Muantae : Chiang Mai, Thailand - Mae Klang Luang Coffee Village

True coffee lovers will travel to the ends of the earth to get that perfect roast. And that is exactly what our team of intrepid reporters did on a humid midsummer afternoon, scanning the Doi Inthanon mountain ranges from top to bottom: Reach the pinnacle of Thailand’s tallest mountain, at over 2,500 meters above sea level, and you will find your generic Doi Inthanon tourist beverage served from a big, blue (overly-commercialized) booth. But stop almost halfway up the climb – 1,080 kilometers high – at the Mae Klang Luang village and you’ll find the real deal, the genuine fruit of Doi Inthanon soil.

Anyone who has ever ventured up the long, winding road to the highest point in the country will concur: It is gorgeous. Cell phone reception quickly fades, radio signals turn fuzzy, and so you can not help but look outside at the lush greenery, towering cliffs that kiss the clouds, and graduated levels of rice fields. Our Ford Endeavor trembles with resentment as we awkwardly escalate and deescalate through impossibly rough terrains, ultimately reaching a clearing lined with coffee trees. A group of villagers clad in typical bright-hued Karen attires are sitting in a straw-and-wooden shack, sheltered from the sun by its thatched roof as stray chickens and young children run casually on the muddy ground.

“Here is the coffeeshop!” our guide announces. We stood, united in our confusion; the villagers stared back, waiting for us to approach. But as soon as we took a second look, we began to see a far-from-industrial-sized machine, rudimentary in its technology, spinning a blackened barrel that tumbled and roasted coffee beans over a fire. And that was the beauty of it: This coffeeshop – if you could even call it one – was so unapologetically no-frills, that we just had to find out more.

Turns out it is a homegrown operation that started under the auspices of The Royal Project. Head Villager Somsak Kereepoomthong explains that for over two centuries, the Karen hilltribes have been practicing self-sustaining agriculture in these vicinities, living off of the foods that they grow and pick themselves. To this day, almost everybody’s main profession is rice farming, and the yield is bountiful enough to the point where they rarely ever have to buy or rely on foods from elsewhere. Still, in 2004, the villagers were awarded with a 60,000Baht initial grant from The Royal Project to formally set up a coffee-making business as a second source of (more fluid) income.

“Now, it is not only rice: Almost everyone in my village of 256 people grows coffee,” says Somsak, explaining that each family dedicates a considerable portion of their 6-acres of land to this new side venture. And since receiving the prestigious grant from The Royal Project, they have decided to go completely chemical-and-pesticide-free. “We could probably become richer farmers with those things,” Somsak admits. “But we know now that we had only fall victims to the diseases that follow.”

And that is not his only agenda: “I do not see the world in economics,” he adds. “I will do anything to help keep the Ping River clean, because it really is our life source.” Without the use of chemicals, it takes about three years to grow and yield one kilogram of usable coffee beans, which will fetch a market price of anywhere from 160 Baht (Grade A) to 55 Baht (Grade C).

We will assume that what Somsak served us were some Grade A beans, because certainly the taste was of this caliber: Fresh, earthy, and with strong hints of nuttiness enhanced by a rich aroma. Somsak says the trick is using bamboo (instead of ordinary wood) to burn the fire over which the coffee beans are roasted, as bamboo is a superior and more consistent heat conductor. He also swears that being over 1,000 meters above sea level brings out a better bean, because the precipitation that is high up in Doi Inthanon is purer and cleaner than elsewhere.

Hey, we were sold. And according to Somsak, so was a well renowned international coffee brand. From its very early days, this small coffee venture was contacted by the megagiant’s representatives, who actually asked for permission to send out researchers to scope out Somsak’s techniques. After a series of negotiations and exchanges, Somsak claims the company and his venture signed on a partnership deal in which he would supply beans to the brandname retailer’s organic and fair trade coffee line. He would not disclose just how much he sells them each year, but confirmed that through the combined effort of his village and two other villages, they produce and supply approximately six tons of coffee beans to foreign retailers every year. And if that seems like an exceedingly high number, that is because it already is: “I realize six tons is a lot, but trust me I do not want to push it,” Somsak says. “I am still preaching self-sustainable agriculture, and I would never think about going into the rainforest to destroy more trees to make more coffee for foreigners.”

On the other hand, Somsak’s operation is so unconventional in that it is never going to have that international allure of luxury, no sleek stainless steel workspaces. But at least also unlike the well known coffee brand, it’s never going to leave its employees high and dry - no triple-digit lay-offs, no fixation on sales rising or falling. It is easygoing and relaxed, half-income and half-hobby. And thanks to Somsak’s experience in the hospitality industry in Bangkok, he certainly seems to have learned a thing or two in PR: In this middle-of-nowhere location, we encountered at least one group of Californians that had trekked up to try this genuine Doi Inthanon roast. Pretty soon the crowds will flock to Mae Hong Son, where Somsak is helping villagers to set up a similar coffee venture.

Yet even with the many facets of his personality – villager, environmentalist, barista, entrepreneur extraordinaire – perhaps Somsak’s best asset descriptor is ‘conversationalist.’ While a true coffee lover will travel anywhere for that perfect roast, he or she also knows that coffee is a cup best served with good conversation. And funnyman Somsak does not disappoint: Ask him to demonstrate his signature technique in roasting the coffee beans, and he will turn the machine into a makeshift stationary bike, peddling a la Lance Armstrong while shouting aloud the calories he is burning. And while it admittedly detracts from the sincerity or seriousness of his coffee venture, Somsak won’t let you leave without handing you an adorably low-tech business card, in which his main expertise is listed as “Movie Set Location.” (Recently, an undisclosed movie gave him 400,000 Baht for four months of shooting in the scenic Doi Inthanon location). Somsak will tell you stories about the likes of everyone, from a Thai rock star, Aed Carabao, to pop sweetheart Bird Thongchai McIntyre. And if you are lucky, he will even tell you about what it was like to have the honor of seeing his land appear alongside Her Royal Highness Princess Ubol Ratana in her movie “Where Miracles Happen”.

But out of all the things he is talkative about, it is his precious invention – “The Mobile Coffee” – that takes the cake. Let Somsak put on his salesman hat and advertise this 100 Baht souvenir, basically comprising of a bag of his roast, as well as a tiny cloth coffee filter attached to a metal handle. “It’s great! You can drink the best coffee anywhere, all you have to do is ask someone for hot water and a mug!” Our advice: Give in. At the very least, you will feed the meter and get at least another hour or so of his hilarious conversation.

Baan Mae Klang Luang, a small village perched on steep hills at an altitude of 1,080 meters altitude on the Doi Inthanon mountain ranges, is located at km.27 along the road to the Inthanon mountain top approximately 150 kilometers from Chiang Mai. This Karen community has benefited well from the Royal Project Foundation as it appears to have attained a comfortable level of self-sufficiency long encouraged by His Majesty the King.

Somsak can be contacted at Ecotourism Centre

Moo 17, Tambon Baan Luang, Amphur Jomthong, Chiang Mai 50160.

Mob.: 081 960 8856