There are only 2 coffee varieties suitable for consumption: Robusta & Arabica. Robusta grows on larger shrubs than Arabica, it is undemanding as far as the climate is concerned (it also grows in the tropical lowland), yields large quantities and is not popular with pests and parasites. Because of these properties it makes up the large part (over one third) of world coffee production. The flavour of Robusta is strong but lacks sophistication. It is high in caffeine and is usually mixed with Arabica to create a blend of acceptable flavour compromise. Unless explicitly stated on the package all coffee you find on supermarket shelves as well as all instant coffees contain a great deal of Robusta.

Arabica only grows in the tropical highlands (most growing areas are between 600 and 1200 m above sea level), it prefers volcanic soil, and on the steep mountian slopes it is difficult and labour intense to grow. Arabica has a lower caffeine content than Robusta, which is why it may be considered a true alternative to both regular coffee blends and decaffeinated coffee. Particularly valuable are the true highland Arabicas, grown between 1,400 and 1,800 m above sea level. Due to their special growth conditions they develop a fine acid and outstanding flavour. Ex plantation a good organic highland Arabica can cost 10 times as much as a Robusta mass quality. This of course makes its price too high for the mass market, and it is therefore simply mot found in regular retail stores, but also because of its limited availability it is not available from any mass marketers of coffee. Most of the Arabica world production (but the worse part of it) is in fact used for blending with Robusta.

Now the coffee type and its origin alone do not say everything. The best way to appreciate the difference is to actually visit the plantation during harvest and processing of the crop. Whenever huge volumes of coffee are to be producted for rock bottom world market prices, this can only happen at the expense of quality. Productivity is boosted by artificial fertilizers and pesticides, and harvests are economized by picking green berries along with overripe ones in one go. The result is in average as OK as a steak that is burnt outside and raw inside.

Our coffee is a true highland Arabica, grown at an altitude of 1500-1700 m above sea level, on perfect soil of million year old vulcanic origin, and without artificial/chemical fertilizers or pesticides. The berries are harvested in several rounds of picking during the season: Each time only the ones of perfect ripeness are selected. The harvested berries are then processed and washed with utmost care. Once the green coffee beans have passed their final stage of processing the final quality check is done manually by hand picking the 1A grade whole coffee beans out and by downgrading or rejecting broken or otherwise defective beans. We buy this coffee from the farmers at a fair price that reflects the efforts they take. We give the coffee farmers the feeling that their special quality is appreciated and an incentive to enjoy and continue their good work. Even for the limited quantity of Arabica coffee grown on the Elephant Mountain our organic quality is not the rule: it only makes up less than 20% of the coffee grown there, but with with an increasing tendency.