Peru: We found flavour where others had not dared.

When risk is reward…

San Ignacio, Peru, October 2018 was when we began our Project Bosques Verdes experiments.

The nature of an experiment is risk (and expectation).

And, while Zest absorbed all risk for the Bosque Verdes Co-op(BVC), there was still a huge risk at large for us. We sent 2 head roasters (from Zest Sydney& Melbourne) off into the Peruvian jungle during one of the busiest periods of the year to explore a coffee growing region the rest of the roasting community hadn’t given much time to. Crazy?

Risky. What did we expect? By using a few of our tested processing techniques we could lift the co-op’s coffee into high-scoring specialty ranks. Too cocky? Might have been.

Obviously it’s been a long and anxious wait since October to see if our risks and expectations are rewarded…

We’re proud to report the anxious feelings have been traded with relief, and sweet success! (And a seriously good coffee).

Last week Zest’s flavour lab lined up the original Peru BVC coffee alongside our 5 experimental lots (as well as 30 of the best coffee on the market, just quietly) and we’re blown away.

Our lab is tasting “sweet and balanced floral, bubblegum & blackcurrant candy with notes of quince & apple pie” after our fermentation technique, where historically we’d cupped very basic flavour notes from Peru.

Still a long way to go to accomplish our larger goals for Peru, but flavour is key, and we’ve got that in the bag.

There’s only a super-small sample of our Peruvian lots, but what we have is on the table for the public (that’s you!) at MICE, 2019 in a couple of weeks.

We’ll see you there?

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