Thirupathi Rao, a third-generation farmer, has been part of SAMTFMACS – Araku’s farmer cooperative since 2010. Decades ago, recalls Rao, coffee bushes were towering over 10 feet tall, requiring his father & grandfather to use a rope to harvest.
He has seen it all - meagre returns of his ancestor’s hard work and depleting soil quality due to the use of chemicals to a drastic transformation in the quality of coffee produced, resultant income earned, and return of nutrients in the soil enabled by regenerative practices.
Rao highlights the importance of regular pruning as a key difference in producing quality coffee. By removing excess branches to control plant growth, coffee bushes are able to produce nutrient-rich beans. In addition to making harvest easier, pruning and other farm management practices have become a vital practice in their pursuit of high-quality coffee. There are no shortcuts to producing quality coffee.
GEMS OF ARAKU is a coffee excellence awards auction.Year after year since 2009, Gems of Araku has curated a collection of exquisite coffees crafted to capture the essence of Araku's unique terroir and rich cultural heritage.
The roots of Araku specialty coffee are deeply & intricately tied to its SOIL. These rich soils, now restored with nourishing nutrients as a result of our regenerative agronomy, ensure coffee cherries are packed with natural sugars. Araku’s bio-diverse farms with multi-tier shade further create a lasting imprint on a sensitive coffee plant, yielding complex flavour profiles in these microlots.
It is this very strength of the regions’ SOIL, combined with the indigenous knowledge and artistry of our tribal farmers that yields truly exceptional coffees each season. The coffees further evolve during in-house processing with carefully crafted steps that bring out the best in the beans.
