We begin our study in the Continent of Africa. In our prologue entitled An Introduction to Coffee Cultivation, we explore the coffee plant’s physiology and the importance of its environment. Next we trace the origins of arabica coffee back to the wild trees of the Ethiopian highlands and cloud forests.
Overview
Great coffee results from a plant’s genotype and the terroir surrounding it. The environmental factors of climate and soil, combined with farming techniques, create a farm's specific environment, or terroir,. Some environmental factors that affect a coffee plant in its lifetime, such as the elevation at which it grows, are impossible to alter. Others, such as soil nutrition, can be altered, but often only with vast capital expenditure.
To get a clearer picture of farm management's finances and how terroir aspects can affect a plant’s shape, size, and other characteristics, we interviewed a range of scientists, agronomists, and green buyers. This book explores how terroir determines a coffee's character and a crop's success. It offers an overview of the factors you can control and the steps you can take to support a sustainable coffee crop and produce a great-tasting cup.
Reviews
‘Terroir is a beautiful book put together by the Barista Hustle team about growing coffee: its botany, agronomy, the inputs and limits of growth, coffee-tree diseases, and the effects of climate change on coffee production. The book includes gorgeous photography and interviews with experts such as Tim Wendelboe, Hanna Neuschwander, Willem Boot, Graciano Cruz, and Anabella Meneses. Terroir offers an incredible education about the conditions that contribute to the success — and failure — of coffee production.’
Scott Rao (Author of The Professional Barista’s Handbook)