If coffee can be extracted from a mine in Lviv, why not grow coffee in a watermelon in Kherson? That's what an enterprising barista, Kostiantyn Dudchenko, thought and founded the brand Kherson Coffee: Coffee Grown in Kherson Watermelons.
Kostiantyn shared the secrets of his success - both in the drink and in his own business - with connoisseurs of Ukrainian craft.
The taste of a legend
Did you know that our first sailors started bringing coffee beans to the South of Ukraine from the birthplace of coffee, Ethiopia?
According to legend, the sailors returned from one such trip with half-empty holds due to a poor coffee harvest. Standing in the port of Turkey and upset by the small profit, they thought about what to add to the cargo. An unknown berry, a watermelon, caught the sailors' eyes. So they sailed to Kherson: half of the hold was coffee, half was watermelons.
And what happened next?
One Kherson farmer noticed that the watermelon seeds looked different, but he ignored it. As it was customary to eat watermelon with seeds, the farmer ate the berry. Within minutes, he felt a surge of strength and energy. Wondering what was causing it, the farmer cut open the watermelon and took out the seeds. It turned out to be coffee beans.
"It is impossible to buy watermelon from this plantation now. The beans are used for the coffee you are holding in your hands, and the pulp is used for watermelon honey," the legend of Kherson coffee growing in Kherson watermelons is written on every package of this product.
Coffee as a touristic brand
"Kherson Coffee appeared on the market in 2021. Konstantin and Polina Dudchenko decided to turn an everyday drink known all over the world into a local Ukrainian brand. At that time, the young man had been in the coffee industry for several years, participated in the opening of several coffee shops in Kherson, and even taught at a barista school.
"We had been making coffee for 10 years. We knew how to make a consistently tasty drink, so we decided to present this skill as a tourist attraction - a business card of the city and just a quality product that can be consumed at home or in the office," says Kostiantyn.
In its first year of existence, "Coffee from Watermelon" became a recognizable brand in the Kherson region. The company was actively developing, working in several establishments. Some sold drinks made from coffee, while others made money by selling products "off the shelf."
In February 22, the Dudchenko business was put on hold. On the second day of the large-scale Russian invasion, Kostiantyn and Polina left Kherson, first for Kryvyi Rih and then for Ivano-Frankivsk. There they turned a new page in their coffee history.
"It is possible to copy our coffee. But it's hard to sell it the way we sell it."
"Kherson Coffee in Frankivsk was our anchor," Kostia recalls, "It was a reminder and an indicator that Kherson is Ukraine.
The first thing the entrepreneurs from the South did when they arrived in western Ukraine was to revive the Prostir.coffee coffee shop, which they had been developing in Kherson for three and a half years. And while at home it was just a high-quality coffee shop, here it was turned into a hub for IDPs and citizens. Prostir.coffee in Ivano-Frankivsk has become a platform for social events where people raise money to help the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Konstantin is proud: together they managed to raise more than a million hryvnias.
The legend of the watermelon seed is fascinating, but the real coffee beans are already tasty. "Coffee that grows in watermelons" is a high-quality blend of coffee from Brazil and Rwanda. It is 100% Arabica.
"Brazil is chocolate and nutty, and Rwanda is fruity and citrusy. Accordingly, the coffee has a balance between the natural bitterness of dark chocolate and notes of juicy fruit. This is a coffee for daily consumption. Not too bright, but with a golden mean between bitterness and sourness," says Kostiantyn.
The coffee has no unique recipe. What is special is the roasting technology (done by the company's partners from Lviv) and the courage of the brand's founders to wrap the beans in a legend.
"It is possible to copy our coffee. But it's hardly possible to sell it the way we do," Kostia smiles, "We've done a lot of work to make Kherson Coffee what it is."
Driving progress: craft that local businesses dream of
"People are used to thinking that Kherson is where watermelons and tomatoes grow. But this is not entirely true. Watermelons don't grow in the city itself - they grow in the Kherson region. And for the tourist segment, these are two completely different regions that should have their own unique identity," explains Kostiantyn. "Otherwise, when people go to the sea, they think they've been to Kherson. In fact, they have been to the bus or train station, but have never seen the city itself. But for some reason they think it's about watermelons. So we decided to play with this. If people think that watermelons are grown in Kherson, then let them believe that coffee grows in those watermelons. It will only make the region more recognizable."
Today, the taste of craft coffee made from Kherson watermelons is known far beyond Ukraine. It is shipped to Poland, America, and Ireland on request.
"Craft is about supporting the small, about supporting the local. It's about quality. It is either a family affair or a team affair. It's a matter of the soul," says Kostiantyn. "I want people to stop thinking of craft as something of low quality made in the kitchen. They should see that craft is a worthy certified competitor to large companies among local products. This is the kind of craft I dream of. It is a driver of progress when people come to a store and choose a product made by a small manufacturer instead of a commercial product. By doing so, they support that manufacturer and enable it to develop further."
