November 2011’s pick

Thailand Peaberry Doi Chaang

A supremely smooth 'n' sensuous fairtrade beauty

Ranked among the world’s elite coffees, Doi Chaang Coffee is the only Thai-grown, certified organic, fairtrade coffee there is. Rarely seen in the UK.

From

An indigenous hill tribe co-operative in northern Thailand.

Altitude – 1300m

Fertile soil, high elevations and lots of sun make Doi Chang Village one of the premium coffee growing regions of the world.

Tasting notes

Industry chieftains have ranked Doi Chaang coffee among the most flavour-full in the world. Kopi agrees. This top class coffee oozes subtlety yet lacks neither strength nor body. It has a gentle fruity sweetness a bit like fresh cherries, while filling the mouth with all the sensuality of a full-bodied wine. The aroma? We smell raisin with woody hints of forest pine.

The farming story

The 20-000-strong Akha tribe of Doi Chang Village is the most successful family coffee co-operative in Thailand. Coffee is their life; young and old stay with the coffee bushes – grown among Oolong tea and Macadamia nut trees - from morning until bedtime, tending to them until the cherry fruit is ready for harvesting November to March.

The labour intensifies when processing begins. The Akha respect the traditional wet method in which the crop is fermented in local spring water for 48 hours to ignite a series of chemical reactions that bring out the best in the coffee’s exquisite aromatic and flavour qualities.

Do say: Thailand isn’t even a speck on the coffee-growing radar…But the noble bean isn’t new there; King Rama III introduced it in 1824 by establishing trade links with England and The Netherlands.

Don’t say: I didn’t know Thailand grew coffee.

Processing

Fully hand-washed with local spring water, and sun-dried on a patio for up to seven days.