Big Country Series. 4) PERU

A few years ago, I started a blog series on key coffee origins but paused after covering Ethiopia, Kenya, and Guatemala. Now, I feel it's time to continue the journey and explore more fascinating coffee regions. Today, we’re heading to South America, specifically the highlands of Peru, where exceptional coffee thrives.

Peru at Caffenation: 

Our journey with Peruvian coffee isn’t that long—we only started roasting it seriously in 2017 when we introduced the Chirinos for the first time. Imported by Café Imports, this coffee was a true revelation for us and many other followed.

During the summer months, we have plenty of fresh and fruity coffee lots to choose from, but between New Year and June, sourcing can be more challenging. In those times, we often relied on Colombian coffees, and occasionally, lots from Burundi and Rwanda—though the ever-present risk of the potato defect made those a bit of a gamble. So, having specialty coffees from Peru available in this season is a big gain for us. 

Peruvian coffees are often considered a bit straightforward, but they’re always easy to roast and make a great base for our Mister LGB (milk coffee) blend. Meanwhile, the more distinctive microlots have been an excellent choice for our weekly specials, whether for filter or espresso.

A lot changed in 2020 when Lisanne’s great work with Cultivar brought us exceptional Peruvian coffees. Though this origin can be quite unpredictable from year to year, we’re lucky that the 2024 harvest is shaping up to be one of the best yet.

One standout from Cultivar, El Zorro, is currently our espresso of the week. Meanwhile, from our friends at Nordic Approach, we’ve sourced four lots this year. The newest Norbil Perez is set to be the cornerstone of our upcoming Mister LGB blend—and it’s nothing short of brilliant.

And on top of that we launch our very first Natural Processed coffee, Corazon de Jesus, one of the upcoming weeks. So stay tuned!

Regions:

Although Peru boasts a diverse range of coffee regions, one stands out above the rest: Cajamarca. This is largely due to a combination of location and craftsmanship. Situated close to the equator, Cajamarca’s coffee plants can thrive at higher altitudes while benefiting from an ideal climate—more rain, ample sunshine, and nutrient-rich soil.

Additionally, the region has a deep well of experience in coffee cultivation. Over the years, European and American companies have likely contributed to this growth by investing in both knowledge and resources, further elevating Cajamarca’s coffee quality.

Other interesting regions are Cusco, Junin and Amazonas, nearby Ecuador. Less known regions amongst specialty coffees lovers are Ayacucho, Pasco, Huanuco, San Martin and Piura.

Varieties:

Not so much to say about the varieties as we find less hybrids and more traditional varieties such as Typica (which is known as Nacional by local producers), Bourbon, Caturra, Pache, and a small percentage of Catuai. Of course at Caffenation we aim for the Bourbon derivatives. 

Processing:

Peru has been traditionally known for washed coffees, however, as the specialty coffee world becomes smaller and access to information is more available, the desire from coffee producers to experiment with new processes is becoming apparent with the rise of naturals and honeys across the country.

With this explosion of new and novel coffees coming to the international market, Peruvian coffee has developed leaps and bounds and the potential for more coffee producers to undertake cutting edge techniques like anaerobic and extended fermentations is vast.

Besides off the processing: One of the most remarkable aspects of Peruvian coffee is the sheer number of organic lots. Nearly every coffee we source comes with an organic certification, making Peru a standout origin for sustainably grown coffee.

Funny enough one of the reasons seems to lay in the fertiliser they use. Many smallholder coffee producers in Peru use Island Guano (above), to fertilise their farms. This is a bird manure mix that comes from the Guano Islands just off the coast of Peru. However, this doesn't mean that they are organic certified unless they choose to pay for the certificate and enroll on a program where their farm is inspected and reviewed.

Besides off this there are lots of actions, as crop rotation, organic mulching, traps and herbicides, rolled out to make organic harvesting possible.

Dangers: Climate Change:

Climate change is not a distant reality; it's a pressing issue impacting Peruvian coffee farms right now. Altered weather patterns and rising temperatures have hit coffee producers hard in 2023, especially those in lower altitude regions such as San Martin who have experienced the return of La Roya (coffee leaf rust), mainly at lower altitude farms. Coffee rust is one of these diseases which has really crippled coffee farmers in the last 10 years. It’s a type of fungus that attacks the leaves of the coffee plants. It can seriously damage the plant and reduce the amount of coffee that is produced.

Also common is phosphorus deficiency. A common sight at farms when they either have degraded soils, because of climate change, or not applied enough fertiliser throughout the harvest.*

So enjoy your filter or espresso cup of Peruvian coffee in one of our bars or buy the beans online. We will probably keep on roasting them till the month of May/June. (and then back again, new crop, from December on....).

Salud,

Rob

*information gathered by Khipucoffee