Farmers, Roasters, Baristas

At the end of an unkempt highway lies a series of dirt roads that snake into rows of single-story warehouses. Crunching gravel and the hum of loaded trucks are drowned out by a single scent that wafts longingly through Kunming’s crisp afternoon air. Curious neighbours curve their heads around the corner to find a young engineer pouring fresh coffee beans into a roaring roasting machine. Taking ten minutes to roast, the hand-picked coffee beans from Yunnan’s sun-kissed mountaintops evolve from a natural moss green to a dark and rich whiskey brown.

在一段乡间公路的尽头，连接着几条蜿蜒曲折的泥路，两旁建着几排只有一层楼的仓库。在昆明午后凉爽的空气中，一股诱人芳香飘荡而来，令人忘却了路上嘎吱作响的碎石和载满货物的卡车发出的嗡嗡声音。好奇的邻居在街角伸着头，看着一名年轻的工程师往一台轰隆着的烘焙机里放入新鲜的咖啡豆。十分钟后，这些从沐浴于阳光下的云南山颠纯手工采撷下来的天然鲜绿咖啡豆逐渐变为威士忌酒般的浓郁暗棕色调。

The best of Yunnan’s coffee trees are tucked away in the mountains of Baoshan, an hour and a half by air out of Kunming, Yunnan’s capital. Typica remains one of the most highly sought after breed of Arabica, growing tall and temperamental amongst the fringes of farming communities. Three years ago—before the boom of specialty coffee in China—coffee beans were almost considered to be a negative resource. Lanna Coffee founder Bryan Ra began to experiment with Yunnan-grown beans after moving to Kunming in 2010. At the time, veteran farmer Ms. Yang was days away from unearthing her plantation of Typica plants in favour of fruit trees. If not for his timely partnership with the loyal matriarch of Typica, one of Yunnan’s largest coffee farms would cease to exist today.

在云南，最为上乘的咖啡树藏身于保山地区的群山之中，从云南首府昆明出发，需要乘坐一个半小时的飞机才能到达。铁皮卡仍然是最备受追捧的阿拉比卡咖啡豆品种，这种咖啡豆种植于农业区域边缘高高的咖啡树上，栽培难度很大。三年前——在中国精品咖啡流行之前——咖啡豆可以说一直被视为是一种无益的资源。杨女士是一名有着多年农业种植经验的农民。还有几天，她就要开始开垦她的铁皮卡咖啡豆种植园。她最终选择了种植咖啡豆，而放弃了种植水果。在2010年兰纳咖啡创始人Bryan Ra搬到昆明生活后，成为了首批尝试云南咖啡豆的人。如果他没有与这名坚持种植铁皮卡咖啡豆的女种植园主及时达成合作，云南其中一个最大的咖啡豆种植园今天可能已经不复存在。

“When we first started coming [to Baoshan, Yunnan], there was nobody else. We scouted from farm to farm until we found Ms. Yang, and we started working with her because she grew the best coffee beans. Five years later, everyone, all the big guys—Starbucks, Nespresso, Costa—they’re all here and vying for a piece of Yunnan coffee. But it feels good to know that we were here first and because of that, we get to give our customers the very best cup.”

“当我们刚开始来到这里 (云南,保山) 的时候，还没有其他人来这里买咖啡豆。我们一个个农场地去走访，直到我们找到了杨女士，然后我们开始和她进行合作，因为她能种出品质最佳的咖啡豆。”五年后，所有人，所有的大型咖啡商——Starbucks，Nespresso，Costa——他们都来到了这里，争着购买云南咖啡。但是我们很高兴我们是首先发掘到这个地方的人，正因为如此，我们才能够给我们的顾客提供最好的咖啡。“

Fast forward to today. In a little lane house that’s nestled amongst titan skyscrapers in the heart of Shanghai is where visitors can find Lanna Coffee, their sole coffee shop and the heart of their business that powers the surrounding suits and coffee enthusiasts with quality brew. This tiny café is manned by experienced baristas who charm and delight, greeting customers by name.

让我们把目光转回到今天。兰纳咖啡就坐落于上海的一条小巷子里，藏身于市中心的摩天大楼之间。作为他们经营的唯一一间咖啡厅，这个咖啡厅无疑是他们的业务核心所在，为附近的上班族和咖啡爱好者提供着品质上乘的咖啡。在这一间小小的咖啡厅内，经验丰富的咖啡师以过人魅力和快乐的气氛来迎接顾客，亲切地称呼着每位顾客的名字。

Regulars have their coffee orders confirmed and made upon arrival with nothing more than a familiar glance and a comforting smile. The term “farm-to-cup” is coined from farm-to-table cuisine and is appropriately displayed on their walls – it’s truly the most sincere embodiment of the company’s ethos. Farmers, roasters, baristas—from Yunnan to Shanghai—they’re all working together to put Lanna’s specialty Chinese coffee on the map.

对于这里的常客来说，来到咖啡厅里，他们只需要一个熟悉的眼神和笑容，店员就能知道他们要点的咖啡，并为他们制作好咖啡。“农场到咖啡杯”（farm-to-cup）这个词的灵感来源于“农场到餐桌”（farm-to-table）的美食理念，这个词被郑重地摆放在咖啡厅的墙上，完美地诠释了这家公司的创业宗旨。从云南到上海，农民、咖啡豆烘焙师、咖啡师，他们一起努力，通过兰纳咖啡让精品中国咖啡在咖啡行业留下自己的标记。