An Islamic Scholar and Sufi mystic discovers that if he sets a pot of water over his cook fire, and boils the seeds of a certain fruit that grows wild in the hills, the water turns a muddy brown. When he drinks this brew, it lifts his spirit, awakens his senses, and allows him to pray and study through the night. This Monk of Mokha shares his discovery with his brothers and sisters, and before long, this drink becomes prized among the Yemeni people. Coffee starts getting cultivated in the mountain and valley terraces, and shared with pilgrims and traders who visit the country.

As a kid growing up in San Francisco’s Tenderloin, Mokhtar Alkhanshali never liked coffee that much. It tasted dark and bitter. As a child, Mokhtar traveled with his parents back to the mountain town of Ibb, Yemen, where his family is from. He used to walk through the terraced farms with his grandmother and pick bright red coffee cherries - the fruit that holds the coffee beans - right off the trees.

One day in 2013, Mokhtar walked into a specialty coffee shop in San Francisco and tried his first cup of single origin specialty coffee. He took that first sip and experienced a burst of intriguing flavors that struck him like lightning. It was a moment where his past and future collided, igniting his curiosity about his homeland and coffee, and setting him on a path that would change his life.

Mokhtar started obsessively reading, tasting, and learning everything he could about coffee. But no matter what cafes he visited, he didn’t find any coffee from Yemen. This was due to the fact that the quality of Yemeni coffee had greatly declined over the past century. Farmers discovered they could make more money cultivating the drug khat, a stimulant that is legal in Yemen, but outlawed in many other countries. It is estimated that up to 40% of Yemen’s water supply is going towards khat production, and the country is in near term danger of running out of water.

As Mokhtar’s passion grew, he resolved to help Yemen share its lost treasures with the world. First he studied. He trained to become a certified Q grader from the Coffee Quality Institute. This rigorous course involves learning how to cup, taste, identify, and grade both green and roasted coffee. Once Mokhtar got his certification, he packed up and left for Yemen.

Mokhtar spent three years traveling in Yemen, surveying more than 30 coffee growing regions. Some farms were so remote, they were accessible only by a 3-day hike through the mountains. He met with farmers and took notes. He heard stories of his ancestors, measured rainfall, slept on mountains, and observed farming practices. He had a simple vision: If he could persuade farmers to elevate the quality of their beans, they would get paid a higher price than khat, and would embrace growing coffee again.

To accomplish this, Mokhtar had to educate and train farmers on best practices. Everything from using organic fertilizers to harvesting only ripe fruit to drying and processing. He brought in the first moisture analyzers and built modern drying beds. He organized farmers into collectives with the requirement that the boards be comprised of 50% women. And he provided interest-free micro loans to farmers to free them from the debt cycles perpetuated by loan sharks. When farmers followed these new protocols, they were compensated over 33% higher prices for their beans. The Mokha Method was born.

They say timing is everything. And for Mokhtar, his timing couldn’t have been worse.

In March of 2015, after years of working with his farmers, Mokhtar was ready to share the fruits of their labors with the world. He had two suitcases packed with green coffee samples from different farms. He planned to take these to SCAA, to be judged at the world’s biggest coffee conference in Seattle.

On the eve of his departure, civil war broke out. Both civilian airports were bombed and no commercial flights were operating. While neighboring countries like India, Somalia, and Pakistan were finding ways to evacuate their citizens, the US was not taking any action. Mokhtar was stuck. His coffee dreams were stuck. And as the distant sky lit up from falling bombs, Mokhtar resolved to whatever he needed to do to get out.

Mokhtar headed for the Port of Mokha - the world’s original coffee trading port. He hired a fisherman to take him across the Red Sea in a small fishing boat. With his two suitcases of coffee, and the clothes on his back, the boat traveled for 7 hours - with no radio or navigation instruments - before reaching the shores of Dijibouti, a small country on the horn of Africa.

Now it was time to share his coffee with the world. Blue Bottle founder James Freeman describes the moment he first tasted Port of Mokha coffee during a blind cupping: “It absolutely sparkled and I thought, “this is what angels singing tastes like.” I had no idea what the coffee was, but when I found out it was from Yemen, I was overjoyed.” Blue Bottle began selling Port of Mokha coffee in limited release. And Mokhtar was able to share the good news with the farmers back in Yemen, whose future, despite all the political unrest and economic challenges, was finally looking brighter.

At Port of Mokha, we believe that the very best coffee does more than provide an incredible experience of drinking it. It creates ripples of positive impact that can improve lives, lift economies, and revitalize cultures.

You can drink Port of Mokha because you want to support a worthy cause. Or because it just happens to be the best coffee in the world. Enjoy.