By dedicating his farm, Finca Productiva, to the production of Yellow Caturra, Raul has developed a deep understanding of how to get the most out of this juicy varietal. The talent and hard work of Raul and his family, harnessing the distinct climate and altitude of the San José de Lourdes district, has resulted in a bright and clean cup with juicy sweetness, reminding us of tropical fruit punch.
Raul began working in coffee as a coffee picker in El Diamante. He and his wife were later gifted a small coffee farm from her father, sitting up at 1800-1900 M.A.S.L. Its isolated location presents some challenges – it is accessible only by foot and parts of the narrow path to the road require Raul to transport the coffee sacks on his back. This is the second year we have purchased coffee from Raul and we have had productive conversations together about how we can work together in the long-term, including how to support him to access a stable market for his coffee.
Raul’s family has a close history with the area. Raul’s father was one of the four founders of the town of El Diamante – during the agrarian reform in Peru in the 1970s (which dismantled the large estates with the aim of redistributing the land), they chose the plot of land and began building the town from scratch. Raul’s father was a key campaigner for the government to recognise El Diamante, supply it with electricity and build a school and medical facilities; 50 years later, it has become a hub for specialty coffee production
The coffee underwent a washed process. After the coffee cherries were de-pulped, they were fermented in plastic sacks for 72 hours. The cherries were then washed and transferred to tunnel-shaped “solar tents” where they were laid on raised beds to dry for 15-20 days.
This is our second year working with the Flores family, and the second harvest of Yellow Caturra that we have exported from them. It was harvested between August and October 2023 and landed in the UK in December 2023.
We agreed the price of the parchment coffee (that is, the unhulled coffee beans still covered by a natural protective "parchment" layer) with Raul and Collective Bean, while Raul was processing his coffee. We paid Raul directly for his coffee, with the support of Collective Bean. We then worked with Collective Bean to process it (including removing the parchment layer and packing it into 46kg bags) and export it to the UK.
For further details on the prices below visit our Transparency Page.
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