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COFFEE AT ITS PEAK

If you like your coffee rich, dark and chocolaty, then Indonesia is the place for you. Renowned for its many volcanoes, the fertile soil of this diverse country produces some incredibly distinctive coffees.

Our head of coffee, Mike, recently flew to the Indonesian island of Java to visit the Jampit Estate, where we buy much of the coffee for our powerhouse blend, Hot Lava Java. It’s the top quality Arabica coffee from this estate that balances out the blend’s high-caffeine Robusta coffee, giving it a bold but sophisticated flavour.

Here’s what Mike had to say about his trip:

"Despite the fact that Indonesia is rich in natural resources, poverty remains a defining feature and the country faces enormous environmental challenges in the form of ongoing deforestation. Thankfully, Jampit presents a very different picture.

"Jampit is one of a small number of neighbouring farms that occupy a vast valley called the Ijen Plateau, surrounded by hills, mountains and volcanoes. The most striking sight from down in the valley is the Ijen volcano, which persistently fires clouds of dense sulphur into the blazing tropical skies.

"As with all of the farms we buy our coffee from, Jampit is independently certified. In this case, the estate is audited by UTZ Certified, who follow a model of good agricultural practices and cover local as well as environmental conditions which means the environmental standards on the farm are high. The vast majority of the fertiliser they use is natural and because of the very high altitude, Jampit experiences very few pest problems, so has little need for agrochemicals.

Conditions for workers are also good – the fact that Jampit is state-owned means the social standards here are simply second to none. At many of the other farms we work with – in places like El Salvador for example – it has taken a great deal of time and effort to establish better accommodation for workers, but the staff housing at Jampit is in another league.

"Each home has its own beautifully kept vegetable plot, and the contentment of the staff was plain to see. The farm has its own health clinic and a school, where education is free for the children of employees. It also has its own guesthouse, created especially for visitors and tourists. There was even a doubles match underway on a nearby tennis court – just one of many sports facilities available to all the staff, including a football pitch, two swimming pools and a netball court.

"Without any doubt, Jampit is one of the best run farms I’ve ever visited."