We don’t get to taste a lot of coffees from Southeast Asia, at least not compared to the many African and American coffees we tend to see in a year, so we’re always excited to see a new one pop up on our roasters’ shelves. This particular Asian coffee, roasted by our friends at Truth. Coffee Roasting, comes from an especially rare Asian coffee origin: Myanmar, also known as Burma. 

Myanmar is the largest country in mainland Southeast Asia by area, and is bordered by Bangladesh and India to the West and Thailand and Laos to the East. Coffee cultivation in Myanmar began in 1885 under British colonial rule. British missionaries first introduced Robusta to a few regions, and by the 1930s, coffee production had grown significantly and included large Arabica plantations too. Following independence in 1947, Myanmar faced significant challenges due to the civil turmoil of the post-independence era. However, coffee production persevered, and by 2005 Myanmar’s coffee plantations spanned a collective 35,000 acres.

However, despite boasting the right soil, altitudes and climate for specialty coffee, production only took off in the mid-2010s. With the help of the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) and Q Grader instructor Mario Fernández, and funding from the US Agency for International Development, Myanmar’s coffee farmers began consistently producing lots that scored 85 and above on the CQIs quality tests. 

This particular coffee was produced by members of the Danu Hill Tribe, smallholder owners of small, pesticide-free coffee plots in Myanmar’s Ywar Ngan region. Coffee production was begun there by U Win Aung Kyaw, a notorious roaster-turned-coffee entrepreneur famous for distributing hundreds of thousands of Red Catui seedlings to smallholder farmers in the early 21st century with the help of international experts and government micro-loans, for which he is called “The Godfather” of Myanmar’s coffee industry. 

Myanmar coffee can be especially unique compared to more familiar South American and African coffees. This lot has undergone a progressive processing method, anaerobic fermentation, which should make its particular characteristics shine all the more. 

Coffee details

• Truth’s tasting notes: Strawberry, watermelon, red vermouth, mango, caramelized berries
• Origin: Myanmar, Ywar Ngan, Shan state
• District: Gerbota Village
• Producer: Smallholder farmers of the Danu Hill Tribe, in collaboration with Mandalay Coffee Group
• Varieties: Red Catuai
• Process: Natural, Anaerobic fermentation
• Altitude: 1300 - 1660masl