Harvest & Post-Harvest
Unusually for Brazil, cherry is selectively handpicked at Fazenda Santa Terezinha. Cherry is delivered to the farm’s processing center, where it is pulped. Then, parchment and remaining mucilage is laid to dry in a parabolic dryer. Parchment is turned frequently to ensure even drying.
About Mantiqueira de Minas Region
Coming from the native Tupi word “amantikir,” Mantiqueira means “where the mountains cry.” This micro-region is located on the slopes of the Mantiqueira Mountains on the Minas Gerais side. The land borders São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro states. More than 7,000 coffee growers collectively produce up to 1 million bags annually.
The region has a long tradition of coffee growing with many generations participating in the production of excellent, world-renowned specialty coffee. In 2011, Mantiqueira gained its PGI certificate for having a differentiated sensory profile known for floral and citrus notes, a dense and creamy body, medium-bright acidity and a long, sweet finish.
Coffee in Brazil
Just under 40% of all coffee in the world is produced in Brazil - around 3.7 million metric tons annually. With so much coffee produced, it’s no wonder that the country produces a wide range of qualities. Brazil produces everything from natural Robusta, to the neutral and mild Santos screen 17/18, to the distinctive Rio Minas 17/18. In recent years, Brazilian producers have also begun investing more heavily in specialty coffee production. Through our in-country partners in Brazil, including our sister company, we are able to provide a wide range of Brazilian coffees to our clients: from macrolot to microlot.
Today, the most prolific coffee growing regions of Brazil are Espirito Santo, São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Bahia. Most Brazilian coffee is grown on large farms that are built and equipped for maximizing production output through mechanical harvesting and processing. The relatively flat landscape across many of Brazil’s coffee regions combined with high minimum wages has led most farms to opt for this type of mechanical harvesting over selective hand-picking.
In the past, mechanization meant that strip-picking was the norm; however, today’s mechanical harvesters are increasingly sensitive, meaning that farms can harvest only fully ripe cherries at each pass, which is good news for specialty-oriented producers.
In many cases and on less level sections of farms, a mixed form of ‘manual mechanized’ harvesting may be used, where ripe coffee is picked using a derriçadeira – a sort of mechanized rake that uses vibration to harvest ripe cherry. A tarp is spanned between coffee trees to capture the cherry as it falls.
With the aid of these newer, more selective technologies, there’s a growing number of farms who are increasingly concerned with – and able to deliver - cup quality.