Henrique Dias Cambraia - Fazenda Samambaia

Brazil Specialty Coffee Association

Winning farm of the Brazil Cup of Excellence
Competition and Auction - 2001 edition

Henrique Dias Cambraia
Fazenda Samambaia

Characteristics of the coffee lot:

Processing System: Pulped Natural
The winning lot was chosen from an area of 3.2 hectares of the
Mundo Novo variety (28 years old) called "Pé de Manga" Plantation.
Variety: Mundo Novo
Lot size: 28 bags
Average score: 83.75

Characteristics of the farm:

Property: Fazenda Samambaia
E-mail: HenriqueCambraia@global.t-bird.edu
Location: Santo Antônio do Amparo, small location in
the southern part of Minas, State of Minas Gerais.
Total area: 120 hectares
Coffee growing area (according to varieties):
Mundo Novo - 35 hectares
Acaiá - 9 hectares
Yellow Bourbom - 8 hectares

Fazenda Samambaia

Fazenda Samambaia is located in a privileged area of the Southern Minas, a fine coffee production pole, whose producers are known nationally and internationally.

Their success has as its starting point the geographic location, with average altitudes of approximately 1,200 meters above sea level and annual average temperatures of 21^oC (60^oF).

The region is also called "Vertentes", because it is a water divider between two very important basins for Brazil: the Grande River Basin (which runs to the south) and the São Francisco River Basin (which runs to the northeast). Under those ideal conditions for coffee plantations, with no fog during its dry winters, maturation and preparation of excellent coffees occur.

The member of the family responsible for managing the farm, Henrique Dias Cambraia points among many, a series of factors that have led the family to this success: the geographic location of the farm; the competent technical guidance on how to maintain the plantations, with individualized phytosanitary controls of the planting fields; constant training based on total quality control programs; and, most important, the involvement of the whole team that works in the farm.

Coffee plantation area

Cleaning the coffee using a sieve

Furthermore, Henrique Dias Cambraia stresses that, although he was absent from the daily chores of the farm between March 2000 and July 2001 - while he was studying towards his Master's degree in international business in Phoenix, Arizona, U.S. - his employees demonstrated they had totally absorbed the sustainability concept, continuing to produce quality coffees, finely tuned with the environment and human resources values.

Dias Cambraia stresses that in addition to their strong family values, their objectives are always focused in producing high quality coffees, constant controlling the environment, and the social development of their employees and their respective families.

Coffee processing system:
The winning coffee lot was harvested by the tree tops only, and just their ripe part. Subsequently, the cherry coffee was pulped and 100% dried on a terrace with layers of not more than 3 cm. After the coffee was dried it was stored during 60 days in wooden bins. That is how the coffee was processed for the competition.

Processing area - pulper

Drying Terrace in Fazenda Samambaia

Storage area

Quality concerns:
The farms of the Dias Cambraia family have been receiving technical assistance from Agronomist Josué Pereira de Figueiredo, Ph.D. for over ten years. Dr. Figueiredo was the technical coordinator of Brazilian Coffee Institute (IBC) and was also a Cup of Excellence finalist in 2000. Furthermore, the producer always attends events promoted in recent years by the Association of the Coffee Producers of Southern Minas Gerais (Sulminas-Café) and other entities, to obtain information in general and about new technologies which are incorporated into the Dias Cambraia farms productive systems.

Recently, Henrique Dias Cambraia was elected President of Sulminas-Café.

Together with other 20 coffee producers of the Santo Antônio do Amparo region, he founded the Santo Antônio Estate Coffee, for joint technology absorption operation and relationship with the specialty coffee market.

Producer's Statement: "For the second consecutive year, the Dias Cambraia family is a finalist at the Cup of Excellence Competition and Auction. After classifying a coffee of the Fazenda Invernada in 11^th place in 2000, the Dias Cambraia now have a coffee of the Fazenda Samambaia classified in 13^th place. Our family, who has always been one of the finalists of the major quality coffee contests of Brazil in recent years, has been concentrating the focus of its production in specialty coffees for the last three years. The Cup of Excellence Program is a great encouragement to quality improvement", said Henrique Dias Cambraia.