All About Doi Chaang
Where is Doi Chaang?
Doi Chaang Coffee is cultivated and processed in the remote Doi Chaang village
located within the Northern Thailand region of the Golden Triangle. The coffee
is cultivated in small family gardens where everyone remains committed to maintaining
sustainable agriculture and having minimal impact on the beautiful natural habitat.
All aspects of production are carefully monitored to ensure the consistent and
optimal taste in every cup of Doi Chaang coffee.
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The Doi Chaang Community
The Doi Chaang village community sits on a mountainous hillside within the Chiang
Rai province of Northern Thailand. Their plantation covers more than 6000 acres
and is surrounded by lush old forest growth, fresh flowing spring water and
breathtaking mountain views. With the high altitudes, ideal climate and perfect
soil conditions, Doi Chaang Village is one of the premium regions of the world
to cultivate and process Arabica coffee. The success of Doi Chaang Coffee has
given the once isolated community many modern conveniences and opportunities
that many other hill tribes people and their villages still lack. In Doi Chaang
Village, there is now fresh running water, a sewage system, electricity, a small
school and a medical clinic as well as improved road conditions for easier access
to the city and its amenities. Their community has over 800 families and a total
of 8,000 people, all living and working together cultivating and processing
a world-class Arabica coffee. Sustainable agricultural practices encourages
the cultivation of various other crops, which are sold to help stabilize and
diversify the community’s economy.
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The People
The majority of families in Doi Chaang Village are of Akha heritage. An Asian
indigenous people, the Akha originated in Southwestern China and have settled
throughout the mountains of Laos,
Vietnam and Northern Thailand. Rich in culture and tradition, our villagers
have no official written language but do maintain a detailed oral history and
live life according to the “Akha Way”, a spiritual, moral and social
philosophy that governs behaviour and emphasizes strong ties to land and family.
As with many other hill tribes of the Golden Triangle, the Akha people struggle
against prejudice, isolation and poverty. Many of the younger generations leave
their villages to look for a better life
in the cities.
The Akha villagers of Doi Chaang are self-sufficient and self-directed. The
success of Doi Chaang Coffee allows the Akha families to maintain their heritage
and cultural values while providing the
necessary economic stability and growth for the community. Many of their youth
are now receiving higher levels of education and returning to their Akha roots
in Doi Chaang Village to share in the prosperity of the coffee company.
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The History
Prior to cultivating and processing coffee, many hill tribe villagers, including
Doi Chaang villagers, grew the most tradable commodity from our infamous Golden
Triangle, opium. This, along with the horticultural practice of slash-and-burn,
were resulting in the deforestation and destruction of precious watersheds.
In 1983, his Majesty, King Bhumibol, took action to improve the lives of his
people and began the Royal Initiatives. The King encouraged crop substitutions
with the goal of creating sustainable agriculture while eliminating opium cultivation
and slash and burn horticulture. Under his personal direction, aid and assistance
were received from the Thai government and the United Nations.
The Doi Chaang villagers received a variety of high quality Arabica plants and
continuous technical support until cultivating and processing methods were well
established. Over the next 20 years our families cultivated their own coffee
independently and individually sold their own beans to international coffee
dealers for minimal prices. However, once united our families soon proved themselves
as a resourceful and successful, independent coffee company. They now proudly
produce the pinnacle of world class Arabica coffees.
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The Kingdom of Thailand
is located in the heart of Southeast Asia and is renowned for its natural beauty,
ancient history, rich culture, diversified economy and hospitality. The country
is naturally divided into four regions. The Northwest, in which Doi Chaang is
located, has lush forested mountains and deep narrow valleys with remnants of
ancient Kingdoms, beautiful temples and remote hill tribe scattering throughout
the area. The Northeast, which covers one-third of Thailand and consists mainly
of arid farm land, was once the centre of a Bronze Age civilization where many
relics and monuments remain to attest to the splendour of pre-historic times.
Central Thailand has rich fertile farm land with vast and extensive rice fields.
It is also the home to Bangkok city, the country’s capital and financial,
political and cultural centre. The Southern region is the hub of tourism with
its long coast line of beautiful beaches, coral reefs and tropical Islands.
It is also centre for vital rubber, tin and fishing industries.
Buddhism is the national religion of Thailand and it is interwoven into daily
life with various duties and ceremonies. Buddhist festivals, holidays and events
dominate the annual calendar and the Buddhist temple is the centre of the village
often serving as a school, orphanage or meeting hall. Modern Thailand combines
traditional Buddhist culture, ancient history and traditional customs with the
latest technology, political stability and diverse economy. From the excitement
of Bangkok city to the lush mountain tops to the wild jungle to the white sun-drenched
beaches, Thailand is filled with scenic beauty and rich diverse culture, and
justly know as the “land of smiles”.
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Facts about Thailand
• Population: 65 million
• Total Area: 514,000 sq km Coastline: 3,219 km
• Government: Constitutional Monarchy
• Literacy: 93.8%
• Religion: 95% Buddhist
• Original Name: Siam
• Thailand is the world’s 2nd largest tungsten producer
and 3rd largest tin producer
• Number of tigers left in Thailand today: approx. 2000
• The world’s tallest Buddhist monument:
127 meters or 387 feet stands in the town of Nakhon Pathom
• The meaning of the word Thailand is land of the free
• Thailand has about 26,000 temples
• Thailand has 80 national parks, 18 of those are marine parks
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Environmental Benefits/ Sustainable Agriculture
Cultivating the coffee under a canopy of various shade trees enhances the micro-climate
of our plantation and creates a balanced ecosystem that mirrors that of a natural
forest setting, while providing a natural habitat for numerous plants and animals.
This cultivation method maintains soil quality, as the canopy protects against
the sun and rain. The base and roots of the trees prevent the soil from eroding
which aids in moisture retention while the fallen leaves provide nutrients to
replenish the soil. This method also eliminates the need for deforestation,
continuous weeding and the use of harmful chemicals. The fertilizer is 95% recycled
cherry pulp and manure and at no time are chemicals used on the coffee plants.
This setting also allows for the cultivation of various other crops.
All of this results in sustainable-agriculture. As with most of the hill tribe
people of the golden triangle, Doi Chaang coffee growers traditionally cultivated
opium, which depleted that land of its natural resources through clear cutting
and “slash ‘n burn” horticulture. However, cultivating under
the canopy of shade trees not only maintains our natural environment it also
provides rich fertile soil that will sustain diverse crop production for both
our present and the future generations.
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Grown under Forest Canopy
The family owned growing gardens are nestled inside old forest growth, surrounded
by fresh flowing spring water and scenic beauty. The rich, fertile soil, high
elevations, and ample rainfall make the Doi Chaang village one of the premium
coffee growing regions of the world.
This single estate Arabica is cultivated under the canopy of sun filtered plum,
peach, pear and macadamia nut trees at altitudes between 3,937 to 5,249 feet
above sea level. The fallen leaves from the various fruit and nut trees create
nutritious mulch for the coffee plants and provide a subtle fruit and nutty
taste to the coffee. The shade and high altitudes slow the growth of the coffee
cherries creating a more complex, dense and intensely flavorful bean. The fertilizer
used is 95% recycled cherry pulp and manure; Doi Chaang does not use any
chemicals on the coffee plants. Shade-grown cultivation methods provide
sustainable agriculture, maintains soil quality, and eliminates the need for
deforestation. The shade also enhances the mico-climate of the Doi Chaang plantation,
creating a balanced ecosystem that mirrors that of a forest setting and provides
a natural habitat for numerous animals and plants.
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Harvesting
T he cherry flowers begin to bloom in February and the cherry fruit is ready
for harvesting from November to March. Selectively hand picking only the ripe
cherries ensures minimal damage to the coffee plants and that only the very
best cherries are processed.
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Fully Wet-Method Processing
This labour intensive, traditional processing method washes and flushes the
bean from its fruit. Although time consuming, the wet-method helps maintain
the inherent qualities of the beans. Careful monitoring of each step ensures
consistent and optimal taste. Several layers surround the coffee bean: parchment,
mucilage, pulp and skin.
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Extraction
Firstly, coffee cherries are pre-washed in a tank of fresh spring water where
all the ripe cherries will sink to the bottom and any unripe or over-ripe cherries
will float to the top where they are removed. Secondly, the coffee cherries
are put through a pulping machine to remove the skin and pulp. Thirdly, the
beans are fermented in water to remove the mucilage and enhance their aromatic
and flavour qualities. Finally, the coffee beans are thoroughly handwashed with
fresh flowing spring water to remove all traces of the mucilage; then the coffee
beans are soaked in fresh natural spring water for another 20 - 24 hours before
drying. The mucilage and fermented byproducts will be recycled as fertilizer
for the coffee plants.
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Drying
The parchment-covered beans are evenly spread on patios to naturally sun dry
over the next seven to eight days. During this time, continual hand raking and
re-spreading of the beans occurs to ensure they fully dry. In the evenings,
the coffee beans are piled up and covered to protect them from moisture. Once
the coffee beans are dried to an 11% moisture level, they are warehoused and held ready for final processing.
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Hulling
This final stage of processing is done just prior to roasting. The coffee beans
are removed from the final parchment layer with the use of a hulling machine.
Up to this stage, each of the Doi Chaang families have cultivated and processed
their own beans under strict quality control. Now, they collectively hull and sort all the coffee beans.
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Sorting
The coffee beans are initially sorted and graded by shaking the beans through
different
sized sieves and then hand-sorted to ensure only the finest grade beans are
made available.
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