Peru Relinda Chavez – Tintay Puncu – Microlot

Origin: Peru

Location: Tintay Puncu, Tayacaja, Huancavelica
Owner: Relinda Chavez
Altitude: 2350m
Harvest: September – October 2022
Varieties: Red Caturra
Processing: Washed
SCA Score: 83.25

Cupping Notes: Dry Fruits, Lemon, Cacao

Peru holds exceptional promise as a producer of high-quality coffees. The country is the largest exporter of organic Arabica coffee globally. With extremely high altitudes and fertile soils, the country’s smallholder farmers also produce some stunning specialty coffees.

Though coffee arrived in Peru in the 1700s, very little coffee was exported until the late 1800s. Until that point, most coffee produced in Peru was consumed locally. When coffee leaf rust hit Indonesia in the late 1800s, a country central to European coffee imports at the time, Europeans began searching elsewhere for their fix. Peru was a perfect option.

Between the late 1800s and the first World War, European interests invested significant resources into coffee production in Peru. However, with the advent of the two World Wars, England and other European powers became weakened and took a less colonialist perspective. When the British and other European land owners left, their land was purchased by the government and redistributed to locals. The Peruvian government repurchased the 2 million hectares previously granted to England and distributed the lands to thousands of local farmers. Many of these farmers later grew coffee on the lands they received.

Today, Peruvian coffee growers are overwhelmingly small scale. Farmers in Peru usually process their coffee on their own farms. Most coffee is Fully washed. Cherry is usually pulped, fermented and dried in the sun on raised beds or drying sheds. Drying greenhouses and parabolic beds are becoming more common as farmers pivot towards specialty markets.

After drying, coffee will then be sold in parchment to the cooperative. Producers who are not members of a cooperative will usually sell to a middleman.

The remoteness of farms combined with their small size means that producers need either middlemen or cooperatives to help get their coffee to market. Cooperative membership protects farmers greatly from exploitation and can make a huge difference to income from coffee. Nonetheless, currently only around 15-25% of smallholder farmers have joined a coop group.

Who is Relinda Chavez?

Relinda has been a coffee producer for over 20 years. Relinda and her husband migrated to the central jungle in the 1980s to escape the violence of the Shining Path armed group. They worked in different coffee farms in Pichanaqui district and learned about coffee cultivation and processing. In the 1990s, when the northeastern area of Tayacaja was liberated from the terrorist occupation, they returned to their abandoned land and started planting coffee.

Where is Relinda’s farm?

Relinda’s farm is located at an altitude of 2350 meters above sea level, in an area called Huallaanakuy Waqta, which means “the hillside and the reunion” in Quechua. This is where her family reunited after years of exile due to terrorist violence. The farm has two names, one in Quechua and one in Spanish: Huayllanakuy Waqta and Café Paraíso, respectively. The farm is located in the region of Huancavelica.

How was the coffee processed?

Relinda’s coffee is 100% Red Caturra, and the washing process involves fermenting the coffee for 18 to 24 hours. She uses animal and island guano (animal and bird poo), and organic waste composition as fertiliser. Her farm has not been deforested, and she has planted trees such as Pacae and Bananos to shade the coffee.

The role of Saba Cafe for this coffee

Saba Café are working with Relinda to improve the quality of her coffee and encourage her family to stay on the farm and specialise in producing high-quality, sustainable coffee. This includes selective harvesting practices, fermentation control, drying control, installation of new pulping machines, improvement of washing pools, and installation of drying beds. Saba Café is also working with Relinda’s family members to train them in specialised production and promote sustainable, high-quality coffee.

In 2018, they had the pleasure of meeting Relinda Chavez and trying her coffee at a coffee producer fair in Tayacaja province. They were so impressed that they contacted her and eventually visited her farm in the District of Tintay Puncu.

Small Batch Roasting: Roast For You Service – Terms & Conditions

Introduction

Small Batch Roasting now offers a service that offers personalised coffee roasting for customers who want to enjoy freshly roasted coffee tailored to their preferences.

Roast For You Service

When you choose to have your coffee roasted for you, we will roast the exact amount ordered and roast this for you to the selected roast profile you have chosen. Our small batch roasting process ensures that your coffee is roasted with care and precision, resulting in a high-quality, freshly roasted product.

Minimum Green Weight Requirement

Please be advised that the minimum green weight for roasting any one single origin is 6kg. Any orders placed with less than 6kg of each origin will be placed on hold and may cause delays in being dispatched. We will contact you to discuss how you wish to proceed in this case.

Weight Loss During Roasting

Please be mindful of the weight loss through moisture loss during roasting, which is typically between 12-20% depending on the level of roast. The darker the roast, the higher the moisture loss. This weight loss should be taken into account when ordering your coffee to ensure you receive the desired amount of roasted coffee.

Order Processing Time

Orders for roasted coffees will naturally take a little longer to process. Please allow a minimum of 3 days for your order to arrive from the point of order. If we are able to drop your order in the roasting schedule sooner, we will always endeavor to do so.

Mixed Orders

Mixed orders which include green and roasted coffees will be dispatched together when the roasted coffees are ready. We are unable to split these orders, so please consider the slightly longer delivery times when ordering mixed coffees.

Packaging

Your coffee will be bulk packed into a 6kg bulk bag with an identifying label on only. This packaging ensures that your coffee remains fresh and protected during transit.

Roast Profile and Liability

We will roast to your desired roast profile, but are unable to take any liability for any taste discrepancies that may arise from this. We are unable to take back any coffees once they have been roasted to your desired roast profile.

Yield Estimate

Typically, a medium roast coffee at 6kg green will yield 5.1kg of freshly roasted coffee. This estimate should be taken into account when ordering your coffee to ensure you receive the desired amount of roasted coffee.