nyama Choma) and charcoal grilled potatoes for lunch, smashing over potholed roads in a Toyota Hilux trying to get to Lake Kivu in Kibuye in time for the sunset (we made it and it was mind blowing), and eating fish caught from Lake Kivu while sitting next to it, looking over to Congo across the lake. Hopefully, this blog has helped to give some insight into what it’s like tasting coffee and visiting stations in Rwanda. However, I hardly think words are adequate to fully describe the beauty of this country and its people. This was only a brief account of my two weeks in Rwanda, but I could talk about it for hours. I’ll be writing a second blog to briefly go over what I experienced of the more technical side of growing, processing and cupping coffee in Rwanda, so stay tuned, keep an ear to the ground and keep an eye out for more! I’ll also take this opportunity to thank Muraho Trading Company for being incredible hosts and showing us their stunning country. I’ve never seen or experienced anything like it. Also, thanks to Flight Coffee for getting me there! If you want to see more from the Muraho stations check out their Instagram: @murahotradingco. In the words of Muraho Trading Company and everyone from the stations, Hobe, Hobe, Hobe! See you next time and Murakoze Cyane (Thank you very much)! Nic Rapp

    • RE:VERB TOKYO CHATS
      • Like farming of any kind at a small scale, growing and producing coffee is hard. Generally, coffee farmers are faced with various environmental and economic challenges: erratic weather patterns, volatile and low market prices, and less interest from the younger generation to inherit farming from their parents just to name a few. So what are some solutions to these challenges? What role do roasters play in value-chain equity? Philosophically, are there obligations to be met by individuals and companies trading coffee? Matt put these questions to the audience at Re:Verb Japan as the final speaker at Tokyo Big Site. He compared the issues most coffee farmers face to those his family encountered throughout his childhood, growing up on a 2-hectare asparagus farm (the same size as the average Colombian coffee farm) in his hometown of Napier, New Zealand. Without being able to predict the year’s income accurately, investment decisions needed to focus on hedging risk and lowering costs short-term. This situation is also what he sees playing out in the neighbourhood these days as a coffee farmer in Calarca, Colombia. Matt drew these parallels to emphasise that no matter what, where, or when you are farming at a small scale, price stability is essential when just about everything else is a variable. THE GOAL The specialty coffee market provides a potential solution for some producers and roasters to curb price volatility. Raw Material (RM) is by no means the first project to tackle these issues. Governments, NGO’s, and private companies and other groups have been studying and working to solve income distribution inequity for a very long time. The goal of RM is to ensure predictable income for the producers of high quality coffee, with much greater margins for those at the very beginning of the supply chain, in a way that is sustainable for the market purchasing it. As a coffee roaster and an importer, Flight and RM have the ability to scale. A roaster can buy and sell more coffee; a cafe can buy and sell more coffee; whereas a producer's income is limited by how much coffee they can grow with trees they have, and increasing farm size is a very high barrier to scaling. By ensuring as much money as possible gets upstream to producers in a smart, direct, and consistent way, this issue of limited scalability can be eased; producers can plan to invest in growing their farming businesses and improving quality. BUYING PHILOSOPHY As a possible solution to the price volatility of the coffee market is Raw Material’s (RM) buying philosophy. This philosophy shares an understanding of producer costs that ensures a fair and relevant income for the production of high quality coffee and producer profitability. As a coffee roaster and an importer, Flight and RM have the ability to scale. A roaster can always sell more coffee; a cafe can always sell more coffee; where a producer's income is limited by how much coffee he/she can grow by the number of trees they have. By ensuring as much money as possible gets upstream to producers, RM attempts to solve this issue of limited scalability and help producers to reinvest in growing their businesses. Raw Material pays a fixed price above the commodity and premium markets for high quality coffee, so producers are able to easily predict their income in a model that incentivises the production of high quality coffee. This also means that we have access to a lot of interesting and unique coffees, some of which we have already had the pleasure of roasting and brewing. FIXED PRICES Raw Material pays fixed prices based on quality and the cost of production, completely divorced from the commodity market price. Producers are therefore able to predict their income with greater accuracy, in a model that incentivises the production of high quality coffee. Downstream, this means that we have continuous access to a lot of interesting and unique coffees, some of which we have already had the pleasure of roasting and brewing. This model is at the core of Raw Material’s philosophy and is currently being implemented in Colombia and Rwanda, with plans to extend to Burundi in the near future. So watch this space for some super exciting coffees coming your way! We will also be posting a link to Matt’s talk at Re:Verb when it is made available. This talk is well worth a watch. In classic Matt style, the first question for his Q&A was from himself: “Are these bananas just for show, or can we eat the set?”. And so the closing talk from Re:Verb Tokyo 2016 was with a “cheers/kampai” of bananas shared between Matt and host Kentaro Maruyama. Another thing to keep an eye out for is the upcoming blog on our farm, El Fenix located in Quindio, Colombia. Purchased to help us further understand the needs of farmers, El Fenix also provides us with a platform to try out some really cool stuff. I’ve said it once before, and I’ll say it again: Watch. This. Space! Find out more about RM @rawmaterial.coffee on Instagram for informative posts and stunning photos.

    • Hello! From the other side.
      • I have been a barista competition judge since 2011 and a WBC Certified Judge since 2013. I have been lucky enough to judge at every WBC since then and was fortunate enough to judge the WBC final in Dublin last year. There is a lot of really great discussion about the format of the WBC and whether it and some rules are relevant today. Much of it has revolved around a lack of evolution over time and as such questions regarding its relevance and contention around particular rules have surfaced. These conversations aren’t new but seeing as how there’s a lot of talk at the moment I’d like to highlight some points that hopefully help balance and shape this conversation. I’d describe the experience I’ve gained as a judge over the last 7 years as one of the most important professional development programs of my coffee career. Much like a competition barista it has required time, commitment and investment and I am lucky that I have a business and partners that allow me to pursue this. THERE MAY ONLY BE ONE WINNER BUT WE ALL STAND TO GAIN. It’s a fact of any competition. There will be one winner with many disappointed people but crowning a champion every year also brings with it much personal success for many other people. I don’t compete because I’m not wired for it. Judging the WBC Final last year was a career highlight for me and something that I worked toward the day I first picked up the clipboard. I’ve been a head judge at a national level in New Zealand, Australia and Japan and I’ve seen and experienced some of the most satisfying moments of personal achievement from individuals who participate as judges. Judging is emotionally draining. You stand in front of your peers and are asked to read out your score, terrified that you’re out of calibration and frightened by the potential embarrassment of being called out by the head judge. I haven’t met a single judge that hasn’t had this experience. Every year I head judge I see the penny drop with new or inexperienced judges. It might be a light bulb moment where they finally understand the sensory perception differences between aftertaste and body, and they accurately describe and score their experience appropriately, or it might be a moment where they no longer have a fear of embarrassment with being called out. Judging is as much professional development as it is personal. While I appreciate the discussion focuses entirely around rules that are convoluted or seemingly irrelevant, it’s important to remember that competition isn’t just about the winner or finding an ambassador. We should be open minded to the fact that the format to date has served as a platform for professional and personal development for many people and whatever shape it takes in the future, it will continue to do so. THE PRIZES AREN'T EXCLUSIVELY FOR THE CHAMPION. It is true that the winner will have all the glory and likely undergo a life changing experience, and so they should, but those who don’t win do get opportunities to be noticed and recognised. The opportunities may not be equal to that of the champion and this is understandable but the competition format does provide a stage for crafty, creative and curious individuals to get noticed. This is relevant for both national and world level. World Coffee Events have made great progress with encouraging community amongst competitors at WBC and have created opportunities for groups of competitors that would otherwise miss out if they didn’t win. Last year they introduced the Barista Team concept. Competitors are grouped together combining scores at the end of the competition where the winning team are hosted at an All Stars event sometime throughout the year. In this, if a national champion didn’t make the semi’s or finals, they are still included in the competition community and benefit beyond just winning their national event. The All-Star events also see past and present finalists invited to national body competitions hosting presentations or discussions raising awareness of the competition in different markets. Beyond this, some of the most important progression we’ve seen in recent years has come from competitors who haven’t won the WBC. Matt Perger flipped espresso grinding on its head in 2013 by using the EK-43 in the competition. In 2014, Maxwell Colonna-Dashwood furthered the conversation concerning water quality bringing it to the international stage in the form of competition. In 2015 and 2016, Ben Putt placed his espresso courses in a vacuum introducing an all new concept to espresso consumption. These are just 3 examples of competitors who have received international notoriety and not won the WBC. This notoriety affording them commercial opportunities that they may have otherwise not had access to. In my experience, the WBC has offered me many opportunities to progress, network, advance and learn. I know this to be true for many others, competitors and judges a like. Placing the spot light solely on the champion doesn’t reflect the true value that the WBC brings to our industry and individuals who participate in it and we should be mindful of this when discussing changes to the format. ABOUT GEISHA. Let’s take a look at the last four WBC champions and the coffee they competed with: 2016 – Burg Wu - Geisha (Panama) 2015 – Sasa Sestic - Sudan Rume (Colombia) 2014 – Hedinori Izaki - Caturra and Typica (Costa Rica) 2013 – Pete Licata - Caturra (Colombia) This tells us, at the highest level, enough time hasn’t passed in order to fully determine Geisha as a competition dominant variety (for WBC). While I appreciate it has made more of an appearance in national body competitions recently, and was, if I recall correctly, used in 3 out of the 6 WBC finalist performances last year, I don’t believe Geisha has earned the dominating status it seems to have been given in the WBC. History may prove me wrong but we should consider that Geisha, like many other varieties roasted and brewed well, fits within the definition of the rules that allow judges to give it a high score. Geisha is so divisive because it has such a distinct flavour profile but the rules do not specifically bias one generic profile against another. I say this as I would hate for the first time or inexperienced competitors to be put off competing because they don’t think they can win due to not having a Geisha – this is simply not true. I think a measured and cautioned approach to this topic is required to ensure what we’re saying is accurate. Having a Geisha is no guarantee to success. THE SIGNATURE DRINK. Berg Wu’s signature drink was one of the tastiest beverages I’ve ever put in my mouth. Every sensory aspect of his signature drink fully highlighted, enhanced, complimented and made better his coffee. He created two simple infusions that seemed insignificant in volume, then adding jasmine and mandarin essential oils to a diffuser, infused everything with nitrogen. The result was an effervescent, bright and balanced beverage which was an absolute pleasure to drink. To this end Berg fulfilled the spirit of the rule completely. He showcased and highlighted his espresso, making the overall experience better than the sum of the individual parts. Very tasty beverages can be achieved despite what may seem like a conceptually basic method or a restrictive set of rules. In many regards we could argue that less is more and simple is best. How this then correlates to how well someone scores is entirely up to how well they deliver the information, execute their beverage and prepare their espresso. I don’t disagree that parts of this section could do with an overhaul and I think this section provides the most room for exciting future developments but as restrictive as some may feel certain aspects of the rules are, we still see and experience some very tasty beverages that I know a lot of everyday people would enjoy drinking. A COMPULSORY ROUND. After recently head judging the regional Japanese Brewers Cup compulsory round I can see a benefit of introducing this to the WBC. It is fair to expect a talented barista to spend time dialling in a coffee they know nothing about and giving it to judges for a blind evaluation. The one thing a compulsory round will highlight is the difference in skill set amongst baristas while limiting variables and I can see how this is a good thing. How effective this would be at a world level would remain to be seen and I think the national/regional level would benefit more from it than at a world level. Perhaps this is a silly assumption but my guess is at world level the standard deviation of scores between competitors for a compulsory round would be very small possibly rendering it useless. Perhaps not. There is one thing to keep in mind with all of this and it cannot be overlooked, however. Whatever major changes are introduced to the WBC Rules and Regulations need to be considered with the sponsors in mind. We wouldn’t have a WBC or national body events without sponsors and this, along with the consideration of some rules, needs to be remembered by all of us. For example, if we introduced a compulsory round, how would this affect the machine sponsors? Would they need to provide 3 or 4 more machines at world level? What about at national body level? Many national bodies scramble for sponsorship every year in order to raise enough money to host their event. I know from being involved with the national body in New Zealand the challenges our event organiser faces year after year with raising money. Perhaps this is why things are slow to change, it’s not unreasonable if so. We have no competition without sponsors. THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM. I am a white English speaking male and the competition format is designed, quite by accident, for me and others like me to succeed. I think a pertinent and important conversation piece is addressing language and gender diversity in the competition. English second language competitors are disadvantaged. That they’re allowed a translator shouldn’t be considered an equal opportunity to native English speakers and though we’ve had bi-lingual champions in the last 3 years, we need a discussion around how we can build the format to further assist competitors who don’t speak any English at all. This is second to the big question on everybody’s mind. When will we have a female champion? At the final’s announcement last year, there was a palpable sense of excitement that Charlotte Malaval might be our first female World Barista Champion. It was not to be and the whispers of disappointment by many could be heard around the stage. I don’t even know how to begin this conversation. The rules certainly don’t have a bias against gender, Charlotte placed 5th because she was bested by 4 other competitors on the day who simply scored higher overall points. This doesn’t change the fact that women are disproportionately underrepresented in the WBC and the wider coffee industry and to date, there seems to be a very little conversation about this. I don’t have the answers for this and if I am honest the causality of the problem is still a little unclear in my mind. I can and do acknowledge my privilege as a white male and I’m well aware of how this advantages me, however, I can’t articulate the conversation well enough and given that it is a sensitive subject it would be easier to leave it alone. But this doesn’t help. With all the discussion about the competition format, rules and relevance, it would be great to see a mature and constructive conversation addressing gender equality in our competitions and our industry in general. THINGS ARE CHANGING, ALL BE IT SLOWLY. The WBC has become an institution and in my opinion is a force for good in our industry. We’ve seen technological innovation, processing innovation, competitor and judge advancement (both professional and personal), entire new communities formed, standards set and much more. There is also the human element to consider. The WBC is the one event in the world I visit where coffee transcends race, religion, and nationality. You only need to watch the 2015 Iranian Barista Champ’s performance in Seattle to realise the hope and pride that the WBC bought to the specialty coffee community of Iran. It’s inclusive and though it’s not perfect, it has had a major impact on how we brew espresso, talk about coffee to the general public and is a great source of inspiration to emerging consuming markets. Any change, when it comes, is made with a considered and expert opinion by many well respected and knowledgeable individuals. We’ve seen subtle yet significant changes over the last few years. Drastic changes require the need for competitors to adjust and judges to relearn protocols and these need to be applied at world level and national level and take the time to implement. The announcement of this year’s changes present exciting and new opportunities for competitors to further challenge the traditional mindset of competing and I can’t wait to see what competitors come up with for the WBC 2017. A FINAL NOTE. My opinions represent those of my own and are not those of World Coffee Events. There is much more to discuss, however, I have addressed some key points I think need the most attention. Thank you for taking the time to read and I hope we continue having a progressive conversation. Richard Corney.

    • El Fénix Wet-Mill Kickstarter
      • We have launched a Kickstarter campaign for the month of December to fund a community wet-mill at El Fénix, the farm we own and operate in Calarcá, Colombia. With best practices being used at the mill for processing the cherry, the high quality green beans produced will be able to be sold into the specialty market for prices that farmers otherwise could not have accessed easily. Trev visited the farm as a part of his first ever origin trip last month and was able to witness first hand the work that is taking place. Geisha and Pink Bourbon seedlings, among other rare and interesting varieties, are currently being cultivated. Don’t worry we will definitely let you know when they are in harvest! Trev also got to visit the planned site for the new wet-mill, and apparently the view is incredible. As one of the rewards for the Kickstarter you are able to stay on the farm and see it for yourself! El Fénix will also act as a testing ground for new methods of growing and processing coffee. These methods will be implemented at the new wet-mill and shared with neighbouring farmers who are selling their cherry to the mill, the aim being to help farmers up the quality of their cherry and receive higher premiums when the green coffee is sold. To find out a bit more about the way our quality premiums are structured and the background for the pricing model check out our blog about the Helena Project and Matt’s Re;Verb Tokyo chat and the Raw Material site. These blogs give some great insight in to Raw Material’s structure and philosophy so definitely worth checking out. How Fixed Quality Premiums Help Farmers After selling their cherry to the wet-mill for a price already above what they would have received selling parchment into the commodity market, farmers will then receive a second payment based on the quality of the resulting green when it is exported. We saw incentives like this being very effective as part of the Helena Transformation Project and we definitely feel there is a lot of value to be added by adjusting the model to fit the community at Calarcá. Fixed prices will help farmers predict their year’s income and make that cost of production vs expected price equation work. Experienced professionals who staff the mill will process the cherry exclusively for the specialty market. Feedback loops from buyers will also be essential in the pursuit of tastier coffee. So, if you end up getting your hands on some of the green or roasted coffee as reward for contributing to the Kickstarter, we would love to hear from you what you think! As well as having the means to process the cherry, the wet mill will be kitted out with sample roasting and brewing equipment. Farmers selling to the mill will be invited to come and learn about roasting and brewing, and in some cases will be tasting their coffee for the first time. Cupping their coffee next to others in the region will spark conversation about what everyone is doing differently, and illustrate how the stages of growing, picking, and processing influence the final flavour in the cup. Further understanding of how to attain a certain quality or flavour characteristic will ultimately result in higher premiums for farmers paid over and above the fixed first payment as they refine practices at a farm level. We’re super excited to get this Kickstarter underway and appreciate any support you can give. Rewards for contributions range from a coffee tree planted in your name (or for a friend for Xmas!) to a trip for two to visit the farm and see the surrounding area of Quindio. You can also just buy some roasted coffee, which we know you need anyway! This is a great opportunity to be involved with a project that aims to make a meaningful difference to the surrounding community long term, as well as developing some insanely tasty coffees. The funding closes on the 31st of December so make sure you get in there. Here’s the link again just to be safe!

    • Flight Loves JOCO
      • Today’s blog post is about our partnership with JOCO where we became the New Zealand distributor of these incredibly good lookin’ and environmentally friendly reusable cups. As consumers are becoming more eco-conscious, we’ve seen more and more manufacturers producing reusable cups, which is great for keeping paper cups out of the landfill.What really excited us about working with JOCO was the fact that just like us, they love drinking great coffee. Based in the Australian state of Victoria, not too far from Melbourne, they definitely have a lot of experience with coffee and have designed their cups with not just customers in mind, but baristas as well. Made out of high quality, borosilicate glass, with a BPA, lead and cadmium free silicone lid, JOCO cups show the coffee at its best, unaffected by the taste of plastic or paper. Having the opportunity to offer our customers the best experience possible from our coffee when they don’t have time to hang was a massive motivator for us.JOCO’s approach to prioritising sustainability also aligns with our own values. Annually 2.25 billion paper cups are used worldwide according to JOCO’s informative website, which is insane! If there is any reason to use one of these cups, reducing that number by any amount for us seems like a damn good idea. Consumers of takeaway coffee are starting to realise the impact disposable paper cups are having on the environment and we see this reflected in the growing number of companies producing reusable cups. We already use fully compostable takeaway cups (lids included) in our flagship store, the Flight Coffee Hangar, supplied by the team at Ecoware, as well as supplying them to many of our wholesale accounts around the country. So, for us the next logical move was to get on board with the JOCO team and encourage people to help out the environment.JOCO loves nature and nature loves JOCO. Chelsea from the Flight Coffee Hangar is also a bit of a fan of JOCO.The great thing about JOCO is that while taste and helping out the environment are important to these guys, their functionality doesn’t get in the way of them looking great either. The team at JOCO know what they are doing when it comes to design, which can be seen in the sleek aesthetics of the JOCO cup. The range of vibrant colours these cups come in suit any style, any season and any time of the day. They have also released a new line of vintage colours in the 12oz and 16oz sizes. We’ll be getting the 12oz colours in soon so if you like to keep it old school we’ve got you covered.Keep looking sharp with the new range of vintage colours. Recognising the growing popularity of reusable cups, The Guardian compared five brands, with JOCO ending up as the chosen favourite. With eco-conscious consumption in mind as well as taste and style, it’s easy to see why we are so stoked to be working with JOCO and supplying their great line of reusable cups.You can get yours online or in many of the cafés we supply, including the Flight Coffee Hangar. Keep an eye out on social media for the new range as well; coming soon!

    • The Road to Seattle and Gothenburg
      • Well team, just on two weeks ago now, the whole crew at Flight Coffee got involved in the Caffeination trade show, which played host to four coffee competitions over the short space of a single weekend; it was definitely a full on couple of days. The four competitions held at the event were the Cup Taster’s Cup, Latte Art Championship, Brewer’s Cup and of course the Barista Championship. We had our ever lovely and talented head roaster, Megan Wyper as well as the charming and good looking, Addison Dale from Café Pure Co. using Flight Coffee competing in the Barista Champs, and yours truly competing in the Brewer’s for a second year. Flight was definitely well represented! On the first day of the event was the Brewer’s Cup, held for the first time in conjunction with the Barista Championships. Once again I had the opportunity to compete, with the added pressure of defending my title. Instead of using an Aeropress this time, I was after something that produced a cleaner cup, so I opted for a Gino Dripper. Some things just don’t change though and I was lucky enough to once again use an exceptionally tasty washed Colombian coffee from the Huila region, this time from Pedro Trujillo farms El Jardin. In the cup this coffee was all about the malic acidity and it just screamed crisp green apples. Balanced out with brown sugar like sweetness and pink grapefruit in the aftertaste. I absolutely loved working with this coffee and I will have the amazing opportunity to take it with me to represent New Zealand at the World Brewer’s Cup in Gothenburg, Sweden in June. My beautiful coach, Sarah, who will coincidently be visiting friends and family in Copenhagen will also accompany me. Looks like I’ll be meeting her parents too… not nervous! Me, brewing up some coffee's on the Gino Dripper for some coffee'd-out judges.  At the same time the Barista Champ heats were getting underway. This is always an exciting time, with the calibre of competitors ramping up every year; this year was definitely no exception. Not to mention the championship being MC’d by a few coffee superstars: 2013 New Zealand Barista Champion, our very own Nick Clark, current World Barista Champion, Hidenori Izaki and multiple times UK Barista Champion, John Gordon. Needless to say the banter between these three was totally outrageous.Hidenori Izaki left, John Gordon top and a cow in the centre at the NZ Latte Art Championships.Meg used a coffee produced by Elkin Guzman, a Colombian farmer producing in the Huila region. Elkin produced his coffee using an interesting technique he calls the “coffee-cake” method, which involves mixing in the second days harvest in with the first days harvest to ferment, while the first day is already fermenting. The mix of both days’ harvests is then washed and dried. The result was a very balanced and bright espresso with notes of ginger bread, cocoa nib and sugar cane. The overarching theme of Meg’s performance was “curiosity”; curiosity that made Elkin try a new processing method with his coffee and curiosity that made Meg want to get the best out of it. Even though Meg didn’t take it out this time, her performance definitely had an important message to share, with relevance to our industry as a whole. Meg looking super excited to be competing! Recently coming on board with Flight last year, using our coffee in his cafes in Christchurch, Addison has been a regular competitor for the past three years of the barista champs and this year achieving the title of New Zealand’s Barista Champion. As I write this blog post Addison is getting to compete in Seattle with his coach Nick Clark, Richard – who will be judging the champs overseas – and his lovely lady, Jennifer, and show the world what he’s made of at the 2015 World Barista Championships. Addison will be taking the El Recuerdo, produced by Carlos Gaumanga, another Colombian from the Huila region. The El Recuerdo is a washed processed coffee, with notes of pink grapefruit, panella sugar, baker’s cocoa and a silky body. Competing on the 9th of April (Seattle time), Addison has only had a few weeks preparation time before he has to compete with champions representing over 50 countries, but we know he’ll kick some serious coffee butt and at the very least have one hell of a good time! Addison getting his signature drink ready while charming the judges. The man who played a vital role sourcing the three championship Colombian coffees, Tyler Youngblood of Azahar Coffee was in New Zealand for the first time and was able to see the coffees in action. He also provided vital feedback –particularly for myself – in the preparation happening in the week leading up to the competitions. He’s also a really fun guy, so hanging out we definitely had some laughs!Tyler in the centre, pulling the classic "Arnie pose".  This year the rest of the team at Flight got seriously involved in the competitions; if not competing, then doing their bit to help out with the vital tasks that allow these events to happen. Nick and Trev MCing up a storm, Richard and Sarah judging the Barista Champs, Matt taught a class and everyone else sat in on run-throughs, helped polish and organise competition gear, and were just an overall great support crew. It was great to see and there was a real team vibe of everyone pulling together. It was definitely an awesome couple of days. If you want to watch Addison compete in Seattle but can’t afford the plain ticket, the competition is streamed live, so keep an eye on our Facebook page where we’ll be providing regular updates: running times, etc. We’ll definitely all be watching here at Flight! You’ll also be able to see me compete at the World Brewer’s Cup later in the year, so keep an eye out. And you can get a Gino Dripper off our website if you want to try out some coffee made with the same brewer I used to win the Brewer’s Cup.  - Nic Rapp,2015 New Zealand Brewer’s Cup Champion.    

    • Nic Rapp Takes On The Gino
      •     Alright team, what we've got for you today is something just a little bit different. I'm going to be breaking down the Gino Dripper from notNeutral. What on earth is a Gino Dripper? Developed by the same team that are renowned for their sleekly designed range of ceramics, which have been popping up more and more, particularly in the North American specialty coffee scene, these simply designed brewers combine elegance with the ability to produce some day-um tasty coffee. With consistent results from these slick brewers and a reasonable price tag, we knew we had to get on board with these guys. Getting ready. Similar to the Japanese designed Kalita Wave, it uses a waved filter paper to hold the water away from the sides of the brewer preventing water from running down the sides. It also has a flat bottom with 3 holes to restrict flow for an increased contact time with the grounds and an even extraction. Increasing the contact time of the water to the coffee grounds results in more flavour development in the cup, as opposed to a traditional pour-over brew method, which allows the water to pass through more quickly. The team at notNuetral definitely had baristas in mind when designing this brewer as it is super functional and it looks slick! The Gino was also used in the World Brewer's Cup in Rimini, Italy by several competitors. The Italian champion, Ruebens Gardelli even used the Gino to get second place. It also received SCAA Best New Product 2014 in its category. Anyway, it's about time we got in to what you really want to know about it and that's how we brewed our coffee on this sucker.We used: Gino Dripper notNuetral ServerWave FilterScalesTimer15 grams of coffee ground the same as for an Aeropress or Chemex (roughly two heaped tablespoons if you don't have any scales). 220mls of water just off boiling (between 93-96 C)And the coffee we used was our Ethiopian Sidama. First off: place your wave filter in the Gino and thoroughly rinse with your hot water; pouring in to the centre as the fragile paper can fold in on itself when water is poured directly on it. Once your paper is good and wet, put the coffee grounds in the filter paper, giving a slight shake to even out the bed. The coffee. Then pour a small amount of water, just enough to cover the grounds (roughly 30mls), and allow to drip through for around 30 seconds. This just allows the naturally occurring gasses in the coffee to be released and allow for a more even extraction. This stage of the brew is often referred to as a 'bloom'. The bloom. After the bloom slowly pour your water in to the centre of the coffee in small circles about the size of a 20c piece until you've poured the full 220mls. By pouring in to the centre, you will avoid touching the sides of the paper, forcing the water down the sides of the paper and missing the ground coffee all together. If you want to geek out a little bit like I did and have some digital scales, you can keep an eye on how fast your pouring, aiming to finish the pour at one minute and 30 seconds. This will allow for the optimum amount of contact time of the water with the coffee grounds to get that sweet sweet balance of flavours in the cup. The pour. This might sound a bit tricky, but the easiest way to check how fast you are pouring is with some basic indicators. So: you should have poured roughly 110mls by 50 seconds, 130mls by one minute, 180 grams by one minute and 15 seconds, ending up with 220mls at 1 minute and 30 seconds. With the Sidama brewed this way, we got full on jasmine and bergamot in the aroma, lots of juicy peach sweetness and a blast of citrus to round the whole thing off. This brewer is definitely worth checking out if you want to experience full flavoured, clean and balanced coffee and it's even a bit of a show-piece in the home. So, if you want to get a hold of one these gems of coffee design, you can get it through us on our website. The serve. Enjoy this brewer guys, you've been great, I've been Nic Rapp. Enjoy mysteriously. 

    • The Flight Coffee Fifth Year That Was
      • Another year has passed for us at Flight Coffee and once again it has been off-the-chain! It definitely could not have been as incredible a year without the support of friends, family, the cafes we supply to and of course you guys! Anyway, before we get too emotional, it's time we embark on the journey of the Flight Coffee Fifth Year That Was (cue flashback sound effects and blurry scene change). With more and more people wanting a taste of the sweet stuff we all love and know so well, we welcomed the newest member to the roasting and dispatch team, Paddy. He's our dispatch extraordinaire, roastery DJ, rap poet, hat designer and Trev's new bestie.    Obviously something's funny. The Hangar has had quite a few additions over the past year, notably the new kitchen replacing the roasting space at the back of the shop. Naturally we needed a head chef that shared the same passion for food as we have for coffee and then it happened... we meet our food soul, Lisa. She's helped the Hangar evolve not only with a new banging day menu but recently created a completely different evening menu, which now includes fried pickles (please wipe the droll off your chin) and many other delights!  Lisa getting her chef on.  One of the star players on the new night menu, the mighty Meatball Sub. Our superstar lady Twyla was promoted to General Manager at the beginning of the year and as we farewelled Jake and Corey from the bar, with our latest American import, Kristina running the bar side of things with Kris. With Kris being involved in the bar our Scandinavian import, Sarah has stepped in as head barista and with her comes a tonne of experience and her unquenchable thirst for knowledge... and coffee. The lovely (not scary) GM of The Hangar, Twyla Bell (soon to be Twyla Gillan!)Kris shaking up some excellent Bloody Mary's   Sarah getting ready to take the head barista role by the reins. In March the New Zealand Barista Champs rocked around again and our very own Nick Clark stepped up to the plate to compete against fellow industry heavy weights. Once again competitors exceeded expectations to prove themselves and claim the title of New Zealand Barista Champion, earning the right to represent our country at the World Barista Championships. Placing second only to Hanna Teramoto, Nick just missed out on going to the worlds for a second time in a row, but it was still a great result! The Corn-Dog himself, Richard Corney and Megan Wyper (formerly Barker, that's right she got htiched!) also 'repped us on the judging panel.   Nick setting up a couple of components for his signature drink. Richard contemplating his score sheet.   Megan judging up a storm. Our young gun and new roasting apprentice, Nic Rapp competed in the New Zealand Brewer's Cup and won the inaugural title, 2 weeks later he landed in Rimini, Italy where he represented New Zealand at the World Brewer's Cup. He also took the chance to compete in World Aeropress Championships which might we add, was on the beach and in the sun! Even though he didn't place this time he's rather determined to get though next year.  Nic wasn't the only Fly Boy in Rimini this year, Richard stopped by Rimini on his way home from Colombia to take a seat on his second judging panel at the World Barista Champs which also included judging in the final round.  Nic Rapp, calling time at the end of his routine in Rimini, Italy. Richard judging the judges as Ghost Judge for the World Barista Championship in Rimini. The epic trip Richard took to Colombia before making his way to Italy, taking him and Matt all over Colombia, meeting farmers and tasting over a hundred coffees in 6 short days. Farmers they met included the group we fondly know as the "Honey Dozen" who produced one of the first en mass honey processed coffees to come out of Colombia. They also met the farmers of the Antioquia Cooperative, who produced the Betulia which we use in Bomber, and had the opportunity to give the farmers their quality based premiums for their coffees at a value of over $25,000.00 USD. This was distributed proportionately over the 30 families who contributed to the lot (needless to say there were definitely some emotions from both parties).  Richard, Matt and the boys of Azahar Coffee hanging out with the farmers of the Antioquia Cooperative. Later on in the year Richard went back to Colombia to scout out new coffees, which will be arriving in a matter of weeks from now, while Matt and Nick went to Seoul, South Korea so Nick could compete in the World Coffee Events All Stars. Going up against South Korean champions as well as other industry heavy weights, including Matt Perger (who placed second at last year's World Barista Championship) and James Hoffman (of Square Mile Coffee in London). These guys are all legends in the field, we were incredibly honoured and humbled to be asked to attend. On the way back to NZ, Nick and Matt stopped via Indonesia to further build our green buying network and get to know the industry over there a little better.Matt and Nick looking really... cool.Wandering through a stunning Indonesian forest. This year also saw the revamp of our brand. We have been working very closely with the radically talented and annoyingly attractive people of Inject design and are so pumped with the outcome thus far. In the new year we will be revealing a few more wee tidbits and a brand new website, so watch this space!   Our newly branded takeaway cups; almost as good looking as the team that designed them!  We have also spent a bit of time updating our coffee brewing offerings and have welcomed the Gino dripper and the mighty stainless steel coffee plunger. We love new toys and when they have been designed to look this good and brew so well, we can't help but get overwhelmed with excitement! Our Brew School also got a new identity: Hello Flight School!   The Gino looking sexy on top of a Flight Coffee mug.   Reinventing classics, the new French Press shows us how its done. Towards the end of the year we did a co-lab with the A-team of beer brewing, Garage project and with them created a coffee beer to rival all coffee beers (dream come true!). We got the guys around to the roastery to cup a selection of our coffees with, of which picking the Moreninha Formosa, Brazil for the coffee component of the beer. After a final tasting at the brewery we were pretty excited if not a little tipsy, well Meg was. We threw a small launch party at The Hangar at the start of the month which in the end resulted in a couple of long queues, such a great night!  The poster for the coffee beer, Louisiana Voodoo Queen, displayed in all her glory at The Hangar.   Trev definitely keen for a cheeky beverage.  We have had such a busy, exciting and massive year and are super pumped to go even larger next year! A massive thanks to everyone for your support and love over the past 12 months,Love and thanks from The Hangar Crew and team Flight Coffee 

    • We're getting older!
      • Hey guys! It’s that time of year again we all experience pretty regularly; that’s right, our birthday! On the sixteenth of September Flight Coffee turned five, while the little brother to Flight, The Flight Coffee Hangar turned two on the tenth! Five years is a bit of a milestone for us: we’re older, wiser, a bit cooler and we’re still the same fun loving gang you guys have come to know, but now we’ve got a bit more experience under our belts. Alongside our growth as a roastery, The Hangar has grown and developed with us. Being our flagship café, The Hangar represents our values and us as a company and it has been super exciting to see what it has become. They’ve had some seriously cool people come and go – they lost Shea to the States and in return got the very talented Lisa from New York to pimp up the menu, keeping the emphasis on sourcing high quality ingredients to make outstanding food. And as always, as well as providing amazing food, our goal has always been to provide outstanding coffee and over the past year we feel like we’ve just got even better at making the good stuff!  Our chef, Lisa, all the way from 'Murica.  The menu has been killing it and complimenting our coffee menu, which has been super exciting. With great responses from food critics, culture reviewers and customers, we’ve been taking on as much of the awesome feedback as possible. With one hell of a review from local legend, David Burton at the beginning of the year it just kept getting better with a mention by CNN and most recently appearing in Vogue Australia’s guide to a perfect day in Wellington; I guess we’re not just world famous in New Zealand now. With our spring menu currently going through the development stages (involving a lot of “tasting” of good food), we’re just about set to blow even more minds with the new spread. Continuing on our mission to blow as many minds as possible, we also rolled out some more options in which to try our coffee. With our Flight of Flat Whites, Flight of Espressos and Coffee Three Way, you can have three flat whites made with three different coffees, the same for espresso or you can have a single coffee done three different ways. It’s a lot of coffee, but is also a great way to get an overview of Flight Coffee all in one go, as well as getting a healthy caffeine buzz going. With the introduction of the Fecto batch brewing system we’ve also got another filter option for those of you who are in a hurry or even just want to try filter coffee but don’t know where to start. Flight of Flat Whites and Coffee Three Way.  Teaming up with the talented crew at the Wellington Chocolate Factory, whose approach to chocolate definitely aligns with our treatment of coffee, we’ve also started offering a single origin hot chocolate, using their cocoa from the Dominican Republic. With a 70% cocoa base, the cocoa itself is what the show is all about. Single origin hot chocolate. On top of all these awesome developments Nick Clark came second in the New Zealand Barista Championship and Nic Rapp won the New Zealand Brewer’s Cup, landing him in Italy to compete in the World Brewer’s Cup and World Aeropress Championship, with the help of his coach, Sarah, kicking his ass in to gear. To finish the year off with a bang we also had some physical developments in the form of a new brew bar – beer taps included, to serve other brews besides just coffee – and all new table tops, making the space we’re in look even slicker than before. New beer taps. All in all it’s been one hell of a year so far and it’s not even October yet, so we’re definitely pumped to see what the new year will bring! We’ve always got something new in the works, so you’ll have to keep tabs on us, or you might just miss it, so come on down, get a coffee, some food and swag out with us.  

    • The Quindio Honey Project
      • There’s a great number of exciting things happening with coffee in Colombia at the moment; the emergence of the speciality coffee market and its potential to do well for producers and farmers has seen some exciting developments made in the areas of coffee processing. The Colombian Coffee Federation has maintained strict control over the exportation of all coffee for the last 60 years, permitting only washed coffees to be exported, however increasing demand from the international market for semi washed and natural processed coffees has meant that in some instances non washed coffees have been given the green light for export. Honey processed parchment coffee drying on beds at Finca Polo (foreground) with fully washed parchment drying in the back ground. One such instance is the Quindio Honey Project or Project Honey, the resulting 4 sacks (240kg) from the initial trials have made their way to Wellington and with it, a New Zealand exclusive offering and an all new profile for the flavour of Colombian speciality coffee as we’ve known it. The feedback provided from this initial trial has meant that the project has refined certain aspects of the processing and from this initial trail an additional 2100kg have been processed and is ready for roasting. This has meant that the producers who contributed to this have been remunerated according to the cup quality and in recognition to the significant effort they’ve put toward this new method of processing. Gloria Pino of Finca Polo posing an epic Arnie pose. Gloria contributed to the Quindio Honey Project in both the trial and the secondary production.  Made up by 10 participating producers, across 13 farms from the smallest department in Colombia of Quindio, the coffee for this project was first laid down in November 2013. The results in the cup show great promise for future semi washed and natural coffees for Colombia. Scoring an impressive 87/100 for the first attempt, the coffee has a blackberry like aroma, a citrus acidity, with flavour notes green apple and grape with an orange sweetness. This coffee is a blend of different honey processed coffees including yellow, red and black and gives a complexity and unique flavour to the cup. Honey processed parchment on the left verses fully washed dried parchment on the right. Honey gets its name from the sticky tacky-like nature the mucilage becomes during the drying process; it becomes like 'honey'. The varying degrees of honey process get its name from the colour the parchment turns during drying. Smaller amounts of mucilage left on the coffee before drying means the parchment will become either white-ish or yellow, the more mucilage left on the parchment means more fermentation can take place and the resulting colour will become darker, eg Red or Black and the more winey the flavour will become. In Risaralda, the Helena crew have been working on processing full naturals, of which we also cupped and the results are showing great promise, we’re also trailing full sundried naturals from friends of Helena and if the whopping 89/100 that our initial cupping is anything to go by, there’s some huge promise for these coffees. This project was made possible through the passion, inspiration and direction of Jason Galvis, the Director of Quality of our export partner Azahar Coffee in Colombia – Chur bro! Our dear friend Jason Galvis from Azahar getting ready to lay prostrate before the coffee gods. For any further questions please feel free to comment or email me richard@flightcoffee.co.nz Have fun! Richard.

    • Quality Premiums - Antioquia Cooperative, Colombia
      • It is the second year we’ve purchased from the Antioquia (‘Anti-o-kea’) Cooperative and there's a remarkable the difference in quality from this shipment compared to last year. We asked our cooperative partners (Coopertiva de Caficultores de Salgar) if it was possible to have a coffee from the farmers they represent that had a cupping score of 85 and had a defect rating of 0 primary and no more than 20 secondary defects per kilo of green coffee. What we asked from them was in effect a speciality grade coffee suitable as a delicious single origin or as a high quality coffee for our blends. While most producers in Colombia own farms that are less than a hectare in size, it’s important to remember that most coffee farmers are very small producers. The 17 ton shipment from Antioquia comes from 30 families surrounding the beautiful town of Betulia and all the coffee that we purchased from these farmers has to be first picked, then processed at their own small mills and once dry is passed onto the cooperative for sorting and hulling. In an attempt to keep this brief, it’s important to point out that the coffee has passed through many hands prior to it reaching our shores and the quality and value added steps begin with the farmer. The township of Betulia in Antioquia Department Only ripe coffee can be picked, if it’s not then it needs to be separated, coffee then needs to be processed. If a wet mill is not clean for example, coffee can become contaminated during the de-pulping process, which could potentially affect the flavour during fermentation. Producers need to ferment their coffee in order to remove the mucilage from the cherry but this needs to be done within certain parameters otherwise under or over fermenting could drastically affect the flavour of the coffee. It then needs be dried within a set time to prevent mould or any other drying defects. Multiply this process across 30 contributing farmers and you can begin to see that producing quality coffee en mass is not something easily achieved and the variables are great. A farmer needs to invest significant amounts effort in order to attain this quality. Once the coffee reached the cooperative, Leon Velasquez the coop’s head cupper roasted and cupped each farmer’s coffee to make sure there were no defects or taints and once it passed stage it went for hulling and bagging. We had our friends and export partners Azahar Coffee cross check the samples and send them on to us here in NZ in order to approve the sample. An example of a very clean and well looked after small wet mill in Valle de Cauca - Richard Corney from Flight Coffee, Torsten Hahn from Good Karma Coffee and Miguel Farjardo from Helena. It’s all very good and well asking a cooperative and farmers to produce quality coffee, but when coffee farmers are subject to the volatile commodity market that coffee is traditionally sold through, it can be very hard at times to provide incentives to producers because of the volatility of what is normal market conditions. When the market is up, it’s up, but when it’s down and more often than not it is, farmers can make very little money on their harvest and in some instances they’ll be forced to sell below the cost of production. We offered a premium above the market rate if the farmers could achieve the desired quality we were after. The coop went out to the farmers and told them that we were prepared to pay more for better quality coffee, some didn’t want to participate and others did. Matt Graylee from Flight Coffee, Torsten Hahn from Good Karma Coffee, Richard Corney from Flight Coffee and Tyler Youngblood from Azahar Coffee with Hernando de Jesus Restrepo, cooperative manager of the Antiouqia Cooperative talking to the 30 farmers in Betulia. It was by absolute coincidence that the day we visited Betuila in May this year that Hernando de Jesus Restrepo, the cooperative manager and the cooperative committee had all 30 farmers present in Betulia to present them their premiums. Hernando asked us if we could present the farmers with their cheques, we of course gladly obliged and what followed was one of the most remarkable experiences I’ve ever had in coffee. Over all, we paid a little over $25,000 USD in quality premiums in addition to the market rate to our farmers, it was paid out proportionate to the amount of coffee the farmer contributed and were a little over double the Fairtrade premium at the time. Leocadio Posada Correa contributed 7 ton to the lot, the single largest contributor, and he received a cheque for over 20,000,000 Colombian Pesos, that is equivalent to $12,200.00 NZD. To put this in perspective, the average annual wage in Colombia in 2012 was a little under 16,000,000 COP. Leocadio received 125% of the average wage in one cheque, which was purely incentivised by quality.   It was the first time that some farmers had met a coffee roaster and when I asked what they’d spend their premiums on, common replies were servicing debt and buying fertilizer. We are using this coffee in Bomber, every cup or kg you buy is actually helping make a difference to families and after the response we got from them in May this year, I can certainly thank you on their behalf if you’re supporting them by purchasing our Bomber blend. The 30 farmers who contributed to the Betulia Lot with their cheques. We need to acknowledge that this achievement would not have been made possible without the commitment of each farmer and the Coopertiva de Caficultores de Salgar alike. The passion that Hernando, Himay and the cooperative team have for the sustainability of the people they represent is truly inspiring.  If you have any questions about this post, please feel free to email me at richard@flightcoffee.co.nz or matt@flightcoffee.co.nz. Have fun and happy coffee drinking, Richard.

    • Is the Price Right?
      • Alright guys, let's get in to it. There has been a lot of debate around the topic of the rising price of coffee, particularly in the media, so I thought I would try and shed at least some light on the issue. The price we charge for our coffee in our cafes has a lot to do with a few things. There's the staff costs, rent of the cafe space and other costs associated with running a cafe. There's also the extra cost of staff training to effectively deliver a high quality product and service. These end costs are only the tip of the iceberg though and definitely do not reflect the full price of producing a sweet cup of deliciousness.  The crew at our flagship shop, The Hangar.  Probably the most significant cost associated with making a cup of coffee is the way we buy the coffee from the farmers and the pay structure involved. Instead of buying through Fair Trade, Flight Coffee works directly with farmers to produce a higher quality coffee and ensure the investment we make goes directly to benefiting the farmers and their families. It all started with the Helena farm transformation project, which many of you will know about. Matt, Richard and Tyler giving the farmers of Betulia the first payment for their coffee. By becoming a partner in Helena, we were able to help the farm move out of the commodity market – with it's low and incredibly unstable prices, which sometimes don't even cover the cost of production to farmers – and in to the specialty market where farmers are ensured a base rate of just under twice the cost of production, plus a pay matrix based on quality. With an incentive structure based on quality, we can ensure that the farmers we buy from receive enough to live off as well as encourage them to work with us and invest in their own farms, which helps with the continued increase in the quality of the coffee and the sustainability of the industry. Alfredo Baos unsurprisingly looking stoked about his truly incredible coffee.   As Matt Graylee said in an article to Stuff.co.nz, "When the NZ media normally talks about the price of coffee to consumers, it is often with the assumption that all coffee is the same. That is like saying a 99c hamburger from McDonalds is the same thing as a Wellington on a Plate award winning burger from Ti Kouka". At Flight, we offer a high quality product with high standards of service, as well as doing our best to make producing coffee a viable means of income for farmers, upping the quality the whole way. We know that we're not the choice for all consumers in the market and we definitely don't try to be. For those that do decide to experience our coffee and way of doing things, we aim to offer a high quality service and product produced in a sustainable way.

    • World Brewer's Cup!
      • Hey guys!  For any of you who have been wondering where this irascible young scamp has been, the answer is simply... Italy! After competing for the first time ever in the New Zealand Brewer's Cup and coming in first place, I packed my bags and took off around the world to compete on the world stage at the World of Coffee event in Rimini, Italy. For those of you who don't know, the Brewer's Cup is a coffee competition comprised of two rounds. The first round is the "compulsory service" where competitors are all given the same coffee and they have to make 3 brews through any brewing device they want, so long as it isn't an espresso machine. The second round is the "open service", which is where competitors use their own coffee and deliver a presentation to the judges based around their coffee and their brew method; similar to the Barista Championships, but with filter coffee instead of espresso.  We made it!   Being my first time overseas to the big wide world, basically everything was a new experience for me; travelling, experiencing a totally different culture, competing on the world stage, drinking Italian wine in Italy, seeing Dustin Hoffman on the plane, everything. Going over to Italy with judges: Emma Markland Webster, David Green, Chris White and Kim Boyd as well as the New Zealand Barista Champion, Hanna Termamoto, New Zealand was definitely 'repping. Finally getting over to Rimini, a few Swiss Golds in LAX and 36 hours later, we caught up with Flight's very own Richard Corney, who ended up judging the finals round of the World Barista Champs.  Rimini! The bridge is over 2000 years old! After getting settled in and over jet-lag, the evening before the Brewer's Cup got under way I competed in the World Aerorpess Championship, which was held on the beach in true Rimini style. The sun was beating down on singlet clad and barefoot competitors, with the most bizarre setup on a beach you'll ever see. Coffee grinders, hot water towers and Aeropresses were set up among spectators and confused looking locals. Like the "compulsory round" of the Brewer's Cup, competitors from around the world all made Aeropresses with a given coffee, provided by Cafe Imports; the winner: a very stunned looking Aerorpess Champion of Japan. Shortly after the competition the beach turned from a competition arena into one of a series of epic beach parties hosted by espresso manufacturer, La Marzocco.  On the beach competing at the World Aerorpess Championship. The following day was the first day of the Brewer's Cup, which was held at the World of Coffee event along with the Barista Champs. Despite the atmosphere backstage being slightly tense with everyone getting ready for the competition, all the competitors were incredibly supportive of each other and just seemed super excited to be competing at worlds; so a great atmosphere to be competing in. For my "open service" round, I used the Los Arboles from Colombia again – a coffee I'm starting to feel a bit sentimental towards – through the Aeropress, just like at the national competition. The main difference in my brew method was brewing the coffee for significantly longer and double-plunging the brew through a second Aeropress. What?! Double-plunging?! That's right! After brewing the coffee, I plunged it on top of another Aeropress – effectively creating an Aeropress Tower, with the second Aeropress having a cut to size V60 filter in the bottom. The main reason for this was so I could brew the coffee for longer, bringing out the sweetness, while having a relatively clean cup.  Taking the plunge. All in all the level of professionalism of the competitors was amazing and there were so many amazing coffees in one place, it was something truly eye-opening for me. In the end the winner was Stefanos Domatiotis from Greece, with second and third place going to Ruebens Gardelli of Italy and Asli Yaman of Turkey. Even though I didn't place this time around, it was an amazing experience in general and I met a lot of amazing people, all just as passionate about coffee as I am. My mind was blown constantly over the course of the event, and I'll definitely be doing my best to get to Sweden, for the next World Brewer's Cup. Mic'd up and read to go. I'm incredibly grateful to everyone who made it possible and all the support I've had along the way. Thanks to the New Zealand Specialty Coffee Association for funding me over to Italy, as well as the team at Flight Coffee for encouraging me, providing me with coffee and gear, as well as all the effort they've put in to helping me know more about one my passions. Also thank you to Meg, who once again roasted my coffee, which tasted amazing! And to Sarah, who coached me, burned the midnight oil with me and supported me the whole way.  Once again thanks everyone!  Nic "New Zealand Brewer's Cup Champion" Rapp Chow!

    • Colombia - May 2014
      • During the intensive, but very fun seven-day trip through six of Colombia’s coffee producing departments, we cupped 107 coffees, visited 13 farms and travelled over 2500km. It was one of the most eye opening and educational adventures of my life and has typically left me with even more questions and curiosities about coffee. Travelling to origin for the first time had been described to me as somewhat of a pilgrimage for a coffee roaster, a lot of my perception of origin was based around a love affair and a romance with coffee that I had constructed in my own mind over the last 5 years. The Juan Valdez of Colombia and Kaldi the goat herder from Ethiopia – two fantastical characters which have become synonymous with their respective countries and which represent an idyllic picture of harmony and the origin of the coffee producing culture. The view from the old mill at Finca Helena, Risaralda, Colombia. In reality its far from romantic, it’s eye opening, shocking in some respects and very much helped me put my very lucky life into perspective. When you’re waiting for your morning coffee, spare a thought for the fact that the countries that produce the second largest traded commodity on the planet, are indeed developing countries, with challenges and issues that are as complex as they are varied, and that we are a very fortunate minority of the worlds population. This trip has been an appropriate reminder of how very comfortable we are at the bottom of our world.  Up until now my interpretation of coffee was one sided and to be fair quite naive, coming from a roasting and brewing perspective I had a limited view toward everything involved with producing coffee. It’s very much a case of ‘being there is everything’, understanding how things work conceptually verses how they work practically has been one of the biggest lessons I’ll take away from this trip. The vista behind shops in beautiful town Betulia, Antioquia, Colombia. Matt and I travelled with Chris Ammerman and Sam Langdon from Caravan Coffee Roasters in London, Torsten Hahn from Good Karma Coffee in Germany, Tyler Youngblood and Jayson Galvis from Azahar Coffee and our buddy Miguel Fajardo from Helena, all from Colombia. Our mission was to taste and experience Colombian coffee regionally with the intent to purchase quality coffee through a new model of trade developed by Matt and Tyler that ensures producers are paid a relative margin to what we make in our own cafes and is based around quality incentives and premiums that ensure our coffee producers have a sustainable and profitable business of their own, removing the volatility of the New York ‘C’ and giving them the assurance of an income they can rely on. One of many photos of the team pulling Arnie poses, this one's with the crew from the COOCAFISA Cooperative. This model is built around transparency and one that has been adapted by our social enterprise New Zealand Speciality Coffee Imports. It has its challenges as any new concept does, however the tenacity of Matt and his passion for the sustainability of our farmers is an inspiration that is truly infectious and something that we believe has a real potential in the years to come. The profits generated by NZSCI are put back into the company and reserved for development projects to help support, educate and incentivise the people we work with at origin and so much more. The people we’ve met on this trip are truly inspirational; Colombia is an amazing country, with beautiful people, striking vistas and has the potential to produce what I believe to be some of the best coffee in the world. Chris, from Caravan Coffee Roasters London, Tyler from Azahar Coffee Colombia and Richard from Flight Coffee New Zealand. This post serves as an intro for several posts to come about the experiences I’ve had on this trip and to share with you the awesome people we’ve met and what they’re up to, and what Matt has been up to with the ground work he and Tyler have laid for our preferred method of buying coffee. Feel free to direct any questions or queries for greater detail to me: richard@flightcoffee.co.nz or to Matt: matt@flightcoffee.co.nz. Have fun! Richard

    • The Road to Italy
      • Last Saturday, held at Coffee Supreme's roastery, was the Aeropress New Zealand Brewer's Cup. It was heated, and the coffees were off-the-chain! Competitors from around the country competed to find out who would earn the title as the New Zealand Brewer's Champion, as well as the chance to represent New Zealand at the World Brewer's Cup in Rimini, Italy! I even thought I would give it a go this time around, entering in to my first ever barista competition.  The competitors in their dazzling glory. Using a 100% Red Caturra from the Huila region in Colombia that Nick used at the New Zealand Barista Champs this year, I coupled this amazing coffee with my trusty Aeropress for the competition. Taking the coffee significantly lighter in the roast, almost to Scandinavian levels of light, it had amazing lime acidity and orange sweetness. These notes were matched with a grapefruit bitterness in the aftertaste, showing just how complex this coffee is and how much it just keeps on giving as it cools down; when done right. Dialling in the Aeropress. Believe me though, this coffee made me work for it. Trying a whole range of different brew methods, from Chemex to plunger, what I really wanted to do was bring out certain characteristics that got me super excited when I tasted this bad boy on the cupping table. Eventually we settled on the Aeropress, and even then it wasn't easy getting this coffee to taste how I wanted it to. Eventually it all came down to pouring the water slightly faster and the slightly longer brew time that brought out that orange sweetness. Overall this coffee reminded me heaps of marmalade.  Lightly agitating the coffee. The coffee I was using wasn't the only banging coffee brought to the competition. Both Aymon and Maddy used natural processed Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffees sourced through Ninety Plus Coffee which were both banging fruit bombs. Aymon brewed the coffees on V60's, while Maddy rocked out coffee drippers with drip control valves and metal mesh filters.  Aymon preparing his V60's.  Maddy and his kickass drippers.  Sam from Coffee Lab brought to the playing field a washed Kenyan coffee from the Nyeri region sourced through Nordic Approach, which had bright raspberry acidity and sweetness. Brewing the Kenyan coffee through the clever dripper, Sam used two different types of water at different stages of the brew to bring out those amazing characteristics she was after.  Sam getting her brew on.  All in all it was one hell of a competition and Nick was MCing so there was no way it was going to be a dull event. When Nick announced me as the brewer's cup champ I was more surprised than anyone else that I'd be going to Italy, but I definitely couldn't have done it without Meg and Richard roasting the banging coffee and Sarah being my coach, kicking my ass all the way leading up to the competition, so a massive thanks to them! And to Nick for pushing me in to competing in the first place.  Next stop, Italy!  Nic Rapp, New Zealand Brewer's Cup Champion Chur.  

    • Welcome to Brew School
      • Welcome class, to Meg's Marvellous Brew School. If you're ready to have your mind filled with the wonders of brewing filter coffee, Professor of Coffee, Megan Baker – soon to be Professor Megan Wyper –  will take you on an educational experience you won't forget. Having spent years in the coffee industry, competing in barista competitions and judging them too, on top of being a seasoned roaster, she is more than qualified to take you on this coffee journey.  Meg teaching the guys a thing or two.  Next class is in session on the 3rd of May.  After the introductions, Meg will kick the class off with a customary cupping to get things underway. Cupping is the method of tasting coffee used by coffee professionals, which allows them to taste the coffee as uniformly as possible. This way of tasting coffee is great for grading coffees and also sounds hilarious. In order to spray the coffee across your palate you need to slurp it, and the louder the slurp the better. A cupping is also a great way to break the ice and get some good banter going, as well as introduce people to thinking a bit differently about coffee. Two coffees will be cupped and Meg will walk you through scoring them on a basic version of a cupping sheet.  The cupping sheet placemat and brew gear.  Once the coffees have been cupped and scored the class will democratically decide on what coffee they want to brew with, and if a decision can't be reached, a duel is really the only way to resolve any difference of opinion. The class will then be taken through how to brew a coffee in the fabled Chemex. Invented in 1941 by Dr Peter Schlumbohm, this bad boy has been around awhile, without any major change in the design since its creation. Why? Because they are awesome! Super sleek and easy to use, they make a great brew, especially with lighter roasted coffee.  Chemexes and Clever Coffee Drippers set up and ready to go. Meg is so organised! Following the Chemex is a method of brewing just a little bit different. The Clever Coffee Dripper combines the best of pour-over paper filter extraction with full immersion brewing (i.e. French press). With a stopper valve in the bottom of the filter cone, so you have full control over the immersion time. The control over immersion time is one of the key differences to traditional pour-overs, like the Chemex and V60, which starts extracting as soon as you pour water over the coffee. The result is more development of flavour and body, as well as a very clean cup due to the paper filter. Man that's Clever!  Clever Coffee Drippers.  Once everyone has been clued up on how to make some banging brews, the class will finish off with a fun game of triangulation cupping. Using the coffees that were cupped at the beginning of the class, several sets of coffees will brewed. One coffee in every set of three will be different from the other two and the objective of the game being to pick the odd one out based on aroma and taste. Whoever can get the most coffees correct in the fastest time wins. Easy right? It might not be that easy if you're not used to it, but it is a great way of really getting to know the coffees.  Meg showing everyone how it's done at the New Zealand Cup Taster's Championship. After that the floor will be open to a bit of Q&A and everyone will get a bag of specialty coffee to take home.  Class dismissed!

    • New Zealand Barista Championship Weekend and Caffeination
      • Last weekend was the weekend that we've all been waiting for and everything has been building up to. All the late nights training, drinking scotch and eating burgers was at an end and Nick was prepared to face some serious competition from his fellow baristas. Baristas from the around the country travelled to the coffee capital to earn the right to represent New Zealand at the World Barista Championship in Rimini Italy. Each year the competitors up their games, bringing better coffee, more refined presentations and more flare than the year before.The overall vibe over the weekend was awesome; heaps of support for the baristas, literally thousands of people through the doors, either watching the competition or attending the attached Caffeination trade show. The baristas were there, the spectators were there and everything was set for one hell of a competition.  Nick kicking things off and getting the crowd going.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with how the competition works I'll give a bit of a run through of the structure of the competition, before launching in to a commentary on how things went down. From two rounds of heats, 12 baristas battle it out in the semi-finals to see who makes up the top 6. In 15 minutes, baristas are required to produce 4 espressos, 4 cappuccinos and 4 signature drinks to a panel of 4 main judges, who are backed up with a whole team of technical and ghost judges. The baristas are judged on the quality of their coffee, quality of their drinks, their technical abilities as a barista, as well as their routines, which highlights not only their skills as coffee professionals, but as talented performers as well.  Could you say "no" to that face? Enough of the technicalities though, its time we launched in to the run through of Nick's routine and the highlights of the event. Nick's routine had an overall focus on Lucio – owner of Colombian farm Los Arboles and producer of Nick's coffee –  and the deliberate actions he took to alter the flavour of his coffee in a particular way. Scoring over 92 out of 100 on the cupping table this coffee is one serious player. With flavours of grapefruit citrus, sweet orange and beautiful cocoa, this coffee makes a banging espresso, resulting in a super balanced and delicate coffee. Nick's intention was to let the coffee do the talking and highlight the flavour notes of the coffee in his signature drink as well as applying the principles Lucio implements during the production of the coffee, keeping the focus on the deliberateness in his actions to control the flavour of his coffee. After extracting his espressos, Nick transferred them in to bigger tulip cups to introduce temperature change, increasing the sweetness, as well as achieving a more velvety mouth feel. Following the espressos was the cappuccinos, which required increasing the dose in order to develop the sweetness of the coffee and give it that push it needs to cut through the milk, resulting in flavour notes of ginger and hokey pokey. Nick's espressos served in nothing less than firetruck red demitasses.  After that things started to get super exciting. Moving in to the last few minutes of his presentation, Nick moved on to the signature drink section. Bringing out a charred American oak barrel and the two separate teas he prepared from the dried skins of coffee cherries and the chaff (husks) of roasted coffee beans, is what titillated my imagination – that's right, titillated – about the potential of Nick's coffee. Nick's intention was to highlight the different deliberate practices applied to the coffee from the seed to the cup. The tea made from the dried coffee cherries represents the growing process of the coffee and brings a unique sweet and sour aspect to the coffee. The tea brewed from the chaff collected from the roaster after roasting the coffee represents just that, the roasting process. It also brought a delicate bitterness to the drink. Nick brewing his coffee cherry and chaff teas. And out of the charred oak barrel was aged clover honey dissolved in water, which represented the fermentation time of the processing of the coffee beans before they were roasted, bringing an awesome bourbon like, honey sweetness to the drink.  The aged clover honey in the American oak barrel. So cool! And even though Nick didn't reclaim the title as New Zealand Barista Champion, his performance was still super slick, and his coffee doing what it was suppose to, which I think reflects the upping of everyone's game at the competition and shows off the coffee industry in New Zealand as a whole. Coming second to Hiroko Hanna Teramoto is also nothing to be ashamed of either. She gave a standout performance, demonstrating her professionalism and passion for coffee, on top of getting a bit creative as well. Creating a blend of the same coffee by painstakingly separating the longer coffee beans from the shorter and fatter ones, then roasting them each differently and blending them afterwards was something that really blew my mind. So a huge congratulations to her!  Hiroko Hanna preparing her signature drink.  Even though there was a strong focus on the New Zealand Barista Championships and Nick's performance the whole of Flight was involved in this massive weekend in one way or another. Both Meg and Richard were judges throughout the competition 'repping Flight in a huge way; Richard probably being one of the only judges to smile at the competitors – and what a smile it was! Richard on the panel judging Addison Dale.  Meg also did Flight proud by competing in the Cup Taster's Championship. The competition involves having to taste the different coffee in a set of three, of which two are the same. Competitors had 8 sets all up, and were judged on speed and accuracy. Slightly less formal than the barista champs, the Cup Taster's Championship is a great environment to have a few beers or wines and really get behind the competitors. Placing fifth, Meg did the Flight crew proud and it was a great night all around. Meg slurping her way through the different coffees.  On top of our awesome team competing over the weekend, Flight also did the grand unveiling of our Steam Punk! Matt, Trev and Francois were giving demos all weekend and showing it off in all its glory. Flight are now the New Zealand representatives for Alpha Dominche and the boys were rocking it all weekend. We also thought it would be a great idea to show off our new brand, which we think looks super bad ass; a huge thanks to the guys at Inject Design for all the work that went in to the brand.  The Steam Punk in all its glory. Isn't she a magnificent beast! So overall it was an eventful weekend. There were tears, there was anger, there was excitement, there was Richard, but most of all there was a banging good time had by everyone. A massive thanks to the Flight Coffee crew and everyone supporting Nick throughout the event. Also big thanks to Sarah from The Hangar as well for staying up late drinking scotch and whipping Nick's ass in to shape and to Kris as well for giving the Steam Punk its slick paint job.  Chur to the Chur!

    • Brew by Brew: Brew Demonstration at Red Rabbit
      • It was epic, it was heated, there was a lot of trash talk involved, but there was only one winner of this mighty contest of the best of the best, baddest of the baddest and toughest of the toughest brewers from around Wellington. And with the New Zealand Barista Champion Nick Clark getting his MC on, things were bound to get interesting.  Nick in a deep state of concentration.  The first challenger of the night was Steve from Red Rabbit Coffee Co. giving a run through on the very sexy and mysterious Spirit espresso machine. Brought all the way from the Netherlands, this piece of amazing design and engineering is truly an amazing sight and hearing about all it's features has got me drooling. Volumetrically controlled extraction, digital shot timers installed directly above each group and easily adjustable steam pressure, among other things, this machine definitely got a few coffee geeks more than a little bit excited.  So mysterious. Next up was Hadassah, also playing on Red Rabbit's team, but opting for a slightly less tech-heavy brew method. The humble plunger (or "french press" if you're feeling a bit fancy), is one of my personal favourites, so I was excited to see it being showed off in all its glory. This elegant and beautifully simple piece of brewing gear was chosen by Hadassah for its flavour profile being similar to that of cupping. Getting a lot more body through the metal filter than a paper filter, she also likes to have a relatively long brew time to maximise that badass body. Using an Ethiopian Heirloom varietal, her brew had bright blueberry sweetness and a buttery mouth feel.  The plunger demonstrating the height of elegance. And the two contenders representing Flight, brewing as a dynamic duo, was the Krazy Kris Gillan and Notorious Nick Clark. These two heavy weights came to the demo with the intent of blowing some minds. Rocking up with their spray painted yellow cold drip, these guys meant business, and blasting queen to really get people in the mood. With Queen in the background to get things pumping, it was only fitting that the cold drip they prepared earlier was served in a glass skull; in keeping with the tone of "badass". With the extra long extraction time - about 8 hours - a bit of movie magic was definitely required for people to be able to taste the end result of the cold drip demonstration. The drips on offer were the Ethiopian Sidama, which had a syrupy body and tangy fruit sweetness, and the La Cumbre from El Salvador had green apple tartness, with an awesome lime sourness cutting through the sweetness. Both of these drips had a full rounded sweetness and body to them with muted acidity, due to being brew with cold water instead of hot.  Kris setting up the cold drip. Cold drip... in a skull! After the dynamic duo of Nick and Kris, Baptiste stepped up to add a bit of French flare to the mix. Working at Caravan in London, where the legendary Steven "Doe-eyes" Hall formerly of Flight Coffee currently works, Baptiste is a serious player in the coffee game. Taking the stage with a V60, due to its consistency, and a Kenyan coffee roasted by Steve from Red Rabbit. Rinsing the paper filter before extraction to remove any paper flavour affecting the taste of the coffee, Baptiste blooms the Kenyan coffee for about 30-40 seconds. Instead of agitating with a spoon immediately after the bloom, he recommends letting the flow of the water do the agitation while pouring to reduce inconsistency. The resulting extraction has nice, well-rounded body and emphasises the awesome acidity typical of Kenyan coffees. Baptiste and two very interested looking ladies.  After Baptiste, Sarah the traitorous Dane, who has just joined the team at the Flight Coffee Hangar, decided to jump ship and use Steve's Ethiopian Heirloom – we still love her though. Wielding the mighty Aeropress in true Viking style, her goal being to conquer our taste buds with her take on this juicy coffee. Like Baptiste, she's after a consistently kick ass brew, which is one of the reasons she uses this cool little guy to avoid any discrepancy between brews. She also used the controversial "inverted method" to prevent extraction occurring before plunging. After plunging and extracting all the awesomeness out of the grinds, Sarah likes to let the brew sit for around twenty seconds to allow the brew to cool and develop its sweetness. Unsurprisingly having those blueberry notes that came through in Hadassah's brew of the same coffee, but with a more developed and balanced sweetness, and a silky body. Delish! Sarah starting the pour of betrayal.  Despite all the grief we gave her for betraying her one true coffee love (Flight!), by a show of hands from the audience she took out the bruel and was crowned Ultimate Brueler! And took home a Porlex hand grinder as well! We're super proud, but a little upset at the same time, and maybe even a little confused. That's what rematches are for! See you next time!  Chur. 

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