One of the great things about the coffee business is that you get to spend time in places like Myaing. They are generous hosts who, like many of the folks I work with in Myanmar, manage a perfect balance of hospitality, humor and professionalism. They take exceptional care of their coffee plants, and they take meticulous care with the drying. Their natural process coffees Feature red plum and watermelon notes, and are pristinely clean.
Scarcity of water is a significant issue in this part of Shan State, which makes producing natural process coffee a virtual necessity. Happily, the community grows 95% Catuai and most of the balance of their production is caturra, so they have the right cultivars for excellent coffee.
Craig visited in 2018 and was delighted to hear that the name Myaing means, “tasty.” How cool is it to buy coffee from Tasty Town?! The story is that many years ago, a powerful king stopped in this town to grab a bite to eat. When he finished the meal, he said it was really tasty. The people in the area said, “Thanks, King! We’re all about the tasty.” (I’m paraphrasing here, but you get the gist of it.)
This town is on the main North-South highway through the region, and is the site of the 5-day market, which is held (surprise!) every five days. Coffee from throughout the region has always been brought through Myaing on market days, but a few years ago the villagers decided they wanted to take their coffees to the proverbial next level.
This was another of the highest scoring Myanmar coffees this year, so clearly their hard work has paid off. Craig was told that extra cash from specialty coffee sales have helped purchased chairs for the local school, and has normalized cash flow in households. Going forward, the coffee working group hopes to build their own warehouse, so they can control the environment in which their coffee is stored.
Coffee Stats:
- GPS: 21.05275, 96.5198
- Elevation (masl): 1100+
- Ethnic Group: Danu
- Coffee-producing families: 300
- Coffee variety: 95% Catuai, 5% Caturra
- Average coffee yield; 1000 (kg fresh cherries/acre)
- Total Producing Area: 115 hectares
