Key Origin Info:

Producer: Eli Espinoza Soberon
Processed at: Eli’s own processing facilities - wet mills & solar dryer

Region: Alto Pirias, Chirinos, Cajamarca

Altitude: 1650 - 1900 masl

Varietal: Caturra & Bourbon
Process: Natural, dried on raised beds

Exporter: Falcon Peru | Importer: Falcon Speciality

Cup profile: Juicy body, strawberry sweets & nectarines

More about Eli and his coffee:

Eli is a young dynamic coffee producer and owner of 4 hectares of coffee planted land in the Alto Pirias area near the village of Las Pirias in the Chirinos district in Cajamarca region of Northern Peru.

Eli has a few parcels of land spread around the village in altitudes between 1800 – 2000 masl. Some parts of his land are planted with Typica and others with Caturra & Bourbon. He has come to the area as a teenager looking for work on farms and he started picking coffee in the village. After a while he was able to buy his own land and house and started working to produce his own coffee. Eli now processes all his own coffee at his house which sits at 1800 masl and sells it in parchment to the Falcon Speciality warehouse in Jaen.

In recent years, Eli has made some trials with natural processing of his coffee. After seeing that, when done well, the process can greatly alter the flavour profile of his coffee, yielding higher sales prices for higher cup scores, he has invested in a large solar dryer. This has increased his drying space capacity and it also allows him to have more control over the drying process and produce great quality natural lots alongside his washed coffees. This lot is one of the great results of this years harvest. The coffee was washed and floated in cherry to separate out underripe fruits before undergoing drying under shade for one day and then being moved to the solar drying tent where it dried slowly under controlled conditions for 45 days.

We’re really excited to have Eli’s coffee back again. This year’s cup profile is jammy in mouthfeel with fruit notes reminding us of strawberry sweet and creamy tropical fruit like cantaloupe melon.

About Falcon Peru:

Background on Peru and Por El Cambio project:

POR EL CAMBIO means FOR CHANGE. The project has been established in Cajamarca, Northern Peru by our importing partner Falcon Coffees in 2018.

As Falcon explain:

In Peru, like some other origins, coffee farmers are sensitive to market changes and often lack basic training and the incentive to produce higher qualities of coffee, as premiums often don’t materialise. For these reasons we decided we needed to change the way we buy coffee in Peru and work directly with producers, allowing us to control and improve upon existing quality and have full financial traceability. Ensuring these two factors would help us to pay higher prices for the coffees and to make sure that producers received a fair price for the coffee they delivered us, above the market price. In order to do this, we set up a warehouse in Jaen and started to buy in parchment directly from producers.

The vision was to work directly with small producers who aren't associated with or able to sell their coffee through local cooperatives. They represent 75% of producers in Northern Peru and are usually based in remote areas with little or no access to training and price premiums adequate to the quality of coffee they are able to produce. This can leave their income often dependant on local aggregators who buy their coffee at farm for cash before selling it on which results in the producers being paid very little and the potential and quality of their coffee being lost.

Falcon's team on the ground in Peru, have established relationships and now work with over 275 small producers who bring their coffee in parchment directly to their warehouse where individual lots are graded, yield calculated, samples roasted and assessed for quality. Some growers also get involved in cupping of their coffee. According to this a price is calculated and an offer made which growers can accepts or not. If accepted, producers are then paid on the same day including the quality premium. They also receive a detailed feedback report from the QC team including details about moisture content, what defects might be present and where those come which is the first step in being able to eliminate them and increase exportable yields. Aside from gaining access to the speciality market, producers are also able to receive training on farm management, good harvest and processing practices.

As Falcon reports:

In 2018 we established Falcon Coffees Peru with an initial intake of partnerships with 35 farmers. These farmers were selected based on their potential and willingness to produce outstanding qualities, and most were based in an area called Huabal.

As of 2024 Falcon Coffees Peru is

· over 275 producers across 15 districts in Cajamarca.

· 3 producer associations.

· 10 full time employees, 50% female.

In 2022 we focussed on improving our operations and technical activities. This has allowed us to increase volumes and develop the in-house facilities at our dedicated warehouse space. As many smallholder producers lack on-farm drying infrastructure to dry their coffee properly, we also installed additional drying facilities close to the warehouse to enable producers to achieve optimum moisture levels and lock in cup quality that would otherwise be lost where coffee cannot be dried properly.