The Coffee
: @Gungegiri, Sangameshwar
: @Beachville Coffee
: SLN795
: Washed
The Estate : Gungegiri, Sangameshwar
Sangameshwar Coffee has come a long way in taking forward the vision of our beloved founder Shri. K.S.Vaidyanathan. The third generation coffee planters of SCE are Mr.S. Appadurai and Mrs Hamsini Appadurai. The duo work together as a team in managing pre and post-harvest requirements of the coffee grown at the estate
In 1886, the pioneer of the Billigiri Rangans, Randolph Hayton Morriss had a love affair with the Biligirirangan Hills. From the northern end of the Nilgiris, he could see a range of distant hills known to the general population. After being wooed by the beauty of Billigiri, he slowly started bringing his family into open neighboring estates for them to explore and absorb the beauty of those hills.
In 1887, he obtained a sizable forest area from the Forest Department. Under harsh circumstances, he opened the first of his five estates, the Attikan in 1890, which is Greek for “grove of wild figs.” His undying love for the green hills made him bring his wife Mabel Oliver with him in 1891. Soon after, they had three beautiful children, a daughter and two sons.
His exploration of the green fields inculcated his routine life. One day, in 1985, on his usual rendezvous in the jungle, our hero was gored by a Bison. Although it took almost four days for the doctor to reach him by Bullock Cart, his determination which sowed the genes for the Attikan estate helped him recover.
His unparalleled dedication to exploring coffee paved the way for his recovery. Post survival, he ventured into Gold mining and lived till 1918, when he succumbed to pneumonia. His eldest son Eric came to India in 1914, and after serving commissions at the two world wars settled in Attikan with his two daughters Priscilla and Anthea. Anthea visited us in 2008 with the fondest of memories of her childhood at Attiki. Our charismatic Grandfather and our founder K S Vaidyanathan ventured into the hills and took over Attikan in 1958 with the same adventurous spirit. His vigour and love for the green beauty were always remembered and cherished by the people who knew him.
The estates spanning over 950 hectares are situated in altitudes ranging from 900 to 1650 MASL, The acreage is spread across pristine surroundings in Chikmagalur, Belur and in The Billigiri Ranga Hills (BR Hills)
The estates comprise of both Arabica and Robusta varieties. The average annual yield is around 750 MT- comprising of 600MT Arabica and 150 MT Robusta. Each estate with their specialized wet mills are skilled in producing Special Washed , Honey Sun-dried and Natural Coffees. The specialty of Sangameshwar is their carefully processed Naturals.
The Estates in their entirety constitute an abundance of biodiversity and are also home to plant life like Pepper, Arecanut ,Oranges, Wild figs and a range of other indigenous flora, fauna, bird, insect and animal life.(1)
- Gungegiri
- Karadykan
- Kondadkan
- Attikan (1)
Gungegiri Estate
The British brothers WL Crawford and CS Crawford cultivated coffee for the first time in Gungegiri in 1890. The hills at the estate are a copious water source for numerous streams flowing through the farm hence the name ‘Ganga’. This fertile landscape is a haven for a large number of peacocks amongst other species. Coffee is grown under indigenous species of trees like Atti (Fig), Basri (), Neeroli () for cultivation under filtered shade. The hill of Gungegiri acts like the northern star providing direction to forest trekkers .
The Roaster : Beachville Coffee
Beachville is owned and run by Divya Jaishankar along with Sandesh Reddy. Divya started this Specialty Coffee Roastery-Cafe in 2018 and my first experience with them was ordering their Kelagur Heights Geisha during the peak of the pandemic. Beautiful cafe and lovely ambience, lovely pastries and food.
also the have A SLAYER!!!!! enuf said (mic drop) (3)
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What i want to Remember
that this was the coffee that Binny Varghese AKA Barista on Bike made for me when he visited Beachville as a Trainer. A quick morning, some laughs, life updates and a quick coffee and breakfast.
iam not into washed coffees but this coffee wasnt the usual. absoluted LOVED having this over the V60, more so with the AP. Add some ice and eh voila!
