Tales of the Authentic Guadeloupe Bonifieur

Kaché Coffee Launch at 2012 London Tea and Coffee Festival

A lot of people think they know coffee, well not quite like my good friend Vanessa Bolosier. Vanessa is from Guadeloupe, and she runs numerous fine food and beverage operations; with Carib Gourmet being her central fine cuisine company. Carib Gourmet recently launched its first in-house gourmet coffee brand, the Kaché. Guadeloupe is a French island territory located in the Caribbean. France still governs the island, and the island’s history is one that fascinates me. Why coffee you may ask? Coffee is a very special commodity; it has no nutritional value what so ever, but people consume it as if it did. Coffee is also a very complex subject matter, one that encapsulates past and present foreign policy relations, slavery, war, income disparities, environmental and fair trade issues among others. 

The Authentic Guadeloupe Bonifieur Coffee

Kaché coffee is grown and cultivated in Guadeloupe. What makes Kaché so special is its history and tradition. The Guadeloupe Bonifieur is the Caribbean region’s most sacred and rarest coffee bean. The Bonifieur draws its lineage from the Arabica Laurina. This line of Arabica arrived in Guadeloupe in 1723, brought in by a French mariner called Gabriel du Clieu. Guadeloupe’s economy at the time was largely agricultural. What makes the Bonifieur’s story so emotional is the direct link between its cultivation and the slave trade. The New World at the time saw an exponential increase in the number of Africans being sent to the Americas. Although most of Guadeloupe’s present day population is mainly of African descent, the island was first discovered by the Arawak Indians of Venezuela, who called it Karukera, which directly translates to “island of the beautiful waters”. The African slaves were brought in once the island’s mineral and agricultural booms became economic imperatives for France. Present day Guadeloupe enjoys a thriving economy along with a rich and diverse society. Unlike other types of coffee, Guadeloupe’s Bonifieur reflects a sense of overcoming the worst of odds. The underlying story here is that the people who were once forced to cultivate this coffee under deprived conditions have today taken ownership of the very same coffee and have made it their own. Vanessa tells me that her ancestors, the Caribe people, worked on the plantations, and guess what, she’s continuing on their legacy through Kaché. Working on Kaché has taught me that no matter the ugliness, beauty always triumphs. 

Photography credits: Minami Yamashita & Vanessa Bolosier 

 

Private icon: Japanese selvage denim

Hiroki Nakamura & Diane Pernet

 Here's a preview article which focuses on the origins of Japanese selvage denim. Fashion icons such as Hiroki Nakamura, Nigo, Pharrell all subscribe to the true provenance of high quality denim. PhsicsMag's Private issue in the works. Thank you - Tebs

Japanese selvage denim

The Japanese city of Okayama, the capital city of Okayama Prefecture situated about 540 km south west of the country’s capital, is renowned for its mysterious 400 year old castle, which sits on the banks  of the Takahashi River. The fall of the Meiji government and the subsequent post World War II reconstruction meant that Japan’s cities saw rapid economic growth and exponential industrial expansion. Denim production only reached Japan in the 1950s. This was due to a decline in the demand for imported denim from the U.S and Europe, which led to the purchasing of traditional shuttle looms from American denim milling facilities by Japanese denim manufacturers. It’s fair to say that Japanese selvage denim actually originates from the States, well… the technology thereof. 

denim dying process

 A shuttle loom is a piece of machinery that is used in the weaving process of yarn. The first loom was patented by John Kay in 1733, which was known as the Flying Shuttle. Between the 1930s and 1950s, an increase in the demand for denim in America meant that milling facilities had to adapt their machinery to meet the growing demand. A lot of facilities chose to let go of the traditional shuttle looms, which are said to have been inefficient and cumbersome. Letting go of these shuttle looms paved the way for automated projectile looms, which produced in mass, and allowed for an effective economies of scale. Japanese milling facilities bought the shuttle looms at the time. 

shuttle loom

Today, selvage denim is perhaps the most desired denim fabric due to its superior texture and authentic feel. What’s the difference, you may ask? In the weaving process of a traditional shuttle loom, the horizontal edges of the thread loop continuously, without leaving any edges which would have to be stitched once the entire process is complete. This quality feature means that your denims last longer.  Selvedge denim doesn’t fray, nor shrink. The craft element is perhaps the most distinguishing factor behind authentic Japanese selvage denim, one which makes it a Private icon. People who appreciate fine craft understand that we are all connected; whether it’s a selvage denim weaving craftsperson in Okayama or a denim enthusiast in South Africa.

Channeling NEWBO cultural ideals

according to Lee Hawkins LeBron James is a NEWBO

Steve Stoute calls it the “Tanning” of society when he describes how hip hop has created the effective bridging of urban cultural ideals with what was deemed as previously being conservative fractions of society. I recently watched known African American CNBC anchorman Lee Hawkins take us through his detailed series which showcases young black multi-millionaires, which he calls the NEWBOs, or the New Black Overclass. NEWBOs have a common characteristic; they have either made their fortune through music, sports or entertainment. Another way these NEWBOs amass great wealth is through personal branding, which is then followed up with endorsements and cross marketing deals. I think it’s a great period in our civilization; athletes such as Floyd Money Mayweather are on the verge of attaining billionaire status through their God given talents. I however have a concern regarding the NEWBOs; the majority of them, meaning 50% and more, rely on endorsements as a way of amassing their fortune. The black community seems to be an advertisers dream. Hip hop has become a culture of destructive consumerism. Please allow me to give an illustration?

Diddy's deal with Diageo to be the face of Ceroc has made him very rich

In 2009, Dr. Dre’s record executive Jimmy Iovine teamed up with Monster, a sound hardware components manufacturer, to bring us a line of headphones which retail at about USD 300. The problem here isn’t that these headphones retail at such a high price, and indeed the price is too high, instead I deem the problem here to be that a respected hip hop figure like Dre was the face of these headphones. The existence of these NEWBOs in the hip hop community has created destructive consumerism. Corporates view influential hip hop figures as an easy access point to millions of young black people, most of which are from relatively disenfranchised backgrounds. 

With all due respect the NEWBOs do make me proud and I can’t sideline their hard work in attaining such a status. But here’s what I would also like to see; in the NEWBO top 10, how about we have a black person who invented an iPad or one who conceptualized and coded a Twitter? In other words, how about we have someone who owns and represents the perceived ideals of the products that they sell? A Nike endorsement means that Nike sees their values and ideals being represented through you, which is why they’ll cancel the deal if you misrepresent them. The hip hop community needs to be mature in its approach and realize that this culture has the power to influence cross cultural ideals.If we took ownership of our branded 'culture', would corporates call the shots on us?