Dried fruit, black tea, creamy

Producer: Sebastiao Miranda
Origin: Minas Gerais, Brazil
Varietal: Catuai
Elevation: 1100 masl

Sebastiao Eloi Miranda lives at his small farm Sitio Gamelao with his wife Tereza. His parents moved from Sao Paulo to Minas Gerais when he was only 2 and since then, coffee has been part of his family routine. He started working as a picker for other farms and at the age of 25, Mr. Miranda bought his first piece of land and planted 1 hectare of Coffee.

“Things were quite different a few years ago. We used to mix all of our micro-lots because buyers didn’t care about higher quality. Quantity was the most important thing”, says Sebastiao. Nowadays, Mr. Miranda produces 500 bags of Specialty Coffee annually, mainly Yellow Catuai. Sun-dried on a cemented patio and a few bags on raised beds.

“We are happy to hear that consumers all over the world are enjoying our coffee. Better prices give us the motivation to focus on quality”.

The Region

Machado is located in the south of the Minas Gerais region. The local area has some of the highest elevations of any coffee-growing region in Brazil (up to 1,250masl). The cooler climate allows for slow cherry development, mild but distinct acidity, and nice healthy trees!

Sul de Minas (South Minas) is the largest coffee-growing region in Brazil and the world and is home to some of the best coffees in Brazil. The region is characterised by mountainous terrain, rich fertile soil, and vast natural reserves of Brazil’s Atlantic Rainforest. The favourable climate and relief, together with handmade coffee production, are the secrets of the award-winning region. The factors for success are a dedication at all stages of production, solid infrastructure, and investment in research. 

The Process

Cherries are carefully handpicked and then floated in a tank of water to separate by density. The densest, ripest cherries sink to the bottom of the tank and the oaters are removed. The remaining high-quality cherries are then sundried on patios and raised beds with skin and pulp intact until the optimum moisture content has been reached. The cherries must be carefully maintained and turned to prevent over-fermentation or mold developing. Once the dried coffee cherries have been rested for a month, they are hulled, graded by bean size, and bagged in GrainPro liners to preserve freshness.