Queromarca Community | Peru

TL;DR: we found this one by complete accident. While cupping with other intentions this coffee jumped up and made itself known. With an amazing level of complexity, and more layers than an onion, or Shrek, or the best pastry you’ve ever seen. It’s a real treat, and knowing it supports a whole community of growers is a huge plus for us.

 

This Queromarca microlot comes from a group of 17 producers from Callayuc, in the northern Peru province of Cutervo.  Coffee cultivation is fairly new to the area but it's obvious the conditions are right to produce world class lots.  The local group there working with coffee farmers is called Cultivar Coffee.  Two years ago they started working with two communities and they say "in a certain way our collaboration started by coincidence. It all began with our search for one specific coffee grower who is called Susana. We tasted her coffee in 2020 and were very impressed". They later embellish that they located and tasted her coffee again and it was excellent. She, in turn, introduced them to other neighboring growers and began to develop relationships that have lead us to this very interesting and tasty coffee which is comprised of the highest scoring lots of the 17 growers.  In effect, this is a very small collection of producers sharing concise piece of land, working with a local expert to properly harvest, process and market some excellent cofffee. These 17 farms combined occupy only about 30 total acres, so they are very small and family run.

 

Northern Peru boasts a warm climate, fertile lands, dense vegetation, and a rich cultural heritage that has been preserved to this day. The Cajamarca region, within this area, is renowned for its varied geography that ranges from Andean ecosystems to high-altitude forests. The region is also known for its pastures that provide an ideal environment for cattle to grow and produce high-quality dairy products. The area's coffee is of excellent quality and is highly regarded by many.  The soil, microclimate and very high elevations, from 1800 to 2000 meters, augurs well for quality coffee production when properly managed.

 

The province of Cutervo, located in the northern part of Peru, is known for its stunning cloud forests, moors, and dry forests that are protected by the Cutervo National Park. The park is a critical ecosystem that provides food and water to over 90,000 people in seven micro-watersheds. The region's primary agricultural activities are coffee cultivation, sugarcane production, rice, fruit trees, and cattle rearing.

 

Thanks to the Andes mountain range and its proximity to the equator, there is a constantly warm climate, fertile lands and dense vegetation. It is an area with great cultural wealth and full of traditions that the population has managed to preserve up to today. In that northern area, the Cajamarca region stands out for its diversity in geography, ranging from Andean ecosystems to high-altitude forests of great beauty. Cajamarca's pastures are well known for providing a great environment for cattle to grow and producing delicious dairy products.

 

We are roasting this coffee as a celebration of luck, coincidence, and of course people and flavour. This all came together via luck, and we are so grateful that we get to share in that. The roasting here is just a touch more than usual for our washed filter coffees, to really highlight the complex layers of sweetness and fruit that can only come from a community mixed lot like this.

We prefer our filter brews from a v60, but we won’t judge for use of anything at all to make yourself a coffee - even a (clean) sock.

 

Our recommended ratio when brewing filter coffee is 60g of coffee per litre of water. Simply scale this down, or up, for your desired size of brew.

 

With all methods, you’ll want: a grind size similar to granulated sugar, boiling water, and about 3 minutes of brewing time. This goes for v60, aeropress, plunger, and the (still hopefully clean) sock.

 

Our favourite recipe for v60:

• 20g of medium to coarsely ground coffee, it’ll feel a little like granulated sugar.
• Set your kettle to boil, and ready your socks to be rocked.
• We use a 60g bloom, with a swirl of the slurry to make sure it’s all wet. You can stir of that’s easier, just don’t rip the paper!
• After that, when your timer is at 45 seconds, add more water to a total of 200g, and swirl gently.
• Then finally at 1:15 on your timer, add the rest of your water, to 330g, and do one last little swirl.
• Wait till it drains through, roughly 3:30 is a good time, pour into your favourite mug, and let those socks be rocked.

 

If you’d like more info or tips, get in touch! hello@coreroasters.cc