Sítio Brandt - Brazil

Sitio Brandt, located in the hills of Espirito Stanto, has been in Joilson Brandt’s family for more than 40 years. The farm was originally purchased by Joilson's grandfather. At that time, the farm was little more than pasture land. Joilson’s grandfather worked hard with his wife and family, planting coffee little by little until 18 of the farm’s 24 hectares were covered under Red and Yellow Catuaí, with some Catimor and Robusta occupying the lowest parts of the farm. A coffee farm was born!

Joilson’s grandfather left the farm to his son, Joilson’s father. Joilson, himself, was born and raised on the farm and worked with his parents when he was young, learning good farming practices and striving to improve every day. Today he continues with this work, which he now completes with the help of his own family.

Every season, Joilson strives to improve the quality of his coffee; to this end, he has invested in the construction of new patios, pulping machines and mechanical dryers. Even in the areas of the farm where he grows Robusta (Conilon), he works to improve quality through good farming and processing practices.

The climate in the area also lends itself well to high quality coffee production, particularly when married with Joilson’s excellent farm management. The weather is tropical with average annual temperatures of 19°C. The land is filled with fertile soil containing a good percentage of organic matter. The family focuses only on coffee production, which proves enough to sustain them year round.

During the harvest season, Joilson and his team use selective hand picking. Up to four ‘passes’ are completed, with only the most perfect, red coffee cherries being picked each time. Arabica and Catimor/Robusta is kept completely separate. After being harvested, the cherries are placed in raffia bags for better ventilation. Coffee is pulped always on the same day as being picked. After pulping it is delivered immediately to the drying patios with mucilage still attached. The final drying process takes place on the concrete patios or (depending on weather) mechanical dryers at a slow and even temperature of not more than 35°C.

Joilson has been working on quality improvement since 2014. He aims to continue to improve and construct new patios to continue along this path. The production of specialty coffee adds value to his family name and is, so he sees, the way to preserving his family’s heritage far into the future.