Meet Jeremias Lietig Braga, better known as "Jere," the coffee whisperer from Afonso Cláudio, nestled in the Espírito Santo mountains. A proud descendant of Pomeranians and Portuguese settlers, Jere rocks the coffee world from his two estates—one in Alto Pontos and the other in Corrego da Liberdade. As a third-generation coffee maker, the coffee magic runs deep in his veins.
The story of Sítio Braga, just a 7km jog from the city center, begins with a romantic twist—Jere inherited it from his wife Sueli Schwantz. With 1 hectare planted with 4,000 Arabica trees, this little gem started producing the good beans in 2017. Perched at 1157 meters, where winter temperatures nudge down to a chilly 8°C, they crank out 20 bags of specialty coffee per annum.
Jere and Sueli? They're basically coffee celebrities in the region. They’ve rocked the finals of the Cafuso/UCC competition several times and snagged 2nd place in the 2021 municipal showdown and 3rd in the Coopeavi specialty coffee rumble. Not stopping there, at Bourbon’s Microlot contest, they recently placed an impressive 8th with their Catucaí 785/15, which scored a cool 88 points.
"Specialty coffee, aside from padding my wallet, has upped our local fame and introduced me to loads of folks. But let’s be real—friendships are the best perk," says Jeremias. At their farm, every coffee cherry is handpicked with love, pulped to perfection, and then given a spa-like fermentation treatment to shed some of its mucilage before heading to the drying beds.
These beans aren’t just sunbathed; they’re pampered! Tucked in parabolic dryers, they're turned every 30 minutes to ensure they dry evenly. With multiple temperature monitors and sections that adjust for airflow, it’s like a five-star resort for coffee. Each year, this tiny plot produces about 40 bags of coffee gold.
Brazilian microlots are the new kids on the block in the specialty coffee scene, compared to the mega-farms typically found here. Our green coffee partner’s microlots are either a select batch kept separate from the main crop of a single estate or the precious product of many small-scale farmers in traditional supply regions.
This coffee is processed using the pulped natural method, akin to the honey process. It involves stripping the cherry skin and some (but not all) of the fruity mucilage to craft a signature aroma and mouthfeel. The beans are depulped and then left to dry in their sticky mucilage for up to two weeks, ensuring each cup is just as spectacular as the stories behind them. Cheers to Jere and his coffee adventures!
