CHIRINOS
Producer: Smallholder producers
Cultivar: Caturra, Bourbon and Catimor
Process: Washed
Altitude: 1750 – 1900m
Harvest: April – November
Notes: Dark chocolate, almond, heavy body
ORIGIN
Peru is one of the top-ten coffee producers in the world. Its thriving coffee sector is well established and continues to support the livelihoods of millions of smallholder producers. Chirinos is one of seven districts of the province of San Ignacio in Cajamarca Department in the northwest of the country. It borders to the north of Ecuador, overlooks the Amazonas to the east, and is known as the land of coffee, honey and bio-diverse forests. Chirinos is well connected to nearby cities, with new roads and a thriving town, which serves as a central regional hub for the coffee trade.
PRODUCER
Whilst the coffee landscape in Chirinos is still dominated by ‘middlemen’ traders, there is a growing interest in specialty coffee and some of the biggest cooperatives in the area have been promoting quality over quantity for a number of years. Sourced through our friends at Falcon Specialty who have been developing long-term relationships with cooperatives in the region, producers are better able to escape low market prices which rarely cover the cost of production, and are finding markets for their coffee that pays well above the market price in an effort to increase household income.
In this region with altitudes above 1700m, and many producers still cultivate pure-line Arabica varieties such as Caturra and Bourbon. Interestingly, the third varietal component in this coffee, Catimor, was developed in Portugal in 1959 by scientists searching for high yields and disease resistance. The variety is a hybrid of the Timor Hybrid and Caturra, and has the potential to offer up a bold body in the cup due to its inheritance of genetic Robusta-roots. This coffee is selectively picked and processed the same day, fermented for 24-48h in tanks, before being washed and dried for up to two weeks on raised beds.
ROAST
Bold and full of character, this coffee is a heavyweight if you like your coffee with a rich body and enduring finish. Sourced through our friends at Falcon Specialty, we selected it for its notes of cocoa and uncompromising presence in the cup. Slowly roasted to develop the deeper chocolatey tones, we love this coffee for its intensity and luxurious aftertaste that never fails to punch through across a range of brew methods.