What sets us apart...The Tale of Pekerau Hills Coffee Farm Once upon a time the family farm, extended bare rolling hills of green grass, echoing of distant noise of animals being moved, dog barking, men yelling, wind blowing from the sea and then the silence, when the day was done. The silence of the land, that had been a forest, a farm and had become a tropical garden. On this land, in 1998, were planted the first three coffee trees, as part as an aesthetic and passion for subtropical plants. The plants grew, quiet as they are, amongst the Vireya-rhododendrons and palm trees. Too quiet, many, so they got forgotten. Until a new sound was heard on the hilltop of Pekerau, a day of 2009, when Rob started is first roaster, a small 3kg Dietrich, experimenting over his new passion for coffee. The perpetual rotative consonance resonated the memory of those plants and this is when it really all started. Having the land around and the pioneer blood within, Rob followed a subtle, yet persistent calling to grow all the plants that were going to become, the coffee plantation. This undertaking didn’t go without challenge and the plant were not performing well. In 2014, travelling to New Caledonia, to participate to a coffee festival, Rob met experienced coffee farmers. This point in time catalyzed the indelible sense of identity into a purpose. He was determined to craft something that had never been done before in New Zealand: growing coffee commercially and offering it to Kiwis. Slowly, doubtfully, tittering constantly on the brink of success and failure, with patience, dedication and trust into one’s fate, Rob left no stone unturned. He kept working on the project whilst the roasting business was evolving in parallel manner. Season after season, he learnt more about the land, the plants and himself… In 2022, the Arabica Laurina varietal of Pekerau Hills coffee farm was offered to the public and sold commercially. Since, Rob and Marie haven’t stopped developing the project and the plantation. Having the same creative conviction that the Arabica Laurina varietal is upon its return. Every summer is a new opportunity to explore and experiment on processing technics. Every winter is a chance to understand how the plants perform in New Zealand, on the fringe of coffee growing possibilities. Every week is an instance for perfecting roasting profiles, and every day is an occasion to savour coffee and share the love of what we believe in. |