Sharing, the Secret Behind the Country of Overflowing Coffee

There is a long story behind each delicious cup of coffee. From planting, to processing, to serving, many human hands are involved. It was two o’clock in the afternoon when Deri Yasnur opened her 10-meter by 10 m coffee shop, D\'Kuffee, in Bandung, West Java, on Tuesday.

KOMPAS/WINARTO HERUSANSONO

The young people of the Salatiga Coffee Lover Community (Koplo) in Salatiga, Central Java, have started a coffee shop business and are working to empower the coffee farming community. In addition to assisting coffee farmers to properly process post-harvest coffee beans, Koplo also promoted Salatiga coffee at the Salatiga Expo 2018 at Pancasila Square, Saturday (14/7/2018). The exhibition was held under the theme “Salatiga Coffee for Indonesia”.

There is a long story behind each delicious cup of coffee. From planting, to processing, to serving, many human hands are involved.

It was two o’clock in the afternoon when Deri Yasnur, 25, opened her 10-meter by 10 m coffee shop, D\'Kuffee, on Jalan Sriwijaya 123, Regol, Bandung, West Java, on Tuesday.

To make a cup of coffee, she first weighs 16 grams of puntang coffee beans from Malabar, Bandung regency. The beans are then ground before being brewed using the V60 technique.

The V60 technique, Deri said, was the first coffee mixing method she mastered after taking part in a barista training course early last year. The training was organized by PT Agro Jabar, a company owned by the West Java government, in cooperation with Aing Coffee Shop. During the training, Deri learned a lot about coffee -- from upstream to downstream, from the best seed selection to business management.

"With the management skills I obtained, I managed to bounce back after going broke selling Korean food. Now, I am more organized in finance and find more creative ways to grow my business," she said.

One creative move was to combine her coffee shop with a barbershop. The combination allows customers who are waiting to have their hair cut to enjoy a coffee priced between Rp 12,000 and Rp 25,000 per cup.

Her creativity has led to greater profits. From the coffee and barber business, she earns three times the amount she earned from her Korean food stall. Within a month, she can earn up to Rp 10 million.

"I was lucky I was able to join the barista training course and meet Kang Evin. He shared so much knowledge about coffee, even after the training was over,” she added.

Evin Brenda, 33, is quite popular among baristas in West Java. As one of the baristas working at the Aing Coffee Shop, he was been appointed as a juror for several national coffee competitions. With his expertise, he often receives offers to work at reputable coffee shops. However, he is not just looking for rupiah.

"I am happy to share. My main principle is that everyone should grow together," he said. Since its opening two years ago, the Aing Coffee Shop has held three short barista training courses a day. Each course is attended by 20 people from various backgrounds. Evin does not charge a fee. The participants need to pay only Rp 500,000 each for the materials used during the training. Normally, a barista training course costs Rp 5 million per person.

Evin is serious about teaching new baristas. For him, a barista must understand the joys and sorrows of growing coffee, the distribution of the coffee beans and in managing a business.

"Some of the training participants now run their own coffee shops. Some have also shared their expertise with other people," said Evin who recently spent a month in Italy to learn more about coffee.

KOMPAS/WINARTO HERUSANSONO

The young people of the Salatiga Coffee Lover Community (Koplo) in Salatiga, Central Java, are not only working to establish a coffee shop business but also assisting coffee farmers to properly process post-harvest coffee beans. The young people promoted Salatiga coffee at the Salatiga Expo 2018 at Pancasila Square, Saturday (14/7/2018). Munadi, owner of Logos Cafe (left), together with colleagues from the Koplo community, prepare coffee for customers. The price of a cup of coffee is only Rp 10,000.

The philosophy of sharing and growing together is also developing in Central Java. Muhammad Rosyid, 38, a son of a coffee farmer in Sirap village on Mount Kelir, Semarang, learned the philosophy from coffee enthusiasts in Semarang and Salatiga. He then realized the coffee grown by his family could become a business.

Just six months after its establishment, the Warung Ndeso Kopi Sirap coffee shop began earning a profit. Initially, the shop, which is located in the middle of the Kelir coffee plantation, sold around 1.5 kilograms of coffee per day. Now, on weekends, the shop can go through three kilograms per day.

"The popularity of the coffee shop has grown thanks to the movie Filosofi Kopi. It is good that we can enjoy free promotion," he said.

Now, there are 10 young people working at the coffee shop. They come from nearby villages. Some have mastered the art of coffee brewing and have even opened their own coffee shops in other locations in Karangjati district, Ungaran and Ambarawa. In addition to their coffee business, they also teach local women to sort and process coffee beans.

Coffee promotion

Members of the Salatiga Coffee Lover Community are also involved in the coffee business. Established five years ago, 20 of its 32 members run their own coffee shops. However, having their own coffee shops does not make them big headed. Munadi, 31, the owner of Logos Cafe, said he offered free coffee at least once a month as part of the promotion for his coffee shop. He offers about 150 cups of free coffee during the promotion.

Although he has been a barista for just six months at D\'kuffee Cafe in Bandung, Ekbar Yuditia, 20, has gained a lot of experience. He has been instructing his two colleagues, who previously worked as shop assistants in Garut. He was told to always share his knowledge with everyone. "There is no reason for me to ask for a reward from people who are really excited about learning to make coffee," he said.

Sharing is only part of the story. Through Jelajah Kopi Nusantara, Kompas daily partnered with Bank BRI to explore the wealth of coffee in the archipelago.

The team travelled from Aceh to Papua, witnessing the ups and downs, joys and spirit of the Indonesian people as they shared their knowledge of coffee. A serial report of the adventure was published in Kompas between April 11 and June 6, 2018.

To share more insights from the adventure, Kompas is organizing the Nusantara Coffee Festival to be held at Bentara Budaya, Jakarta, from July 19 to 22. Farmers from nine regions across Indonesia will show off their specialty coffees. A photo exhibition and video from the adventure will be also  be shown during the event.

While the long story of coffee in this country may not be sufficiently narrated in such a short time, through such events and activities, Kompas daily desires to promote the commodity so that people can prosper.

(WHO/TAM/CHE)