On Saturday, April 2, 2022, the Ministry of Tourism, in a joint initiative with the Tourism Linkages Network and the Tourism Enhancement Fund moved The Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee festival from the mountains to the lush lawns of Devon House.

The festival has traditionally taken place in the hills of the world-renowned Blue Mountains on the historic grounds of Newcastle but made one of Jamaica’s most celebrated landmarks its home for the festival’s ultimate event: The festival marketplace.

It was a day to browse, brew, and buy as a month of activities culminated with the marketplace — an extravaganza featuring local arts and crafts, coffee purveyors, food stalls, tastings, demonstrations, and musical entertainment — bringing together local and international coffee connoisseurs, coffee suppliers, foodies in general.

Host Terri-Karelle Reid got things brewing early with ‘Wake Up With Coffee’, a conversation about coffee and lifestyle with Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett; Old Tavern Coffee Estate principal David Twyman; Coffee Traders Limited director Jacqueline Sharp; Jamaican Women in Coffee (JAWiC) co-founder and Vice-President Marshalee Valentine; and chairman of the Tourism Linkages Network and Executive Chairman of Sandals Resorts International Adam Stewart.

Bartlett shared a discussion he had with Stewart, before joining the other panellists onstage. “Coffee is the second most-consumed liquid on earth, with water being the first, and I was talking to Adam awhile ago and he said, ‘You know that we serve nearly 11 million cups of coffee in my hotels,’ and that’s just at Sandals alone”.

“Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee, to be exact,” quipped Stewart as he joined the conversation. The Sandals boss shared more as he detailed plans to spotlight Jamaica’s world-renowned coffee at one of his newest hotels: Sandals Dunn’s River.

“In this resort, we’re building what’s never been done in the Caribbean before, what’s never been done in Jamaica before: an absolute specialty Blue Mountain Coffee experience that’s going to sit centre of the hotel. This is the kind of place that you can go and spend two to three hours… get an elevated experience… plus the ability to go up into the Blue Mountains, touch, see, feel, smell and take back home a piece of the rich journey,” shared Stewart.

As midday temperatures rose, patrons cooled down with frozen coffee creations from Café Blue and iced tea from the Lemongrass Tea Room as they revelled to the beats of DJ Delano. There were also, of course, hot coffee options from Coffee Roasters of Jamaica and the Jamaica Coffee Growers’ Association, to name a few.

The energy shifted mid-afternoon as MC Khadine “Miss Kitty” Hylton clocked in for the late shift, taking the reins from Terri-Karelle Reid. Hylton had a captive audience as she celebrated the joys of being ‘outside’ after the recent rescinding of Disaster Risk Managment measures, dancing up a storm to the latest hits. Her effervescence, it seems, was contagious as Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett, Tourism Enhancement Fund Director Dr Carey Wallace and St Andrew East Rural Member of Parliament Juliet Holness all tripped the light fantastic onstage.

The entertainment package continued as artistes Kalyra, Dwight Richards, and Christopher Martin delivered hit after hit, closing the festival in style.

The Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Festival was powered by Hawkeye Jamaica, the Jamaica Observer, Jamaica Food + Drink Festival, Select Brands and The Best Dressed Chicken.