Haitian Premium – Cafe Kreyol – Zombie Desert 17/18

Description

Haitian Blue is what made Haiti famous for coffee. At one time it was as rare, as tasty and as expensive as Jamaican Blue Mountain but unfortunately those days are long gone. The Haitian economy was toppled a couple times for a plethora of reasons (including corruption and earthquakes). The fields and farms went untended and were abandoned, later the coffee trees were mostly used for firewood to folks living in the area. Very sad start to this coffee but this should be a positive story, for these beans represent the resurrection of awesome Haitian Coffee. Co-ops have stepped in, helping with nursery’s, strain selection and processing. Operations like Cafe Kreyol and Singing Rooster have stepped in to provide outside financing and marketing, it has finally gotten to the point of pretty awesome coffee again, but the most important factor is still growing; folks like yourself buying and loving the coffee.

The last 5-10 years has been the rebirth of Haitian coffee. They have resurrected the farms though social co-ops that work very hard to create a premium product to achieve very high dollar values. Which in turn greatly help rebuild the infrastructure while provide excellent jobs and opportunity. Solving the worlds problems one cup at a time.

Cafe Kreyol goes into some of the most impoverished and troubled areas that are within prime coffee growing territory, organizes farmers, teaches how to correctly process beans, guarantees purchase of the beans at way above market prices ensuring it goes directly to the farmers and strives to really turn around some of the more troubled areas, putting people to work at well above average wages and ensuring future livelihoods.

Joey, a good buddy of Burman Coffee and the head of Cafe Kreyol, brings his mission statement even to his US employees. He finds the hardest working individuals with great work ethics that for one reason or another have really been put down with employment and troubled times to help them recover and build a resume while also being able to help communities around the world. One can feel really good about supporting any of Cafe Kreyol’s projects and for the most part – really tasty coffees as well.

Cafe Kreyol projects including this one are project coffees, although tasty coffee, fresh and decent prep. A lot of the cost of these beans come from the social projects both the Co-ops and Cafe Kreyol sustain.

Tasting Notes: A great medium to dark roast coffee. Full bodied, low acidity, great mouthfeel, robust and strong coffee with hints of a exotic spice.  Lighter roasts get a cool semi-floral sweet tone upfront but will pull more towards grassy caramel with a slight hint of herbal spice. As one progresses towards the darker roasts it gets much fuller bodied and creamy with clean chocolate/malt like tastes,  a little hint of floral acidity at the full city roast level. Into 2nd crack adds some complimenting roasty/smoky tones that with the fuller body and malty profile, will be quite the tasty treat.

Roasting Notes: Beautiful beans and screen. Easy and even to roast. Lower chaff levels. We recommend a strong medium roast but works well lighter or darker. I would avoid traditional light roasts right at first crack but past that, a tasty cup.

This coffee was named after the Haitian town Savane Zombie. Grown at a slightly higher elevation than the Haitian Blue Grade II, and containing several more varietals, this Haitian coffee is the more complex outlier in the midst of smooth, low acid Caribbean profiles.

After only a few seasons as an established cooperative, the Savane Zombie cooperative produced coffee that ranked 92 points from Coffee Review (2021). This was the highest score to be awarded to a Haitian coffee, and ranked Cafe Kreyol in the “Top 30 Coffees of the Year“