Quebrada Honda Organic

This coffee is packed in jute sacks lined with PVC Grainpro bags – an airtight storage system that preserves aroma and freshness for longer, while also allowing the coffee to breathe naturally.

This coffee is made up of lots grown by various smallholder farmers in the fertile Yanatile Valley, in the Cusco region of Peru’s southern highlands. These small farms are located at between 1,200 to 1,900 metres above sea level in this remote Andean valley, which lies in the mountains to the north of the Machu Picchu ruins. Most are traditional family run operations, which have been passed on from generation to generation of farmers.

All of these farms are fully organic certified and their coffee is grown in the shade of native trees - including Pacaes, Pisonay, Yanay, Incaty, Sumbaillo, Achihua, Chalanqui, Motoy, Toroc, Lúcumas, Pashacos and Paltas trees. These provide important habitat for many indigenous bird and animal species, such as parrots, humming birds and armadillos.

Coffees is this remote area’s main legal crop, and as such plays an important role as the most profitable alternative to growing Coca – the plant used to produce cocaine, which is frequently grown (illegally in Peru) in the same areas as coffee.

The harvest usually runs from March until August, peaking in April to June. All of the family usually take part - around five people -plus around another five temporary workers. The coffee is fully washed by each producer in the traditional manner - the bad or unripe cherries are separated by immersion in water (the ripe cherries sink), then the cherries are depulped and fermented for between 12 and 18 hours to remove the mucilage. The waste water from this process is filtered to avoid contaminating the surrounding land. The coffee is then dried in the sun on concrete patios until it reaches 12% humidity.

Each individual lot is blind cupped before being included in the overall lot. Our export partner is also working with these farmers to increase the quality (and therefore profitability) of their coffee, hosting workshops and courses, and encouraging farmers to plant more of their land with native Arabica varietals.

Cupping Date: 

26 January 2012

Acidity: 

Zesty

Mouthfeel: 

Creamy Full Body

Flavour: 

Plum

Aftertaste: 

Sweet

Overall: 

Bright and clean with a creamy mouthfeel and full body. Some notes of plum, with a sweet finish.