Born in Carmo De Minas on the same day as the founding of COCARIVE, Sergio Dias grew up on his family’s farm. His father was a dairy and coffee producer and his mother a home maker. In 1980 Sergio had the opportunity to study in the US as an exchange student. He lived with a family in Tukwila, WA and found a way to stay to study through college. As Sergio watched the coffee scene in Seattle build through the 1980s and 1990s he always dreamed of importing coffees from his home town to the US market.
In 1980, Ibraim Chaib purchased Condado Estate. Through the 80s and 90s he worked exclusively with cattle and coffee. Like most farmers during this time the infrastructure and coffee scene was strictly commodity focused. As coffee knowledge began to grow within the region Condado began adapting its old school structure to produce and process quality coffee. One such way was the installation of a pulping machine, giving birth to the famous Condado Pulped Natural.
In 2006, after building a T- shirt business and a family in Seattle, Sergio purchased the farm that had belonged to his grandfather from a cousin. In partnership with his brother-in-law Ibraim Chaib, the two became the first farmers to export coffee from Carmo de Minas to the US market.
JC’s focus has always been on quality over quantity, building direct relationships with smaller roasters who are interested in paying a fair and just price for the coffees they source, and connecting the roasters who purchase their beans with the farmers who grow them.
Thank you.
Sergio & Anita – Canaan Estate Coffee
Ibraim & Marly – Condado Estate Coffee
