High in the lush mountains of Northern Peru, on the rugged eastern flank of the Andes, two thousand family farmers produce coffee under the dense shade of guavas, acacias, orange, and banana trees. These farmers are members of CENFROCAFE, an association of over 80 small cooperatives working together to produce one of the finest coffees in Peru, while stewarding the surrounding mountain ecosystem.

The province of Cajamarca has long been the backbone of Peru’s economy due to its vast mineral wealth. Unfortunately, these days, modern mining techniques despoil the earth and surrounding rivers and forests. The cultivation of high quality organic coffee has become the key to Cajamarca’s economic and environmental sustainability, and the farmers of CENFROCAFE are leaders in this effort.

The members of CENFROCAFE carefully pick ripe cherries, depulp, ferment, wash and dry their coffee on their small farms ranging in size from one to three acres. The result is a finely crafted coffee with hints of honey, papaya, and milk chocolate complimented by a soft citric acidity.

Buying coffee from CENFROCAFE since 2009

• Co-op: CENFROCAFE
• Region: Cajamarca - Northern Peru
• Altitude: 1,700 – 2,000 meters
• Processing: Wet / Washed
• Varietal: Caturra, Typica, Yellow Catui

Located in the lush mountains of Nor Oriente in the high Peruvian Amazon ORO VERDE Cooperative farms produce green coffee with organic certification and environmental responsibility for the world. With more than two-thirds of the cooperative's membership belonging to the Chanca Lamista indigenous group speaking their native language - Quechua.

ORO VERDE was originaly founded in 1999 by 56 members based in the province of Lamas, in the San Martín region of the Andes. The cooperative now brings together more than 1,000 families of small-scale coffee growers to produce one of the finest coffees in Peru, while stewarding the surrounding mountain ecosystem.

Leaders in cooperative organic agriculture, Oro Verde provides services to its partners with respect for gender, and with solidarity for multicultural ways of being. The coffee crops are managed under shade protecting the biodiversity of the tropics. Along with many other projects they are working to Reforest their habitat, and have managed to reforest 2.0 million native trees in their region so far.

The members of ORO VERDE carefully pick ripe cherries, depulp, ferment, wash and dry their coffee on their small farms ranging in size from one to three acres. The result is a finely crafted coffee with hints of honey, papaya, and milk chocolate complimented by a soft citric acidity.

• Co-op: Oro Verde
• Region: San Martín, Peru
• Altitude: 350 – 2,000 meters
• Processing: Wet / Washed
• Varietal: Bourbon, Caturra and Catimor

SOPACDI (Solidarité Paysanne pour la Promotion des Actions Café et Développement Intégral) was created in 2002. This coffee co-op is located on Lake Kivu, straddling the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda. It is comprised of various ethnic groups, who all share one vision: to transform the socio-economic conditions of their families, community, and to foster inclusivity with transparency to produce exceptional coffee for their customers.

SOPACDI process their coffee with a Rwandan style fermentation, with nothing added. The coffee goes through three distinct processes; a Dry fermentation – in a concrete tank for 24 hours, then a Wet fermentation – where the beans soak in a second tank for 12 hours with water, then a Final a wet fermentation – in a third tank for 12 more hours. Once these fermentation processes are complete, the coffee is fully washed and dried on raised African drying beds for 4-8 days, depending on the weather.

SOPACDI now has over 12,100 Farmers with 3964 of them women. SOPACDI is the only cooperative in Kivu with 4 certifications. In 10 years time, the guidance of small farmers allowed SOPACDI to contribute to the improvement of the living conditions of its members, such as schooling, housing, the pacification of ethnic groups, the creation of youth jobs, the fight against smuggling on Lake Kivu, and the promotion of women and pygmy rights, and is a leader in promoting gender equality and helping revitalize the country's coffee economy. SOPACDI is the very first certified Fairtrade co-op in the DRC and is the 2014 Sustainability Award Recipient from the Specialty Coffee Association of America.

• Co-op: SOPACDI
• Region: Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa
• Altitude: 1,460- 2,000 meters
• Processing: Wet Processed
• Varietal: Bourbon

The owners of Las Lajas, Oscar and Francisca Chacón, are third-generation coffee farmers known for their highly differentiated processes that produce spectacular coffees. Most notable are their wild and juicy naturals along with their complex and rich honey-processed coffees. The Las Lajas farm is nestled in the foothills of the Poas Volcano, located outside the town of Sabanilla in central Costa Rica.

The name Las Lajas comes from the Spanish version of an Arabic word for the indigenous-crafted stone artifacts found on the farm when it was first planted. In total, 38 hectares of land are divided into several parcels, each of which grow various shade tree species and create unique micro-climates. In addition, different lots process coffee differently—some naturally, others either honey or washed. Las Lajas’s farming diversity allows the farm to create several distinct products with different characteristics all within a contained area. There is a rich tradition of coffee farming in the Chacón family: generations have owned and produced coffee on their land for more than 80 years.

After the tragic loss of their father due to pesticide-caused illness in 1980, Oscar and Francisca made the conscious decision to do what their hearts told them was best for their family. The two began growing organically. This decision to grow organically was difficult at first because there were no premiums paid for organics at the time. The two risked financial stability. As pioneers, the Chacón family saw the value in building a healthier farm. Today, many farmers and cooperatives benefit from the risk Oscar and Francisca and other farmers took many years ago. Las Lajas was one of the first farms to produce organic coffee and remains one of the only certified-organic farms in Costa Rica.

• Co-op: LAS LAJAS
• Region: Alajuela, Costa Rica
• Altitude: 1,300 meters
• Processing: Honey Processed
• Varietal: Bourbon

July 10, 2021, marks sixteen months since the founding of the Mendocino Trail Stewards–488 days that have changed my world irrevocably. It wasn’t just that six mountain bikers gathered around a table then somehow matured to a coalition which has grabbed the attention of the highest levels of the state government. It wasn’t only the pandemic, the acceleration of climate change, the barely averted July 6 Capitol Hill putsch. It wasn’t vapor trail-less blue skies turning apocalyptic orange, the shattering of heat records across the Pacific Northwest, the dying of billions of clams and mussels.

It was a greater transformation, a surprising ray of hope for the future, an unlikely group of strangers joining hands and hearts into an unexpectedly effective coalition, one which includes the Pomo People, young children, once-retired forest activists, and climate scientists, among others. The Coalition to Save Jackson State Forest has struck a chord with our push for accountability, tribal rights, and a legislative solution to the California Department of Forestry’s (CDF) mismanagement of our beloved public lands. Fueled by a pervasive rage at the Trump Administration’s incessantly racist crisis-mongering and by the powerlessness we all felt with Covid-19 sweeping the nation, our ranks have boomed.We have opened the door on an issue right in our backyards, one combining our love of the redwood forest with our greatest fear: climate-driven annihilation.

From 18-year old Greasy Pete, who climbed into Mama Tree’s branches and captured the imaginations of thousands on April 9, to 5-year old Jory, our youngest activist hero, to Paul and Joan Katzeff, whose Redwood Forest Reserve Blend Coffee has kept me organizing late into the night. From the prayers and blessings of Priscilla and Michael Hunter of the Coyote Valley Band of Pomo, the tireless work of their lawyer and ally Polly Girvin, to U’ilani Wesley’s proud chants echoing through the groves, the people of Mendocino County are again at the forefront of change.

CDF has been forced to take notice and they are fighting back, but we still have the moral upper hand. Members of the Mama Tree Network and Redwood Nation Earth First! have repeatedly stopped timber harvest operations, saving thousands of trees and frustrating forest managers. Public comments submitted to CDF have delayed the approval of the controversial Little North Fork Big River and Mitchell Creek plans by months–and hopefully indefinitely. We have overwhelmed California Natural Resource Agency meetings with our calls for change.

Where we go from here is uncertain, but our aim is high. We are drafting litigation to rewrite the Forest Practices Act for the entire State of California, righting historic wrongs and paving the way for this forest to become our ally in protecting our children’s future. Join us for our first ever Caspar Forest Fest, on July 31, from 1:00 to 7:00 at the Caspar Community Center for music, speakers, food, kids’ fun, and to find out how you can become a part of it. Hope to see you there!

Mendocino Trail Stewards are working to create a visionary model demonstration forest on the Northern California Coast, the Mendocino Coast Redwood Forest Reserve, 20,000 acres of second growth coast redwood forest, preserved in perpetuity for the demonstration of how humans and nature can partner to:

• Fight Climate Change
• Restore Degraded Ecosystems
• Promote Spiritual & Mental Health
• Support Sustainable Economies

When you drink this coffee, your purchase supports Mendocino Trail Stewards’ efforts to create the Redwood Forest Reserve.

A big, bold, sweet and fruity cup of coffee – with a long finish.

Your purchase supports forest conservation efforts by Mendocino Trail Stewards.

A bold, sweet blend with hints of nuts, chocolate, and caramel.

Your purchase supports forest conservation efforts by Mendocino Trail Stewards.

Complex and sweet enough to enjoy straight, yet bold enough to punch through milk.

Your purchase supports forest conservation efforts by Mendocino Trail Stewards.

• 1 shot espresso
• 4-6 oz. milk or milk alternative (oat, almond, soy)
• 1-2 tsp lavender flavoring
• 2 drops purple food coloring (optional)
• dried lavender for garnish (optional)

To make the lavender milk – pour about 4 oz of milk or milk alternative into a glass or container, adding in 1 tsp of lavender flavoring and purple food coloring. stir, or use milk frother for a fluffier finish.

Add ice into a new glass, and add in your espresso. Pour your lavender milk over the espresso, add in more lavender syrup to taste, and garnish with dried lavender.

Enjoy!

He was on the wrong end of a lasso being held by Clark Gable. The horse was bucking and raising up on his hind legs, pulling desperately away from his capture. Marilyn Monroe was pulling on Clark’s hand pleading for the horses freedom. Clark was determined to get his horse and another payday. The Name of the Movie was The Misfits and was about three Aging Cowpokes who once made their living capturing Mustangs and selling them into the slaughter houses for meat. In this movie they complained about how the horses were no longer in abundance , hard to find and it was impossible to make a decent days pay capturing the ‘things’. Maralyn was as beautiful as the horses eyes, fierce now but with long lashes and deep deep soft eyes. Marilyn was beautiful but it was the Mustang, fighting for her freedom, that stole my heart,

Today, 58 years later there is a similar story playing out on the millions of square miles of rangeland between the western slope of the Rocky Mountains and the Eastern slope of the Sierra Nevadas. Today it is not aging cowboys in Pick up trucks and lassos , but Federal Agents in Helicopters rounding up entire herds of free horses and burros and their children, often in the chaos separating family members or driving the horses to their death in the frenzy. Hay Feds, what’s the problem?

The round ups gather the horses into corals so they wont compete for the space grassland feed out there on the range. Thet range is for the Beef Cattle ! Our government leases our citizen owned land to cattle ranchers they can make money selling beef to our meat eating society of which I must admit , I am one. The cost of feeding jailed Mustangs is estimated to be in the billions. And why, when the 1970 Congress afforded Mustangs America’s protection, has all the Bureau of Land Management continued to harass the best symbols of freedom we have ?

Yes, it happened for me long ago in a movie theatre but last October, on the way from Northern California to Phoenix to play baseball , I pulled my car onto a a sandy dirt road to nowhere and drove into the dessert just to see what was out there on that dirt road to nowhere. About five miles in, there they were ! Three magnificent free roaming Mustangs …and they were looking at me from a hill about a home runs distance away. I stopped, my heart jumping , I exited my car and laid down on the very hot sand and stared back. Finally, the circle was complete. I saw them alive and free.

Who belongs on that land we, as citizens own but have delegated the responsibility for their safety to The Bureau of Land Management to secure ? And why has the BLM chosen to represent the Cattle Industry and not our Mustangs?

When I discovered that others of my kind were fighting for them too, we joined the American Wild Horse Campaign and created a coffee package to tell coffee lovers whose side we were on. As with our other Cause Coffee programs, we wanted to empower our customers to help raise funds and awareness for this important work.

Horse and stuntman in the 1960 film "The Misfits"

When we are a bit further past this COVID-19 Pandemic we are planning a visit, jointly with AWHC staff, to visit and see these magnificent spirits up close. I hope you will be able to come with us. Until then, buy their coffee and know you are on the bus with us. And let me use that old expression , “The steak is as good as the sizzle “ when I say that the coffee inside the package is as good as it gets. You be the judge.

The American Wild Horse Campaign (AWHC) is dedicated to preserving American wild horses and burros in viable free-roaming herds for generations to come, as part of our national heritage.

Since 2004, this organization has been raising awareness and making change for America’s wild horses. Thanksgiving Coffee Company has partnered with them to create Wild Grounds, a cause coffee to save the wild horses.

What exactly is espresso? It is the highest form of coffee. By definition, it’s strong black coffee made by forcing steam through grounds. For a more extensive description, we dedicated a whole blog post to what exactly espresso is.

The common misconception of requiring a fancy, expensive espresso maker can discourage many of us from brewing it ourselves at home.

Although our espresso blends are designed for that high-pressure extraction that an espresso machine delivers, they can be equally as satisfying when brewed like any other coffee blend.

The proof is in the… coffee. We made a 1-minute Bialetti Stovetop tutorial video as well as a French Press tutorial using the same espresso blend – with instructions from our brewing guide page. It really is as easy as it looks, and the whole process only takes about 5 minutes to complete.

To help you start your home espresso-brewing journey, we’re giving you 10% off our Italian Espresso Blends all throughout April!

Our Northern Italian Style Espresso, featured in our tutorial videos, is a delightfully smooth espresso, not at all toasty or burnt-like, but intense enough to show up and vote in a latte or cappuccino when properly pulled.

For a more intense, pungent blend, try our Southern Italian Style Espresso. The blend consists of equal parts Guatemalan, Ethiopian, and Indonesian coffees. These are some of the finest coffees in the world, roasted dark to express a smoky punch, deeply toned notes of licorice, chocolate, and earthy sweetness.

Happy brewing!