My wife, ever worrisome, asked “Isn’t Nicaragua where the Sandinista and Contra rebels fight?”  It was a concern I had not thought of in my excitement, so I asked my host about any safety concerns I should know about.  He put my mind to rest by advising me “No worry, I carry a gun.”  It was a comment I would not forget.

Upon our arrival, our host picked us up and drove us inland to his hacienda in the town of Matagalpa, one of the prime coffee growing regions of Nicaragua.  As we drove past Lake Managua and into the hills, I could not help but admire the beauty and peace of a land back in time.  We passed not cities or towns but small villages with rusting Chevy pickups thrown in for charm.  It was like an old movie from the 50’s, but in vivid colors of greens, blues, and browns.  Although primitive, the landscape and surroundings were surprisingly clean. 

From his house in Matagalpa we drove 10 miles up the hillside to the farm.  The road was windy, bumpy, narrow, and slick, but like a mule on the face of the Grand Canyon, the little pick-up truck gripped the path and breathed its way up toward the farm.  Perhaps it’s an appropriate analogy as we learned the road was widened just two years earlier from a path used by horses to carry beans from the farm down to the Dry Beneficio.  After an hour in the dry rain (yes I did say dry rain, it’s the stuff which sprays your face but doesn’t get you wet) we arrived just in time for lunch.  One of three meals Daniel provides to his workers, lunch included beans, rice, and corn tortillas. 

For those who haven’t been to an origin, meeting local people is the highlight.  They are not only hardworking, but extremely proud and happy.  While they can physically maneuver between trees while climbing up and down the side of the mountain that left me on my butt more than once, it is their spirit which makes them special.  Their inner peace a gift from God for the hardships they embrace as blessings and joy.

After lunch we toured the farm and small wet mill.  The old world style of wet processing at the farm followed by patio drying at a separate Beneficio in the City is a common practice in Nicaragua.  Daniel showed us the different varieties of coffee he grew in an effort to increase quality.  Starting with Caturra and Catamor, Daniel recently added Bourbon and Maracaturra near the top of the hillside in an effort to increase complexity and flavor.  Each of the varieties expected to have different tastes and qualities. 

In previous years, the varieties were picked, milled, and screened together.  This year Daniel had his workers separate the beans by variety to determine which was best.

Returning to the city we toured the Dry Beneficio where we sampled many other coffees and picked up green samples of the four varieties grown at the farm.  Back at the house Daniel found an old sample roaster and allowed us to roast up the different varieties.   Cupping Blind, we all choose the same cup as our clear favorite.  It was the Maracaturra.  It was bright and sweet with surprising body.  The flavor was unique: fruity and complex.  Hints of berry and melon tantalized our tongues like a sweet cross between a Costa Rican Tarrazu and an Ethiopian Harrar.  We couldn’t wait to bring it home.  Unfortunately, we learned this being the newest variety there were very few trees and therefore very few bags available.  We all wanted the same beans but the lot was small.  We would have to find a way to settle who would get the coffee. We talked about rock, scissor, paper, but couldn’t agree.

The next day, in reminiscing about our visit to the farm, we thought it would be fun to return and spend the night.  So we headed back up the wild road through the dry rain for our night on the farm.  There was a small block building near the outdoor kitchen where we could lay some plywood on blocks and sleep off the ground.  As night approached the real wet rain poured heavily upon us so we huddled under the small awning of the block building to drink some beer and tell stories.  Daniel pulled out a deck of playing cards when someone suggested we play poker for the prized lot of coffee. 

We decided on No Limit Texas Holdem for all the beans.  Since we didn’t have a lot of money or real poker chips on us, we used what we had: coffee.  We found green beans, green cherries, ripe red cherries, and black dried cherries we could use as chips.  To make the game interesting we gave monetary values of $1,000, $5,000, $10,000, and $20,000 for the different beans.  We started with $500,000 each. 

Its not that we didn’t trust each other, but the tone changed as it was time to gamble.  After all, the coffee was on the line.  To make the game fair, Daniel volunteered to be the dealer.  With his gun at his side, Daniel seemed the perfect sheriff to protect me not from banditos but the sharks around me. 

With $1000 anti and no limit betting, we started out cautiously to size up the competition.

Initially Cliff and Arnie swapped pots while I played spectator.  Patience not being a virtue I was born with, I tried to bluff my way into a hand.  Unfortunately for me 10 high did nothing against Cliff’s pair of Jacks.  Clearly I was being hustled by these guys and didn’t have much of a chance.  They were taking not only my beans but also my pride.  You see, I was the someone who suggested the poker game.  My only hope now was to steal the gun, fend off the card sharks, and run.  But remembering my falls on the hillside, I decided to play it out.

If things weren’t bad enough, it started to get cold, the beer was gone, and the betting was getting crazy.  Cliff was well ahead and already planning his marketing campaign when it happened, I was dealt a pair of Kings.  I didn’t know how to act since I hadn’t seen a pair all night when Arnie decided to go all in ahead of me.  After Cliff folded I called and turned over my pair.  Before I could smile Arnie turned over a pair of Aces, Oh man could it get any worse.  After the flop turned over three useless cards I started to ask the coffee gods for a gift, I even promised not to blend the beans and feature them as a single origin espresso.  That must have been the secret as the turn delivered a third King, wow, I was alive again.  The river card paired the board and I was back in the game with a full boat. 

Now it was heads up with money being equal when I was dealt at a pair of 7’s on the very next hand.  I decided to ride my luck and bet $100,000.  Cliff quickly shot back and said “let’s make it two hundred” and raised me with 10 black beans.  My pride back, I decided to push him and said “lets make it three” when Cliff said “I’m all in”. 

What happened?  I went from dead to alive to facing an all in within 2 minutes.  I considered folding but with $300,000 in I was pot committed.  I called and turned over my lowly pair.   Cliff smiled and showed his cards, connected suitors, a Ten and Jack of Hearts.  Before I could consider my odds Daniel was turning over the next three cards: Five of Spades, Nine of Clubs and Queen of Hearts.  I was still high with a pair but Cliff had an open ended straight and could win with either an Eight or King.  We were standing now as Daniel turned over the Ace of Hearts. 

Now Daniel paused as we each considered Cliff’s options.  He could still draw the straight with any Eight or King, he could pair up the Ten or Jack, and he could pull out a flush with a Heart.  Or could this Royal coffee be won with a Royal Flush?  The King of Hearts would give Cliff Ten through Ace of Hearts, a Royal Flush. 

Cliff was cheering, I was sweating, and we all stared at Daniel for the final card.  Thousands of miles, a wicked road, roasting, cupping, and finding a great bean all riding on the luck the draw, at the top of a hill, in the rain, under an awning.  Cliff would win it with one of 22 cards; I could with any of the other 22. 

This is why I love being a small roaster.  The friendships, the beer, the stories, they all keep me returning for more.  In the end we never flipped the last card, but instead split the lot 3 ways, because we were all there for the same reason: Great coffee we could bring back to our customers.

The End

Profile of Mike Perry

 Mike is the owner, roaster, and green buyer for Coffee Klatch Roasting.  He has received numerous awards for his coffees, business, and baristas including being home to United States Barista Champion Heather Perry.