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BASECAMP ESPRESSO: BRAZIL JULIO MARTINS DA SILVA

BASECAMP ESPRESSO: BRAZIL JULIO MARTINS DA SILVA

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Recommended Retail Price: £9/250g

A classic Brazilian coffee made for milky espresso drinks: nutty, chocolatey, full bodied and sweet. 

We love to explore the full delicious spectrum of flavours specialty coffee has to offer, but we also know there’s a time and a place for a mug of something easy, familiar—that’s why we roast our Basecamp Espresso. It’s a seasonal, single-origin fully traceable coffee, just like our other beans, but the flavour profile is always the same: nutty, chocolatey, mellow, sweet and full bodied. It’ll be an easy dial-in and a crowd pleaser with or without milk.


—CURRENT OFFERING—

Basecamp Brazil Julio Martins da Silva
Producer: Julio Martins da Silva
Region: Minas Gerais
Altitude: 1,040-1,280 m.a.s.l.
Varietal: Red Catuaí
Processing: natural

Our latest Basecamp bean has the hallmark flavour notes we look for in this coffee. It tastes like milk chocolate, mandarin orange, biscuits, and caramel. This mellow profile is perfect for espresso coffees.


Julio Martins da Silva, a farmer’s son residing in the Congonhal neighborhood of Lambari - Minas Gerais, has a rich history with coffee. His journey in coffee cultivation began through his father, Mr. Agenor Martins, who initiated the family’s coffee endeavors around the 1960s. Over time, their interest and expertise in coffee cultivation flourished.


Today, the coffee culture sustains Julio’s family, including his siblings and children. This tradition of coffee cultivation has been a generational legacy, and now, Julio’s children are also deeply involved in the process. They continuously strive to learn and implement improvements in cultivating coffee in mountainous terrains. The harvest is primarily semi-mechanized, utilizing harvesters and weeders, though Julio maintains manual cultivation in new plantations to ensure the plants’ health until maturity.
Julio fondly recalls the tales his father shared about the early days of harvesting. Using a bamboo net—a native Brazilian tree—tied around their waists, they would collect the coffee beans, despite the modest yield. It was this humble beginning that laid the foundation for the family’s livelihood, which now recognizes the true value of coffee.
With the addition of tractors and static dryers, Julio believes these tools significantly enhance the quality of the coffee produced on his farms, named Sitio São João and Sitio São Domingos. The fruit’s quality is a result of diligent cultivation and handling, culminating in the processing of the coffee harvest while preserving the fruit’s integrity. Julio approaches his work with immense love and care, aspiring for his final product to retain the exquisite flavor of coffee and reach consumers worldwide.

In conclusion, Julio emphasizes that meticulous care from planting to grain cultivation, along with the conservation of springs and forests, differentiates his practice. His simple life is dedicated to fulfilling his dreams through coffee cultivation, which provides for his family. As he pursues further advancements in cultivating high-altitude mountainous plantations, he produces coffee of exceptional quality. Grateful for his role as a coffee producer, Julio shares his story, hoping to inspire others."

 

This is the third coffee we’ve purchased from a new specialty Brazil importer called Unic. Founded in 2021 the company has just four employees, but seems to be growing quickly, probably due in no small part to how excellent their coffee is. It’s hard to be competitive in the Brazilian coffee market because it’s so large. Brazil exports more coffee than any other country in the world, so buyers have a lot of options. 

Unic caught our eye with the quality of their offering and the story of their founder, Thalita Masiero. Brazilian by birth, her family has a long-standing connection to agriculture and in 2019 they acquired a farm in Santa Rita do Sapucai, Minas Gerais, situated in the Serra da Mantiqueira region. The farm had a neglected coffee plantation that they decided to revitalise. Through conversations with locals and individuals in the coffee community, Thalita came across a group of women called Enpreendedoras do Cafe who inspired her. She decided to embrace the opportunity to bring coffee to the UK and make a positive impact. “Instead of simply being another trader, I am part of their community,” Thalita tells us. 

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