Cafédirect Organic Machu Picchu Fresh Ground Coffee Review
At SmartPlanet's blind coffee tasting with 2007 Barista of the Year James Hoffman, we only looked at taste and flavour. Hoffman didn't particularly like Cafédirect's Machu Picchu ground coffee, saying the flavour was "woody on the nose", which is not actually a bad thing in itself, and that it tasted "earthy and unclean" -- not good in coffee terms.
But we thought Machu Picchu's flavour was chocolaty and we liked the woody flavour, which had a good amount of bitterness to it. We just generally really liked it -- and at around £3 for 227g, we think the quality matches the price pretty well.
Moving onto the ethical side of things, we're very impressed. The Machu Picchu coffee beans are organically grown by the Huadquina cooperative in Southern Peru (very near Machu Picchu), which is a member of a bigger Fairtrade grower cooperative, Cocla. Cocla is audited by the Fairtrade Labelling Organisation (FLO) annually and Cafédirect members visit the cooperative on a yearly basis, too. Cafédirect has worked with the cooperative since 1994, and the general manager of Cocla, Raul del Aguila, has been a board member since 2004. That's helped the company to be involved in the cooperative's social and financial developments.
The beans are shipped to England and roasted, processed and packaged in Kent at a factory that adheres to equal opportunities and good labour conditions.
Another thing we like is how transparent Cafédirect is about its business, which makes us trust the company. Its 20 years as UK's largest 100 per cent Fairtrade hot drinks company does add some kudos, as does the fact that it invests around 60 per cent of its profits in the growers' communities and businesses. The growers, as with Divine and Kuapa Kokoo, have shares in the company and sit on the board. We love this kind of involvement, as it means the farmers get more out of their Fairtrade status than just receiving a Fairtrade premium once a year.
Cafédirect's work in the green field is impressive, too. This particular coffee is certified by the Soil Association, but on a wider scale Cafédirect also works with the farmers on how to cope with the challenges of climate change. The company supports reforestation projects and has a partnership going with Forum for the Future to find the most environmentally friendly working practices throughout the supply chain.
While coffee connoisseurs might not call Cafédirect's Machu Picchu organic and Fairtrade coffee gourmet, we think it leaves a great taste in our mouth -- mainly in terms of green and ethical issues.
Quality
Value
Ethics
Green
