World Bus Tour 4 oz - Tuba Microlot - Philippines

Omigosh, we had to get Way Back Up In There, as Len climbed a rocky mountainside to visit farmers in the Tuba region of Benguet, Philippines. After learning about how this cooperative works to process crops from over 100 very small landholders, we toured various small groves of plants and looked over some of the green bean lots still remaining for roasting.

With barely functional machinery, but decades of pragmatic knowledge, our woman farmer who ran the cooperative facility brought out her own pet project... a blend of 3 subspecies of Arabica that had been dried and processed in a unique "nectar" style that her limited English could not quite explain. 

We loved the look of the beans and the aroma, and Len asked if she could sell us any. She was hesitant, but out of respect for us and the "dignitaries" we were traveling with, agreed to sell us her last 10 kilos. For a price we will just pretend we did not have to pay (Oi) and a promise that she extracted from us that we would evaluate her experimental process and give her feedback so she would know if would be good to do this with all their beans next year, we were able to bring these beans home. 

When we got back to Lemery we fired up our dumb little rotary roaster (a temporary fix) and sampled this coffee and were delighted. It is truly one of our top 5 favorite Arabicas in 20 years. Completely balanced with slight acidity, super body and a chocolatey finish, it left us wishing we had gotten there a few weeks earlier and grabbed more. 

Don't miss the bus! Extremely small supply.

4 ounce bag. Whole bean only.