Adhi Jusuf-Beaneka Specialty: Coffee Insurrection Hero Chapter #58

Published by Tanya in Coffee Insurrection Hero · 12 August 2022
Tags: AdhiJusuf, BeanekaSpecialtyCoffee, California, San, Francisco, USA, SpecialtyCoffee, Barista

1- Introduce yourself: who are you, where are you from, where do you work and what’s your job.

Hi, I’m Adhi Jusuf. Currently, I live in San Francisco Bay Area, California. I have work in IT field for more than 20 years. I also work alongside with Bryan Theonardo who is a SCA certified barista, Q grader and master roaster. We co-founded Beaneka Specialty Coffee and Roastery in 2019.

2- When and why did coffee become important to you?

During our trip to Indonesia, we met the coffee farmers in Toraja – Sulawesi. We were astonished that the price gap between the farmers and the consumers in the US was so large. From there, we did some research to find the reason. Other than the logistic cost, the biggest chunk was taken by the large distributor who controlled the majority of supply to the US market. We decided to do our small part in bringing more equality in other words, to shift the balance toward the farmers in this complex trade.

By paying more and support our farmers colleague, we feel that we can do our part in this “fight”. We also realized that if we “give” more money, the impact wouldn’t be as tangible as when we provide support in other ways. From partially funding after school education for the farmers children, funding education and training for better farming, to facilitate export from Indonesia – we did what we could do in our limited way.

3- Do you remember the first coffee you had that was more than “just a cup of coffee”?

This moment was when we did a coffee cupping to a 17 year old coffee farmer’s daughter after we found out that she never even tasted her own coffee. For her, the coffee that the family produced was only to be sold to the co-op while she drank “local”/dark roasted blend from the market. That day, high on caffeine at 1 am, I realized that coffee is not just a hot beverage. Coffee can connect different worlds, a conduit to make the world a little more equal.

4- What’s your favorite thing about going to work in the morning?

I enjoy the serenity and the time I have with myself to “check” whether I am still on course with my goal.

5- What’s your favorite brewing method and why?

I enjoy Indonesian Tubruk. With its simplicity and pureness, tubruk method is the original way of Indonesian drinks coffee. Why do we have to drink coffee in latte or … worse… caramel “macchiato”? The place where coffee grows has the experience and in a way, understand best how coffee should be treated.

6- Which is the best coffee you ever tasted?

Coffee, like life, changes all the time. The surroundings, the meaning, the feeling during the time you drink coffee all affects the experience.

7- Is there a country of origin that you tend to favor coffee from? Why?

I favor Indonesian coffee due to my connection to the land. My connection to the farmers and more importantly, to my goal to make a difference for the Indonesian coffee farmers.

8- Suggest us a roastery to check (not the one you working at/you use at work).

Zocalo Coffee

9- What’s the most important things you’ve learnt while working in the business?

The power of a few distributors and the established channels for coffee is very hard to compete with.

10- How your work and the specialty coffee world are coping with Covid and the new challenges for hospitality?

I wish I know how to manage the rising transportation costs that we experience now. While the supply is there, the logistic of bringing the coffee here is quite difficult. With cost quadrupled in the past 3 years, we are faced with difficult challenges.

11- How do you see the specialty coffee scene in 10 years?

With global warming affecting the coffee production, coffee will only increase in price making it more valuable. High elevation coffee will be the holly grail while the big farm similar to banana plantation will take over the supply.

12- Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

Hopefully in 10 years, I will have achieved some of my goals in “uplifting the origin” mission statement of Beaneka Coffee.

13- Any last word? Any tip or suggestion you wanna share with someone that want to start this path?

Don’t…..