Philippines Sitio Belis: Excitably Strange Yet Comforting
We purchased two lots from Kalsada Coffee this year, and now that we’ve just about run out of our first release, Natural Sitio Naguey, we’re excited to introduce coffee from Sitio Belis for the third year in row. We’ve been buying coffee from Sitio Belis since we started working with Kalsada, but unlike previous years when we selected a mixed variety of typica, bourbon, and san ramon, this year we chose only the garnica variety processed in Sitio Belis. So, why the switch?
Sorting out unripe cherries at Sitio Belis before beginning the depulping process. Photo by Kalsada Coffee
When Kalsada Coffee first began their journey, the farmers they met were processing their coffees in different ways, using practices that were either passed on from their predecessors or other farmers who have joined trainings outside the community. By creating the first mill, Sitio Belis, farmers and their children were able to train together, define standards, and begin working towards producing high quality coffees consistently.
Now, quality continues to improve year after year but there is still plenty of work ahead. Earlier this year, Tere Domine, Co-Founder and Country Director, hand-sorted 220lbs (100kgs) of green coffee over a month for a tasting pack that was exclusively sold in the Philippines. Tere explains that out of the 220lbs, roughly 16% -- 35lbs -- were defective. If the coffees weren’t great, she would have just roasted the coffee as is. But she felt like not taking the extra work would be wasting their potential. So, she slowly hand-sorted the coffees while listing questions and guesses as to why those defects occurred, and coming up with plans on how to address them. In moments when Kalsada receives bags of coffee with a handful of defects, it’s a bit heartbreaking. But rather than sulk and get upset, Kalsada looks deeper and recognizes that they are a part of the systemicproblem as to why this still happens. Different areas require different approaches, and they continue to re-evaluate their approaches and strategies to find ways to do better, and make plans to invest more. While Tere didn’t enjoy the hand-sorting, she was certainly hopeful and excited about the future of their coffee. It’s going to take plenty of time to address issues, execute plans, and evaluate results. It will also take more farmers to be a part of the process in order for Philippine coffee to continue to rise above. Nonetheless, it’s a challenge Tere and the entire Kalsada team have been prepared to tackle from day one.
It took Tere a few hours to thoroughly hand-sort this batch for defects. If the coffee wasn’t already great, this coffee would have been roasted as is, and to not sort it would have been wasting the coffee’s potential. Photo by Tere Domine
Kalsada’s approach to quality is applied to all their coffees, and the Sitio Belis garnica lot is no exception. Had Kalsada not been as detail-oriented, garnica would have never been sorted separately and would have heavily influenced the flavor profile of the Sitio Belis mixed variety. We also would have never known what a garnica variety could taste like, as this is the first time Andytown has roasted the garnica variety. By selecting Sitio Belis Garnica, we are bringing attention to the hard work Kalsada is doing to ensure each of their coffees is reaching its full potential.
Coconut jam is intensely sweet but also has an almost savory, nutty flavor. It’s deeply caramelized and very sticky. A familiar flavor in Southeast Asia, coconut jam is a popular spread to add to toast. This flavor is very present in the Sitio Belis coffee!
The Sitio Belis is back, but instead of being citrus-y and coconut-y as in previous years, it has a more rounded acidity and velvety texture with notes of manila mango, flan, and coconut jam. These flavor notes may deviate a bit from the western flavor wheel, but to the best of our ability and as often as we can, we try to identify flavors that better reflect the palate of the people who produced this coffee. For those of you who know these flavors well, we hope you find comfort in something familiar. And for those of you who have never tasted these flavors, we hope you discover something new and become more open-minded to trying new things. Whether you seek comfort or something to whet your curiosity, we hope that this coffee serves you well during the holidays.
