We are extremely excited about this coffee, it is an incredible coffee that sits at a really affordable price point and offers an amazing nougaty, chocolatey flavour profile with a pop of berry sweetness, which we think a lot of people are going to love. We purchased it through our partners in Peru Falcon who work with a number of amazing producers. They have their own export company there called Falcon Peru SARL which was registered in 2018. In the northern coffee town of Jaen, Cajamarca where the company is based they have a small warehouse along with a quality control laboratory. On last count they work with 275 farmers across 15 districts in the province of Cajamarca and 3 producer associations (farmer co-ops). The Falcon team in Peru has 10 full time employees that work on quality and logistics and on top of that they have an in house agronomist who works with the farmers on improving practices for better yields, sustainability and ultimately, cup scores/ returns.
This particular coffee comes from Jose Angel Espinoza, he has a 3 hectare plantation in the high altitude region of Las Pirias, within the Chirinos district. His farm starts at an altitude of 1900 MASL and goes as high as 2000 MASL, cup quality and altitude are certainly linked and we find coffees like this grown at really high altitudes tend to be softer and sweeter in the cup than similar coffees grown at lower altitudes.. There are many factors at play in this but one of the crucial ones is slower maturation of the plant.
This coffee certainly isn’t good merely because of the altitude, a lot of work has gone into it, Espinoza employs a team of 4-5 expert pickers, trained to ensure precision in selecting only the most mature coffee cherries. This selection process is followed by cleansing and removing floaters. Drying is initially in solar tents, using the sun’s energy to kickstart fermentation, before moving the coffee to tarp lined patios for a slow and even drying process. The critical stage of drying is very long, usually between 35-40 days. Similarly to the slow maturation of cherries on the plant leading to better cups of coffee, slow drying is also incredibly beneficial.
Jose Angel Espinoza is also an avid beekeeper, he produces honey that he sells in the nearby town, also the bees on his farm are generally good for the plant life and sure up the pollination of his coffee. Diversification of produce is also an important thing for many small hold farmers as having income tied to a single crop is incredibly precarious.
We hope to be able to buy and drink more of Jose’s excellent coffees in the future!
Elevation: 1900-2000 meters above sea level
Varietal: Bourbon, Caturra, Pache
Cup Score: 87
Price paid per kilo: £7.65 per kg
