Caffelab YEMEN Bani Ismail

The Haraz district is located in one of the highest mountainous areas of Yemen, halfway between the city of Al-Hudaydah, famous for the port of Mokha, and the capital Sana'a.

The port of Mokha is renowned for being the place from which coffee spreads throughout the Arabian Peninsula and around the world. Yemeni coffee plays a very important role in the history of coffee. Already in the 15th century, these grains were used by Sufi monks to help them in the nights of prayer and intensify their spiritual experiences.

The territory in which this coffee is grown is located at a very high altitude, even reaching 2300mt. above sea level. The soil is very arid and subject to frequent droughts. Cultivation takes place on small farms, built on terraced fields on the side of the mountains. Here the traditional natural method is still used which gives this lot a strong taste and seductive and unique aromas and tastes.

Entirely cultivated and worked by hand

Each small farm, almost always family-run, contributes to the creation of this special lot. This coffee is entirely grown and processed by hand.  The altitude and location of the plantations make it impossible to use any type of vehicle, machinery, or heavy tool. 

Farmers wake up very early with a picturesque view above the clouds, the temperature reaches a maximum of 15 ° in the morning in the summer months, and in winter it even drops below zero.

After a typical breakfast on the farm, which can consist of homemade round bread called Khubz, eggs, and beans, and of course, a cup of traditional tea or coffee to keep them warm for the long day they are ready to begin the harvesting process.

A process that requires competence, patience, and love to ensure that the fruit is harvested at the ideal degree of ripeness. Once collected they are placed in large baskets made of intertwined palm leaves carried on the shoulders and versed and on drying beds for 14 days to dry.

The peels of the cherries are kept during drying, intensifying the taste absorbed by the grain inside which, depending on the variety, can recall sweet honey, flowers, or citrus fruits.

Once dried, the coffee is separated from the peel of the fruit. At this point, it is almost ready to be placed in the sacks and transported down the mountain on the back of a donkey or camel.

The recent civil war has severely limited production and made it very difficult to export coffee to the rest of the world.  Many current coffee producers have been working in the city for several years and due to the war have had to go back to their roots, farming the lands of their fathers and grandfathers to make a living on coffee.