· By Kenzel Fallen
"Love, Bird" - If Charlie Parker Roasted Coffee - Collaboration with Caffeine Crawl
Love is a powerful thing. The world needs more of it. That feeling is healthy to us all, and this coffee reflects that on so many levels. We joined forces with Caffeine Crawl as we overlap on so many things that drive and inspire us from community, music, and coffee. We used that synergy when roasting this coffee from Kenya - Kiambu County sourced by Zabuni Coffee. Love, Bird is the result of soul, life, and harmony. Many layers to those strong feelings just like this coffee in your hand - vibrant, juicy, and wild!
Working together in unity no matter how different our backgrounds are is a beautiful thing. It defines what love can and should be.
February is Black History Month and a month celebrating love. It's often the end of winter - new birth and growth begins. A time in our own climate where we seek healing and growth powered by love. This coffee project encompasses so much love from the roots and understanding of the coffee sourced from Kenyan-born Laban of Zabuni Coffee, to the craft and art of roasting from Three Keys roasting, to Caffeine Crawl being a synergy and teammate to bring us together. We each have different stories that brought us to our love for coffee and people, but with those differences we also find a lot of commonalities that brought us together. There's so much history, feeling, truth, and energy behind "Love, Bird". It's our long love letter to you. Approach it with a positive, open heart - time for growth and love!
About the label and project: The number three is very powerful. The three birds represent the nation of Kenya, and states of Texas and Missouri symbolizing Zabuni, Three Keys, and Caffeine Crawl. As you know, we love music and especially jazz. Tio played trumpet at the music powerhouse Florida A&M, and Jason played alto saxophone at KC's legendary Lincoln Prep, the same high school Charlie Parker went to decades prior. Kenzel came up with the title "Love, Bird" from a love letter Charlie "Bird" Parker wrote. We tweaked the "d" in the title typography to add another layer of tribute to the famous jazz sax player. The birds are connected by the same branch, another symbolism of unity, love, and strength. They proudly perch chest out while the feathers overlap creating a subtle heart shape.
The art on the packaging reflects the three of us coming together to make this finished product possible and a part of your day. The coffee comes from Kenya sourced by Kenya born Zabuni Coffee who is based in Nebraska. Three Keys represents Houston, but with roots in Cincinnati and Atlanta. Then, Jason with Caffeine Crawl grew up and found his path in Kansas City's historic 18th & Vine.
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Note from the Roaster: The vibrancy and bright acidity of the Kenyan bean is distinct and unparalleled. If Charlie Parker roasted coffee, we believe the flavors from the beans he roasted would sing and chirp in a manner as wildly energetic and virtuosic as his playing style. The feverish intensity in which he played the saxophone can be heard and felt through this lively coffee with its intense blueberry and vanilla notes. We are excited and honored to collaborate on this release with our friends at Caffeine Crawl, who developed the beautiful visual label design and collaborated on the accompanying "Love, Bird" playlist.
Note from Caffeine Crawl: As a lover of Houston’s coffee scene, Three Keys caught our attention as there were so many overlaps in personality and interest between our two brands. My roots and early influences revolved around spending a lot of childhood in the historic 18th and Vine Jazz District of Kansas City, a corridor of American jazz legends. I graduated from the nearby Lincoln Prep where I played alto saxophone - the same school the famous Charlie Parker went to decades before. A school and community rich in music and African-American history helped shape me to become the individual I am today. Music, people, and coffee are really similar in my eyes. Representing that in the visuals on “Love, Bird” was important as three different companies with separate paths came together on the same branch working in harmony to create something special. Each bird reflects a part of us - the state birds of Texas and Missouri, along with Kenya’s national bird. The chances of finding them together is rare, but we made it happen. That’s embracing “Love, Bird.” - Jason Burton
Note from the Source: This Kenya AB bean was imported by Zabuni Specialty Coffee via the Igegania Multi-Purpose Co-Operative Coffee Society, located 75 km from the capitol of Nairobi and registered in 1967. It now has over 1,000 small-scale farmer members, roughly half of which are women. They farm a total of 200 acres with a combined 200,000 coffee trees and an average annual cherry production of 10 kg/tree – a testament to their commitment to good, sustainable farming methods. The cooperative is divided into 7 zones, each with its own that director that handles coordination and manages production quality. The society also offers extension services through qualified agriculture officers who are continually trained in the latest information to ensure that new learning and technology are passed on to farmers, focusing on sustainable and organic farming methods.