OQ Coffee Co.

The Carvalho Dias and Ottoni families have been growing coffee in the Minas Gerais region of Brazil since the 1800's.  This naturally processed lot comes from the fourth generation of Carvalho Dias and Ottoni families on their Rodomunho farm (called a Fazenda in Portugese).  The estate is located in the Alto Paranaíba, the highest part of Minas Gerais’ Cerrado region, at 900-1,050 metres above sea level. It extends over an impressive 450 hectares, of which 316 hectares are planted with some 1.3 million coffee trees.  The Ottoni's have made excellent environmental practices and the well-being of their workers a priority: farmland is interspersed with native, preserved forests and bird/animal habitat.  Waste is recycled as organic fertilizer, and run-off water is treated before reentering the environment to prevent pollution.  Moreover, fair wages, well above the average for this part of Brazil (and even outside of it), are paid alongside housing provisions with schools, a clinic, church and sport facilities.

It took a while to settle on a roast profile for this coffee.  A darker roast draws out really delicious bittersweet chocolate, molasses, blueberry, and spice notes.  Ultimately, however, we settled on a lighter roast where there's a pleasant nuttiness, strawberries, and even banana hints.  The body is creamy, the acidity low, and finish fruity and bittersweet with vanilla bean.  This is a great example of a "rustic", sweet, but complex natural.