Tag: the long miles coffee project

  • What does building Ninga Washing Station mean for the future of coffee on Ninga hill?

    What does building Ninga Washing Station mean for the future of coffee on Ninga hill?

    “To have a washing station at Ninga is like a country that fought for independence, and got it. I will always celebrate this victory. No one will take it from us.”

    We have been thinking about building a coffee washing station on Ninga hill for years. It’s been on our minds ever since we opened the doors of Bukeye, the first washing station that we built, for our inaugural coffee harvest in Burundi. We wrote about this not so long ago. Looking back, it has taken us close to seven years to make Ninga Washing Station happen. 

    Two Burundian women carrying sacks of coffee on their heads while standing on a dirt path

    Ninga hill is seated in the Butaganzwa Commune, an incredibly competitive and politically-charged area to work in. During those early years of producing coffee, we found that coffee farmers from Ninga and its surrounding sub-hills were streaming into our Bukeye Washing Station, walking more than fifteen kilometres (a journey that can take up to three hours by foot) to deliver their cherries. After speaking with some of these farmers and visiting their coffee farms, our team soon realized that they were producing quality coffee but didn’t want to deliver their cherries to other nearby washing stations because they felt like they couldn’t trust them with their coffee. Corruption, unbalanced scales, mistreatment of the coffee farming community, and delayed payments for coffee delivery broke farmers’ trust with other washing stations that over-promised and under-delivered.

    “Times are not the same. I still remember when I was imprisoned because I refused to stop delivering my own coffee at Bukeye Washing Station. There was a strong hope of having a washing station at home. One night, during that time, I sat in my house thinking about the future of my coffee, but I couldn’t see it.”

    – Tharcisse from Ninga hill in Burundi.

    Hearing a similar, disheartening account from people on Ninga hill over and over again, it was clear to our team that something needed to change. 

    2017

    That opportunity presented itself to us near the end of 2017, when we were able to buy a piece of land seated at 1900masl on Ninga hill that was flanked by the Nkokoma River.

    2018

    We applied to the National Coffee Board at the beginning of the year for authorization to start construction of the washing station. It took ten months for the board to set up a “technical commission” to check that the land had everything it needed. Does it really belong to Long Miles? Check. Is there a fair distance between where our washing station will go and other washing stations in the area? Check. Would coffee farmers in the area find it valuable to have another washing station here? Check. Would processing coffee here have any negative implications on the environment? Check. Will the washing station’s activities be profitable? Check.

    2019

    In October, more than a year after the technical commission had been set up, we were finally able to sign off all of the necessary paperwork and got permission to start the build of Ninga Washing Station. However, the country’s coffee sector was going through major shifts at the time. The restructuring of Burundi’s National Coffee Board coupled with rumblings of the government nationalizing the coffee sector caused a number of delays for the start of construction, and a landslide of uncertainty for coffee producers in the country. 

    2020

    The new National Coffee Board was in place, and the rumours of nationalizing Burundi’s coffee sector were at bay. With harvest opening early April, forty-five newly built drying tables, and our McKinnon yet to be installed, we decided to start producing our first natural processed micro-lots of the season- the only coffees to be processed at Ninga Washing Station that year. By the end of August, we held the first farmer payday day at our official Ninga Washing Station site and celebrated alongside our partnering coffee farmers. 

    “For five years, I’ve didn’t participate in payday because it was far from home. I used to pay someone to go and collect my money on payday. I was so happy to meet with other people from around the entire hill and even saw a friend that I hadn’t seen in twenty years! I thought that she might have died because so many from our generation have. It was a great day.”  

    – Matilda, a seventy-five year-old old coffee farmer from Ninga hill. 

    What does building Ninga Washing Station mean for the future of coffee on Ninga hill?

    “Having a washing station in our area is a big development, not only for coffee farmers but for everyone in our community.”

    During the construction of the washing station, 200 hundred people were employed representing almost the same numbers of households from the community. We’ve been encouraged to hear that the washing station will bring change for those growing coffee in the area too. 

    “What is important is that we now have a washing station at home. Things at the washing station are organized, the farmer card system is fair, and the scales are good. You’re not stealing our coffee. This is encouraging.”

    – Leonard, coffee farmer from Gikungere, close to Ninga hill.

    Many farmers from Ninga hill won’t have to walk as far to deliver their cherries, which will help to shorten the time between coffee being picked and coffee being pulped at our washing station. This shortened time helps to reduce the risk of enzymatic reactions taking place within the coffee cherries that could impart unwanted flavour to the finished cup of coffee, and allows for the greatest potential of consistency going into pulping. 

    “I thought about stopping to grow coffee, but glory to God, the hope that was in me did not accept defeat! This is a victory. It is a miracle! I helped to build the washing station, and am now working as a guard. I have a story to tell to my grandchildren. Ninga Washing Station is bringing a new beginning of growing coffee. In my mind, I am like a new coffee farmer. It is amazing.”

    – Tharcisse from Ninga hill in Burundi. 

    With our newly fitted McKinnon and the final touches happening at the washing station, we’re looking forward to producing fully washed and natural process coffees this season. We’ll also be experimenting with anaerobic lots, so keep your eyes peeled for our updates when coffee harvest opens in Burundi next month!

  • WHERE CAN I FIND LONG MILES COFFEE?

    WHERE CAN I FIND LONG MILES COFFEE?

    Where in the world is our coffee?

    Our roasting partners world-wide are beginning to put our coffee on their menus and we would LOVE for you to check them out! Here are some of the places you can find Long Miles Coffees (there are certainly more). If we missed your roastery and you want to be added to this list, please send an email over to info@longmilescoffee.com.

     

    North America

    West

    Blue Bottle – Oakland, CA – USA

    Dark Horse – San Diego, CA – USA

    Equator – San Rafael, CA – USA

    Feast – Redding, CA – USA

    Huckleberry – Denver, CO – USA

    Olympia – Olympia, WA – USA

    Phil & Sebastian – Calgary, AB – Canada

    Ritual – San Francisco, CA – USA

    Saint Frank – San Francisco, CA – USA

    Sisters – Sisters, OR – USA

     

    Midwest

    Almanac Coffee – Duluth, MN, USA

    Bootstrap Coffee – St Paul, MN – USA

    Carabello – Newport, KY

    Deeper Roots – Cincinnati, OH – USA

    Dogwood – Minneapolis, MN – USA

    Fika – Lutsen, MN – USA

    Five & Hoek – Wheaton, IL – USA

    Four Letter Word – Chicago, IL – USA

    Madcap – Grand Rapids, MI – USA

    Pilcrow – Milwaukee, WI – USA

    Ruby – Nelsonville, WI – USA

    Stone Creek Coffee – Milwaukee, WI – USA

    Three Story Coffee – Jefferson City, MO – USA

    Wesley Andrews Coffee – Minneapolis, MN – USA

     

    Northeast

    Brandywine – Wilmington, DE – USA

    Carrier – Northfield, VT – USA

    George Howell – Boston, MA – USA

    Gimme! – Ithaca, NY – USA

    Giv Coffee – Canton, CT – USA

    Little Amps – Harrisburg, PA – USA

    Paradiso Farm – Charlotte, VT – USA

    Parlor – Brooklyn, NY – USA

    Passenger – Lancaster, PA – USA

    Sey – Brooklyn, NY – USA

    Southdown – Long Island, NY – USA

    Vibrant Coffee Roasters – Philadelphia, PA – USA

     

    Southeast

    Buddy Brew – Tampa, FL – USA

     

    Europe

    Northern Europe

    Johan & Nyström – Stockholm, Sweden

    Kafferäven Per Nordby – Göteborg, Sweden

    La Cabra – Copenhagen, Denmark

     

    Western Europe

    Hoppenworth & Ploch – Frankfurt, Germany

    Populus Coffee – Berlin, Germany

     

    Southern Europe

    iHeart Coffee – Cyprus

     

    Eastern Europe

    Double Shot – Prague, Czech Republic

    Java – Warsaw, Poland

     

    Australia

     Five Senses – Numerous Locales

    Little Marionette – Rozelle, New South Wales

    Monastery – Adelaide, South Australia

    Padre – Melbourne and Noosaville

     

    Asia

    The Hub – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

     

    Western Asia

    Windrose – Muscat, Oman

  • Land for Burundi Coffee

    Following @kristyjcarlson on Twitter and Instagram gets me excited about being part of this family of four that has their hearts set on helping a community in rural Burundi produce amazing coffee. I’m so happy to be a part of it.

    Building a coffee washing station in Burundi has meant taking on an obscenely huge amount of challenges and obstacles on the way to realizing the dream.  Let’s just say accomplishing something like this in Burundi has few more challenges in it than building that lemonade stand in Wisconsin when I was six.

    For months now we have set our sites on building this coffee washing station.  Finding the perfect location was key to making it a success.  After 3 years of sourcing and cupping Burundi coffee, I knew where we needed to be.  The place we were looking for was sitting in the middle of a triangle of the best coffee washing stations producing the best coffee in all of Burundi.  Besides the best coffee, it was a place where farmers are too far to carry their coffee to the nearest station forcing them to sell to local buyers at ridiculously low prices.  It has one river, bringing plenty of fresh clean water to run the de-pulper.  Sitting at the perfect altitude with a micro-climate that is unique and ideal for producing the kind of coffee that makes you (ok, maybe just me) go weak in the knees.

    Three years to make certain of this specific spot.  Months to get all the paperwork done and meet all the farmers to explain the vision.  Weeks to get all the signatures of the owners of the land willing to sell and the neighboring farmers as witnesses. Then, on the last day before signing, we find out that two of the five farmers don’t feel like selling anymore.

    What do we do?  Tomorrow we go back to the land to talk to the farmers.  The area co-op president and commune elder have talked through our vision and are coming with us to make sure that the farmers know the kind of impact this station will have on the lives of all 2,500 families in the four surrounding hills.  If they still decide they don’t want to sell are we back to square one?  No, the commune elder said that we can have the two hectors next to the spot we want that are owned by the commune.  The rivers the same, the slope is great, and the view is stunning.  He gets the vision.  He has caught hope.  He tells us that they will do whatever it takes to see us partner with them.

    We have found our spot and started to put down our roots.  This challenge is just one of many in our way, but if it was easy we wouldn’t need to do it, it would already be done. Am I Worried? No, but we are weeks away from starting to build on land that we still don’t own with money we still have not raised… It will all happen though, it will all happen.

     

    Coffee Guy

     

  • Burundi Cup of Excellence Predictions. How did I do?

    Well, the Burundi Cup of Excellence has come and gone and now the burning question on everyone’s mind is “how did Ben’s predictions turn out?” That and maybe “who were the top 10?”  Those two questions will be answered in the video!  Enjoy.

    Coffee Guy

    Burundi Cup of Excellence. Was I right? from Ben Carlson on Vimeo.

  • Family On Polaroid Film

    Family On Polaroid Film

    Today I was talking to some friends about joy. Specifically about what gives us joy. Photography and family were the two things that immediately popped into my head. Yes, I LOVE photographing other things… but I feel so much joy photographing my boys’ journeys into grown-up-hood (lets face it… they might protest this whole thing soon!). Like that photograph of my Biggest Little and his “Myles’ Magic French Words” card. We made him that so he had words he could show his teacher if he was struggling to understand French at school. Lentement means slowly, in case he wanted his teacher to speak more slowly. I don’t think he ever used his magic French cards at school, but it made him feel more secure having them. Now he doesn’t even take them to school anymore. He just speaks.

    So much of life can be forgotten so quickly. We humans adapt and adjust, and before we know it… we forget that things were ever different. That’s why I photograph them… so that I remember how we like to make a game of having no electricity, that they once loved to cuddle, that my Littlest Little sometimes puts his foot up on the table after he’s eaten breakfast, that they can’t get enough of building towers or hijacking the nearest computer. I never want to forget, because it all goes SO FAST doesn’t it?

    Love,

    me

    Hasselblad 501 C,

    with Polaroid back

    Fujifilm FP-3000B

     

  • Brew Guide: Chemex

    Brew Guide: Chemex

    It’s a thing of beauty. So beautiful in fact, that over 70 years ago it was added to the collection by the Museum of Modern Art. It can also be found in the Smithsonian and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. A science experiment and a piece of art all at once, the Chemex is a type of pour over drip brewing system that was created by German born American Peter Schlumbohm in 1941. With all this beauty you have to ask yourself… is it functional? The Chemex is a well rounded creation. Beautiful, functional and affordable.

    But is this beautiful beast THE BEST way to prepare coffee? That question really isn’t fair, since there are a million and one brewing methods out there.  It’s kind-of like asking if Ferrari is the best car for racing. Of course it is…. depending on the track.  But if you can somehow get to know a guy who has some micro-lots of Burundi coffee, this is quite possibly the best way to get the most out of Burundi’s raspberry, caramel and citrus finishing beans. Having a Chemex and a Burr hand grinder has allowed us to have great tasting coffee on the (very frequent) mornings when there is no electricity here in Burundi. Get a fire going for some hot water and you are away.

    Here’s my Chemex brewing method:

    Start by boiling a kettle of water. Grab your Chemex, your beans, and a filter (Chemex filters). The filter does matter. Although we are currently using unbleached filters, many believe that the slight taste advantage belongs to a Chemex brewed while using oxidized filters. The vote is this produces a less “papery” tasting coffee.

    Place the filter in the Chemex with the doubled up portion of the filter in front of the spout.

    Pour the boiled water over the paper to rinse the filter.  This not only rinses any flavor taints out of the filter,  but will also serve to pre-heat your Chemex. We believe around 8 oz. of just boiled water will do the trick, but many believe you should rinse the filter with as much as 16 oz. of water or even an excessive 32 oz!

    Next is the most important step.  Grind freshly roasted coffee.  I use one 12g scoop for every cup of coffee I’m making. In this case I used 6 scoops of coffee for my 6 cup Chemex.  If you don’t have a fancy plastic scoop, it’s about one heaping tablespoon of beans per cup.  You can use pre-ground coffee, but you will loose so much of the magic that you might as well be making instant coffee.  The grind should be set between a filter setting and a French press courseness.

    It should be just fine enough that when you just barely wet the grounds no liquid drips through.

    Empty the hot water from your pre-heated Chemex, place your wet filter back on the Chemex, and pour in the ground coffee.
    Now is time for what coffee geeks like to call “the bloom”.

    Re-boil the kettle if necessary (after wetting the filter) and pour just enough off boiled water (30 seconds from boiling is approximately the right temperature, but play around with this depending on what coffee you are using) onto the grounds to wet them.

    This wetting of the grounds helps in achieving a slow, even extraction… giving you the best possible flavors.  The chemistry of the hot water reacting with the freshly roasted and ground coffee is beautiful.  The coffee expands or “blooms,” bubbling on the surface. This bloom is bloomin’ gorgeous to see, and turns coffee making into an event to be shared.

    Thirty-five seconds after it blooms it’s ready to be brewed.

    Slowly pour the water onto the grounds in a circular motion.

    Be careful not to pour too close to the edges as this will cause under extraction and can create tunneling.

    This slow even pour should take you at least a minute.  Pace yourself because you do not want to top up or brew a second time after finding you didn’t have enough space for your six-eight cups of water in the slow brewing filter.  By pouring a second pot of water over the grounds you would end up over extracting, filling your cup with bitter flavors.

     

    There is a slightly hidden “fill line” located on the Chemex. It is just a dimple in the glass located towards the bottom.

    While a slow stream of coffee is coming out of the tip of the filter, pre heat your coffee cups with hot water.

    There is no exact brew time for a Chemex. Just pour slowly, enjoy the bloom, and wait for all the water to pass through the grounds before removing the filter.

    Remove the filter and pour coffee into your pre-heated cups.

    Still need a bit more info? Check out this video by Intelligensia before you get started.

    Intelligentsia Chemex Brewing Guide from Intelligentsia Coffee on Vimeo.

    Sip and Enjoy,

    The Long Miles Team… errr that’s Coffee Guy and Camera Girl

  • The Bikes of Burundi

    The bicyclists of Burundi are amazing. They carry insanely disproportionate loads on the backs of their bikes. One day we saw an ENTIRE bedroom set on the back of a bike. A bed frame and two side tables. These “bike taxis” are everywhere used to transport everything. Often bikers get in accidents with cars, people, motorbikes and probably other things too.

    This (somewhat strange) video shows bikers on the road from Burundi’s coffee hills into the city where we live, Bujumbura. Cyclists take this route to and from the hills everyday transporting all sorts of things.

    Luv,
    Kristy

  • Sometimes, but not always…

    Sometimes, but not always, I think this might be too hard for me.

    There is a frustration growing in my belly so intense I think I might explode with it.

    It radiates, strengthens with each breath, and flutters around my insides like a caught bird.

    Sometimes, but not always, this world makes me want to scream.

    Loud.

    So I did, and nothing happened

    except a ripple of sourness from it touched every being in its path.

    This world is full of suffering

    corrupt, void of rules, hard, overwhelming, unjust and completely NOT MINE…

    and yet totally mine, intensely beautiful and intensely ugly all at once.

    One of my all time favorite women in the world

    (and second mother to my kids)

    left to return to South Africa today.

    I tried to keep busy after she left.

    I opened my computer to prepare the blog post of a life time.

    Beautiful images from the coffee hills.

    The first time I had been in the hills without a baby on my hip, thanks to her.

    I was met with technical difficulty after technical difficulty.

    It’s just not possible to share them right now.

    This might seem little, and it is, but it rides on the back of something huge.

    Feelings of frustration and aloneness.

    Don’t get me wrong,

    I am getting to know some beautiful souls here in Bujumbura.

    There are people here who have a strength I may never know.

    People with a vast faith in humanity and an amazing capacity for good.

    They are incredible specimens of humanness…

    and yet today,

    as Thobe left, I wanted to run after the car shouting

    “Take me with you!

    Take me home!”

    but there I stood, strangely and insanely rooted to this journey.

    Love,

    Kristy

  • Are You Drinking Ethically Sourced Coffee?

    This morning I am sipping a double espresso from Gatare, a washing station in the Kayanza district of Burundi that is producing amazing coffee. All this coffee sipping got me thinking about you. I starting thinking… What are YOU drinking?

    This as a sort of follow up to my What’s in Your Cup? thoughts. I know there is an extraordinarily large amount of people who care, really truly care, about buying ethically sourced coffee. They might care because they have social justice on their minds, or they have a heart for seeing impoverished people succeed, or they are on a year long quest to love the earth. Whatever the reason, we are here to give those who care a two thumbs up for their sensitive conscience.

    I like purchasing ethically sourced coffee.  For me, it’s a way of living out one of our family’s core values: The dignity and value of every person. So getting down to it, what should you buy?  Whats the difference between Fair Trade and Direct Trade? And who really cares?

    That’s too much for one coffee guy to dive into all at once.  So, I’ll give my two cents on “what coffee should you buy?”  I mean, I love you Barbara Kingsolover.  I’ll eat local for a life time, but… I won’t stop buying amazing coffee sourced from the other side of the planet.  I can’t justify cutting off a farmer’s only means of income because he lives in Costa Rica or Papua New Guinea or BURUNDI… especially if his coffee makes me weak in the knees.

    So, you are going to your local coffee shop to buy your coffee, but what should you buy? Here’s my list, in order of significance, of what I look for when buying roasted beans.

    1.  Freshly and expertly roasted. Roasting should have taken place no later than two weeks prior to the purchase date and the roasting date should be evident on the bag. Also, try before you buy. Often baristas will be more than happy to share a sample of their brew with you before you delve into a $15 purchase.

    2.  A unique coffee that matches the method of preparation you intend it for. Each coffee has a roast that will bring out it’s best characteristics depending on it’s use, ie: Chemex, espresso, French-press, etc.

    3. “Third hill from the left.”  The coffee you drink should be traceable. Get as close to the farmer as possible, see if you can get a detailed description of where the farmers are and what their community is like. This matters, plain and simply because people matter.

    4.  Ethically sourced and purchased coffee. Coffee that provides a livable and sustainable wage to each stakeholder along the coffee trail. The farmers. The workers at the washing station. The workers at the dry mill. The truck drivers. The exporters. The importers. The roasters. The coffee shop owners. The baristas. Without each one of these people along the coffee trail, good coffee does not exist.

    5.  Growers and buyers at origin who maintain a social and environmental conscience. People… like us.

    6.  Transparency in financial transactions stemming from your cup back to the tree. Ask your coffee shop how each dollar you spend on your coffee is divided amongst the coffee stakeholders listed in #4. They should tell you, really.

    I realize we can’t all do all of these things at once, but it’s about the effort. The effort to make a contribution towards building whole and healthy communities. You may think this contribution is a silent one, but it’s not. YOU dictate what businesses like your local coffee shop buy. I’ll bet if your coffee shop is not doing these things and you tell them that you want to drink this kind of coffee, you will plant a seed of change. Try it, and see what happens.

    If your local coffee shop is doing these things, give them a shout out in the comments section so other people can go thank them for a job well done.

    Coffee Guy

     

     

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