J and I went to the Azores for vacation last summer and visited three islands: Faial, Sao Jorge, and Pico. At Sao Jorge, we had a chance to taste the locally grown coffee. I read somewhere that the Azores is technically the only place that grows/can grow coffee in all of Europe. Of course, that is not surprising in post-colonial days.Cafe Nunes is located at Faja dos Vimes, which is about an hour drive from Sao Jorge’s biggest town, Velas. There are more than 40 fajas (volcanic islands with really steep cliffs down to the sea) in Sao Jorge and some are inhabited.

When we visited Faja dos Vimes, where Cafe Nunes is located, there was no one around. Cafe Nunes was not even open. We rang the bell and the owner, a very nice lady came out and opened the place for us. We sat down to savor the coffee, which I found a bit acidic for my taste. But it was good. The owner took us to the backyard and showed where they grow the coffee. They do not make enough coffee for mass consumption.

Coffee trees growing in the backyard.

Coffee beans drying under the sun

Cafe Nunes

Quite acidic, but good coffee.

Sao Jorge is also known for their cheese, which can be found here in the U.S. They say there are more cows than people in Sao Jorge and cheese factories are open 24 hours a day to keep up with the amount of milk that comes in everyday to produce cheese.

Sao Jorge Cheese

A little store spotted at Faja da Calderia de Santo Cristo, where you can only access by foot or one of those four-wheel bikes. This faja is also known as a surfing spot.