Tasting Notes: Candied Almond, Cocoa, Honey, Cola & Grape

Grower: Fabiana Dueñas Llacta
Area: Huaynapata, Yanatile Valle, Dept. of Cusco
Producer Cooperative: Valle Inca
Elevation: 1600-2000 masl
Variety: Washed Typica, Pache, Bourbon

Additional information by Red Fox Coffee Merchants:

Fabiana is a relatively young coffee producer, one of 101 Valle Inca Coffee Grower members, born in the coffee producing district of Huaynapata in 1990. She has been cultivating coffee for three years after she inherited her family’s farm. The farm expands to 11 hectares, but only 3.5 hectares are dedicated to coffee production.

Typica, Pache and Bourbon varieties are grown among many shade trees including Albizia and Pacay. After processing, parchment is loaded onto mules to be delivered to the dry mill. Fabiana is a passionate coffee producer and wishes to obtain national and international recognition in the future.

Nestled in the Yanatile Valley in the Department of Cusco in the south of Peru, Valle Inca functions as a producer group, where Prudencio Vargas Saenz, who created and runs the group, buys parchment from farmers, reinvesting premiums in the community’s infrastructure to help them continue to improve quality. Prudencio, who lives in nearby Calca and brings the benefits of his former experience as an agricultural loan officer, used to operate outside the aegis of a collective, but after years of running Valle Inca informally, he formalized the organization in 2020 to gain organic certification, Fair Trade certification, and the ability to export on his own.

Member-wise, Valle Inca is growing fast, with 101 plus farmers currently in the fold. It’s no surprise that more and more farmers want to work with Valle Inca; in the community, Prudencio is known for his honesty, trustworthiness, dedication, and drive to invest and reinvest in his community, genuinely engaging their goals and concerns. He also pays higher prices than farmers had access to prior to the founding of Valle Inca, which has helped to improve quality as well as overall community health over time.