Peru San Antonio Natural Process

“A vibrant cup with hints of strawberry jam and pomegranate.”

San Antonio is a village in the district of Huabal, which is home to over 32 farming families. The altitudes range from 1750 to around 1950masl and the main varieties grown are caturra, bourbon and catimor. San Antonio is one of the areas that produces some of the best coffees in all of Northern Peru and the delicate and complex profile is often a favourite. As is the case in most of Northern Peru, drying beds and tents are still not very common and most producers dry their coffee on tarpaulin mats on the ground. Most of the producers pick their coffee themselves and with the help of family and neighbours, before processing and drying it at their home.

Huabal is a district within the Jaén province of Cajamarca and is one of our strongest areas for members and quality. Huabal has a great potential for quality coffee, but due to very poor infrastructure many of the producers lack resources and knowledge to unlock it. Most of the producers we work with are above 1800masl. Many producers in Huabal had been regenerating their farms with catimores, which had been promoted by the government, but which in the higher altitudes rarely produce much and the quality is poor. Now with the premiums that they’re receiving for quality, more producers are re-planting caturra, bourbon and catuai, which, with good management and fertilisation can yield more and better quality coffee. Huabal is made up of various villages, which are centres of coffee production and each producer belongs to a village. Since Huabal spans a couple of mountains the climate conditions and soils can vary considerably; some areas having wet, humid conditions and red, African-like soils and others dry and hot. This all contributes to diverse and delicious cup profiles and some very complex coffees.

All photos: Figure 8 Coffee Purveyors