What are the coffee growing regions in Peru? How to brew Peruvian coffee beans? Peruvian coffee pour-over parameters

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style).

Introduction to Peru Coffee

Peruvian coffee has long been used as one of the blending beans to stabilize the richness in coffee blends, maintaining a relatively low profile in the coffee industry. However, as more people have grown to love the mellow taste of Peruvian coffee, it has rapidly emerged in the international market in recent years, winning numerous international coffee awards and becoming a rising star in the coffee world.

Peruvian coffee is well-balanced and of high quality, making it suitable for mixed beverages.

Geography and Coffee Production

Located in western South America, Peru has a coastline stretching 2,254 kilometers with a dry and mild climate suitable for coffee cultivation. The country also boasts diverse natural environments, including the world's longest Andes Mountains, tropical rainforests, uniquely rolling hills, and dry deserts. This vast and varied land allows Peru to produce a wide range of coffee beans with different flavor profiles. Consequently, Peru has now become the third-largest coffee producer and exporter in Latin America, after Brazil and Colombia. In terms of export value, Peru ranked 12th in the world in 2016.

Characteristics of Peruvian Coffee

More than 90% of Peruvian coffee is grown in the northern valleys, to the east of the capital Lima, and in forested areas along the slopes of the Andes Mountains. However, coffee beans from the central Chanchamayo region and the southern Cusco region are the most famous. The characteristic of Peruvian coffee lies in its rich acidity and smooth, mellow body. Premium Peruvian coffee features intense aroma, smooth texture with distinct layers, rich sweetness, and particularly its gentle acidity that easily captures people's hearts.

The organic coffee beans produced in northern Peru also possess distinctive qualities. These coffee beans are grown under shade without the use of fertilizers and pesticides. Because shade can slow down the maturation of coffee trees, helping them fully develop, although the yield is not high, their quality can reach the level of premium coffee. Therefore, they are deeply loved by consumers in European and American countries.

Economic and Political Context

Peru is also a major coffee producer. Up to 98% of Peruvian coffee is grown in forested areas, with most producers being small farmers.

Peru has favorable economic conditions and a stable political situation, ensuring the excellent quality of its coffee. However, local issues persist. Besides guerrilla warfare and drug trafficking, a cholera outbreak in coastal areas in the mid-1990s further caused economic depression. Moreover, the annual inflation rate once reached 7,000%.

In the mid-1970s, Peru's annual coffee production was about 900,000 bags, which later steadily grew to about 1.3 million bags per year. Although private exporters purchased coffee from remote areas through intermediaries, the main market remained monopolized by the government. Later, the private Peruvian Coffee Exporters Association (Comera de Exportadores de Cafe del Peru) was established. This association is committed to improving coffee quality, with its primary task being to establish standards and eliminate inferior products, thereby creating a quality-first atmosphere. This positive initiative signals a bright future for the coffee industry. Subsequently, rising prices also encouraged farmers to actively grow coffee instead of the region's traditional economic crop—cocoa.

Quality and Production Regions

The highest quality Peruvian coffee is produced in Chanchamayo, Cuzco, Norte, and Puno. Most Peruvian coffee is grown under natural conditions, but it is difficult to confirm the growing conditions of all coffee trees. Coffee grown under natural conditions commands a price 10-20% higher than others. Considering the poverty situation, farmers likely cannot afford fertilizers and pesticides, but confirming this for all coffee is indeed challenging.

The quality of Peruvian coffee can compete with any coffee from Central or South America. The high-quality coffee produced in Peru is shipped to Germany for blending before being transported to Japan and the United States, which also demonstrates its high quality standards from another perspective.

Brewing Recommendations

FrontStreet Coffee suggests the following Peruvian coffee brewing parameters:

V60/1:15/90°C/Time: 1 minute 50 seconds

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473