Ram Estate
For five generations, Ram Estate has remained in the same family. Located in Kamanur village, Kodaikanal Taluk, Tamil Nadu, the estate sits along the crest of the Pulney Hills, where coffee has been cultivated for more than a century and a half.
A brook known locally as Panjarathu Oodai runs along one side of the estate. Its name comes from the fact that the brook has never run dry, even during periods of famine. Water has always been central to the character of the estate, and the landscape surrounding it continues to shape the way coffee is cultivated here.
Coffee grows beneath a carefully maintained two-tier canopy. Jackfruit, Silver Oak and Silk Cotton form the upper layer, providing shade for the S9 Arabica below. Alongside coffee, the estate also grows Pepper, Hill Banana and Avocado, creating a diverse and thriving growing environment.
The farm is managed in consultation with an agronomist, with customised organic fertilisers used to maintain the nutritional balance of both soil and plants. Shade is carefully managed throughout the year, with trees replanted when necessary and annual pruning carried out to maintain the right balance of sunlight reaching the coffee.
Harvesting is selective. Only fully ripe, red cherries are picked, rather than harvesting indiscriminately. Once picked, the cherries are cleaned and sorted, with floaters removed before being carefully laid out on drying beds. Each step is carried out with close attention to cleanliness and consistency, continuing a principle that has been part of the estate's approach since its beginnings.
Beyond the coffee, the estate is home to a rich mix of flora, fauna and birdlife. Coffee grows alongside a thriving natural ecosystem, making the farm much more than a place of production. It is a landscape that has been nurtured and cared for across generations.
From the shade trees above the coffee to the water flowing alongside the estate, much of Ram Estate's character comes from the land itself.
This is coffee shaped by generations of the same family, the rhythms of the Pulney Hills, and more than a century and a half of care for the land.
Found their story interesting? Their coffee is even better.