PERUHUGO PAREJA AND FLOR LOPEZ

About coffee:

Hugo Pareja and his wife Flor Lopez, a young married couple who, guided by the coffee tradition of Hugo’s mother, have made coffee his main livelihood. Hugo has been growing coffee on his own farm since he was 17 years old and now at 42, he shares this work with his wife and his three children. Initially, they cultivated Typica variety, but 7 years ago the cooperative which they are members of gave them a new coffee seed that was well known for its quality but without even sharing the name. After 3 years when they harvested their first coffee cherries, the cooperative gave him the good news that their coffee had a very good cup score that could even get better, so they gave them more seeds and training to continue improving their processes. Assistance from the cooperative also included knowledge on how to improve selective picking and monitor fermentation so that they could get the most out of their beans. Over time Hugo and Flor have become aware of the potential they have growing this new variety that they now know very well: Geisha. They have set up their own nursery of 1000 geisha seedlings that they hope to plant on another 0.75 hectares in March. It is believed that the original Geisha seeds got cross-pollinated with other varieties from the same area, creating what they have named the “Inca Geisha”, a mutation of the Geisha variety that is unique to this particular environment. Keeping all the stunning flavours of the Geisha but not corresponding 100% genetically with it.

Hugo also grows Typica, Bourbon, Caturra and Catimor. His farm has an organic production, using waste from his own farm and also from raising small animals. Biodiversity and shade are important to him as he’s got different tree species on his farm: pisonay, pacae, barbasco and pines.