We had a big wind storm last night and because of that we were without power and water most of the day. Since we could not do the work we had planned we took a trip up the mountain to learn about the coffee process.
This is the forced air coffee drying process that we are learning about. The large screen at the left of this picture is where the cleaned coffee beans are placed. Hot air from the furnace blows in under the screen and then raises up and through the beans to dry them. This requires a generator for the elecricity and fuel to run the heater. If we can do something with solar we should be able to help cut costs.
This is the more traditional coffee drying patio. The beans are spread out on to a concrete patio and then raked every 30 minutes to make sure they dry evenly. The beans are covered at night and then uncovered in the morning. The coffee takes three to six days to dry. This batch will take about six days because we had some cloudy days. It takes a lot of work to make our morning Jo.
This is a picture of the younger coffee plants on the hillside. I found it difficult to walk up the hill and I would think it would be a lot harder to do it carrying a bag of coffee beans. But if you are picking coffee and decide to turn around you will get to see this view.
This is the reason why some people like to live here.
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