Fresh Cup Magazine, providing specialty coffee and tea professionals with unique insight into the trends, ideas, products and people that shape their world.
Issue link: http://freshcup.epubxp.com/i/59523
FROM THE EDITOR SCAA, Honduras pay us a visit hen I first heard the words "coffee institute," it con- jured up images of higher learning—lecture halls, orating professors and faded chalkboards. However, entering the San Pedro Sula headquarters of the Honduran Coffee Institute (IHCAFE), one encounters a much more clini- cal setting: technicians clad in sky-blue lab coats, pristine white walls and floors, and neat stacks of green coffee samples. It's here that Honduras' coffee quality is slaved over. Formerly run by the country's govern- ment, IHCAFE became a pri- vate nonprofit organization in 2000, and today it sifts through 10,000 samples a year, cupping coffees and working with produc- ers to improve them. Devoted to upping the country's cup qual- ity, IHCAFE organizes Cup of Excellence's Honduras competi- tion and promotes other quality ventures for the nation's coffee; in 2011, two Honduran coffees that passed through IHCAFE nabbed prizes at SCAA's Coffee of the Year competition. During a trip organized by certifying organization UTZ Take in our city's innovative cafés and roasteries, but also enjoy the natural beauty that has played an integral role in bringing so many people here. It's an exciting time for Portland and spe- cialty coffee alike, and we look forward to celebrating it here together. its fourth installment this month (p. 58). Following the journey of small-scale farmer Antonio Ponce Bautista as he prepares to export his coffee to the specialty market for the first time, the story now covers the positive feedback Bautista received on the first results of his harvest. However, this year's weather threw him a curveball, and questions persist as to whether he'll have enough beans to qualify as a micro-lot—and in turn net the higher prices that come along with that distinction. Honduras is the guest of honor at an SCAA show offering virtu- ally everything one can imagine in the specialty coffee industry, from lectures and certifications to new products, competitions and beyond. We've run through some of the highlights in our SCAA-devoted "Off the Wire" section (p. 18), including a look at an app that makes touring the event easier and a glance at who's competing in the U.S. Barista Championship. To those of you visiting Portland from out of town, welcome Certified earlier this year, I was able to tour IHCAFE's facil- ity and participate in cuppings in the same space where award-winning coffees were first tasted. This month, though, Honduras is going to come to me, as the nation steps into the spotlight as the portrait country at the SCAA Exposition, held in Fresh Cup's home base of Portland. It figures to be an excit- ing showcase for a country making tireless efforts to have its name represented on the top level of producing nations. Honduras has been represented often in these pages of late in the yearlong series "Small Farmer, Big Plans," which is back with to our wonderful city. It's a happy, exciting coincidence that our industry's largest specialty coffee event this year comes to one of the world's most vibrant specialty coffee cultures. Take in our city's innovative cafés and roasteries, but also enjoy the natural beauty that has played an integral role in bringing so many people here. It's an exciting time for Portland and specialty coffee alike, and we look forward to celebrating it here together. For more on the Honduras trip, visit freshcup.com for a Web- exclusive article. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR welcomes letters to the editor at comments@freshcup.com. Letters must be 250 words or less. Authors must provide verifiable phone number and city and state of residence. CHRIS RYANEDITOR 12 Fresh Cup Magazine freshcup.com F r esh Cup