Icefell - the Other Kafay City

D'yer smell that, mates? We may not be able ter see our port wi' this fog, but we can sure smell 'er! Follow ye're noses an' that smell o' roastin' Kafay and we'll be in port ere this fog lifts!

— Seafarer Captain to crew while approaching Icefell

Kafay is a beverage that is appreciated and sought after throughout most of Cartyrion - especially in regions where the First Kingdom maintains sway, or did so at some time in the past. While First Kingdom Kafay is considered the best one can buy, there are other alternatives.

The most popular of those is the Kafay that comes from the Free City of Icefell. In fact, for some, its unique flavor profile makes it the preferred variety of roasted pit. Icefell's prosperity since the Great Strife is owed almost completely to its production and trade in Kafay.

Industry and Trade in the City

The most significant industries and trade in Icefell center around the production and transport of roasted Kafay pits to the aficionados around the world. The farmland surrounding the city is divided almost equally between fields producing the food needed by the city's residents and Kafay tree plantations. Even the vegetable farmers tend to have a tree or two somewhere on their plots - either for their own consumption for the the ability to augment their income.

Within the city, there are large warehouses where fresh Kafay cherries are brought to be dried and the fruit hulls removed. These hulls are gathered and returned to the tree plantations for use as fertilizer. Other large facilities then take the cleaned pits and carefully roast them to achieve the desired flavor profiles sought after by Kafay drinkers. The roasting process is not an easy one - achieving just the right roast is an art that required practiced professionals to get right every time. Once the pits are roasted, they must be packaged and transported. Packaging the pits to maintain their freshness for a maximum amount of time is a challenge, but the merchants of Icefell have devised several solutions.

Kafay is a somewhat seasonal product; the trees flowers and fruit ripens over an approximately three month period. During this time, there is plenty of common labor work available to residents of Icefell: picking fruit, carrying the harvest to the city, spreading them to dry, hulling, hauling to the roasters, packaging and transporting the roasted pits. During this time of year, other industries arount the city practically shut down. Shipbuilding and logging operations to the north cease. Farmers of other products select their crops to avoid the need for excessive harvesting labor at this time. It is as if the whole city converts to Kafay production for a quarter of the year.

Kafay in Icefell

It was less than ten years after the founding of the city about four thousand years ago that an enterprising farmer attempted to cultivate Kafay trees brought from farther west in the First Kingdom. The trees took to the soil and climate quite well, and were soon producing fruit. The taste qualities of the roasted pits was noticeably different, however. While good First Kingdom Kafay was prized for a rich, earthy, but not too bitter flavor, Icefell Kafay had a pronouced fruity notes compounded over the basic earthy flavors. Most importantly, there were no notes of bitterness at all.

Before long, Icefell Kafay was developing its own set of devotees. Besides being far cheaper within the city itself and in port cities to the East due to shorter transport needs, the flavor profile was unique. While the demand for "real" First Kingdom Kafay never disappeared, Icefell Kafay managed to capture almost a quarter of the demand market for the product.

Founding Date

-1931CR

Population

135,000

Inhabitant Demonym

Icefellites

Guilds

There are three main guilds that deal with the production and transport of Kafay in Icefell:

• The Roaster's Guild is a guild for the master Kafay roasters of the city.
• The Caravaner's Guild encompasses the major merchants who rely on overland transport to deliver their goods.
• The Captain's Guild encompasses the Sea Captains and Ship Masters that transport Kafay and other goods over the seas.

Kafay Fruit - One is Ripe for Picking

There are many who disagree, but Icefell Kafay is far superior, and far more versatile than Kafay from the Kingdom. The roasters in the Kingdom have grown lazy - more concerned with mass-producing and profits than with their art. The Roasters in Icefell have a reputation for still caring about their work. Let us all endeavor to keep that reputation intact.

— Head of the Roasters Guild addressing the assembly

Cover Image by Gundula Vogel from Pixabay
Kafay fruit Image by Yesid Guarín[/url from [url:https://pixabay.com/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=5360581]Pixabay