Today Israel and Sandra made a trip to Rincon; an historically popular surfing and tourist destination in Western Puerto Rico. This was in order to deliver coffee to one of their longtime clients, pick up chocolate which had been processed and packed from their cocoa and meet with a researcher whom had spent the last 12 years studying the development of coffee varietals in Puerto Rico. First, we stopped by Paraiso--a bakery and cafe in Lares, Puerto Rico. It is said that many Italians first settled in Lares. As with many other shops, Paraiso proudly advertised "cafe puro 100%". However, as in the previous instance the prices of the retail bags offered inspire speculation, just as their very existence in such abundance do, since the last years harvest was all but entire destroyed by Hurricane Maria. With their limited supply of high quality coffee, cocoa and other specialty produce, Sandra farms maintains connections with some of the island’s most visionary and discerning people. beyond those select few, Israel has had to severely cut back on his client base due to scarcity of supply and unwillingness to compromise quality and purity by blending with imported green bean. Alex Windover, an alumni of some of the world’s most innovative kitchens, along with his wife Sarah run Carta Buena, an ambitious food truck that serves its patrons directly in front of their own gardens. The couple have a vision beyond running a successful food truck-- they believe in people, community and doing things with passion. All food offered at their truck comes directly from their garden and local producers. They’re providing Western Puerto Rico with fresh food, juices and smoothies, as well as beautiful communal space. A meal at Carta Buena is a show of support to the local farmers working to improve the quality of produce in Puerto Rico while preserving their way of life. Not only this--they are a proof of concept that Puerto Rican consumers desire a higher quality product and care about the well being of their island. Following our delivery, we were then on the receiving end. We met at a nearby shopping plaza with Paul, who processes and packages Sandra Farms' cocoa. The industrious young man has a background in engineering and puts it to use in inventing new processing methods, building his own equipment and creating his own proprietary molds. Many young Puerto Ricans are well educated and pursuing STEM careers. Unfortunately most jobs in these fields require a relocation to the mainland United States or offer significantly lower salaries in Puerto Rico despite the equal (and sometimes greater) cost of living. Paul has been able to carve out a lucrative and interesting career for himself and will be collaborating with Sandra Farms to experiment with a possible coffee & turmeric chocolate bar. Finally, we made a stop by the home of a Puerto Rican author and researcher whom has spent the last 12 years tracing the origins of coffee in Puerto Rico. He has meticulously scoured government and colonial records in order to piece together the puzzle. As it persists today, Puerto Rican government reporting has long been subpar. Much of this may be due to the island's status for centuries and subservient to a greater power--wether it be Spain or America. As a result of this relationship, government officials often have made false, erroneous, or excessively ambiguous reports in order to appease. Mr. Sotamayor believes he may have solved the puzzle of "Seleccion de Puerto Rico's" identity. In Puerto Rico, it is believed that coffee originating in Yemen was brought to France and then from Franc to Puerto Rico. The varietals brought over were allegedly Bourbon and Typica. However, according to Sotamayor, a mistake in 1948 government reports may indicate that the coffee referred to Selecion De Puerto Rico may actually the variety Mokha. This seems likely, not least because the very town we were in, where early Europeans once settled and introduced coffee has long been named "Moca".
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