It finally happened. Seven years of telling people we don’t really buy Indonesian coffee and now there is one on my desk waiting to be brewed, picked apart and hopefully, enjoyed. Given that Indonesia is one of the worlds best known and largest producing countries I should probably start by explaining exactly why it took so long for us to feature one.

International Compost Awareness Week (ICAW) is happening this week (5th – 11th May) the largest and most comprehensive education initiative of the compost industry. It is celebrated nationwide and in other countries each year during the first full week of May. The goal of @icawusa is to work together to raise public awareness on why we all should be composting our organics and using compost to create healthier soil.

Sitio Serra e Leite is located in the coffee growing region of Poços de Caldas, renowned for its high quality, volcanic soil and unique micro-climates. This is a relatively small coffee farm compared to others in the Serra do Selado micro-region and the easy-going Luiz Zanetti focuses on using hands-on, traditional techniques rather than a mechanised approach.

B- Corp Month continues throughout March and to coincide with this week’s International Women’s Day we would like to talk about our investment in our supply chain partners and for this amazing project in Peru. During 2024 we are funding the construction of Casa Café Femenino in the Jose Huanama Community. This will be a community centre for gatherings and will also be used as a temporary shelter for women and children fleeing abuse or violence.

This is big news! This week we have been recertified as a B Corp, with an outstanding score of 147.4, reflecting our commitment to environmental and social sustainability.  

For our much-loved Lamplight Decaf we have always used washed Central American coffees that have been "Swiss Water Processed". This means they are decaffeinated in fresh water without the use of the kind of harsh chemicals associated with cheaper processes. It is scary to think that many commercial grade decaf coffees have spent time in the kind of industrial solvents that you’d really prefer to be kept as far away from your kitchen as possible.

At Dark Woods we are fortunate to work with some exceptional coffee producers and many of these become lasting relationships that we return to year on year. In the first of what we hope to be a monthly series we would like to share with you some of the stories behind the farmers and importers that make what we do possible. Focusing on a different Producer Series coffee each month I will explore the relationship history and share my thoughts on how best to brew and enjoy these ever changing and unique single estate coffees. -

Golden Fork Nominee! El Placer ‘Yellow Fruits’ scooped a 3-star award earlier this month, and it has now been announced that it was one of the highest scoring products, meaning Dark Woods Coffee is now in the running to win a Great Taste Golden Fork: the highest accolades in the food and drink world.

In the Autumn of 2022, I finally boarded my flight to Addis Ababa for my long-postponed visit to see our friend Ashenafi, and his team at Ardent Coffee in Ethiopia. This trip was originally planned and booked for March 2020 but, of course we all know what happened then…

This month is Plastic-Free July, a global initiative to highlight the need for, and progress towards, removing more plastic from our every-day lives. We are using Plastic-Free July to highlight some of the steps we, at Dark Woods Coffee, are taking towards becoming plastic-free.

Sebastian Ramirez's El Placer, based in Calarca, Quindio, is a truly pioneering farm. We really feel that Sebastian is a producer at the top of his game right now, delivering complex, yet delicious and drinkable, coffees.

This month’s producer focus is Mikava Coffee from the highlands of Risaralda, Colombia. Harvesting some of the finest beans around, their approach has focused on both heritage and modern varietals of Arabica, and experimental, extended fermentations on the coffee cherries. The results are heaven in a cup.