El Concurso de Cafe de Calidad IV, Lima Peru 2008.
It sounds impressive but it is certainly a competition-in-progress, not a Cup of ExcellenceThe Cup of Excellence is a competition held yearly in many coffee-producing countries, designed to highlight the very best coffees from each origin.: The Cup of Excellence (COE).... Six International judges, 6 Catadores Peruano.
We had some fun, but never left Lima for the countryside, so it feels like a fairly unsatisfying originIn coffee talk, it refers to a coffee-producing region or country; such as, "I was just at origin." Of course "Origin" for most product we use is not... trip. But we all came because we want to support the discovery of quality coffee from PeruPeruvian coffees have Central American brightness but in a South American coffee flavor package overall. The good organic lots do have more of a "rustic" coffee character.: Organic.... There is so much potential in Peru; great cultivarCultivar is a term used interchangeably with Varietal in the coffee trade to indicate plant material, although there are distinctions.: The naming of a cultivar should conform to... (TypicaA coffee cultivar; a cross between Typica and Bourbon, originally grown in Brazil: Mundo Novo is a commercial coffee cultivar; a natural hybrid between "Sumatra" and Red Bourbon,...), incredible altitude, dedicated farmers.
One of the biggest issues is the coops, who wage fierce competition against each other and have not, as of yet, found a way to unite and support an all-Peru competition. The second issue is the farms in Villa Rica, different than the rest of the small-holder farms in the rest of Peru, these are large old-money plantations that do not share the same goals as much of the Peru industry.
The third issue is the lack of a strong, central coffee association that can bring all these varied members together. And perhaps the final issue is a warehouse and export trade, which is not very interested in small lots, not interested in working in a new way to help preserve coffee quality (new packaging methods, etc), and dominated by one company that handles 48% of Peru’s coffee.
So it is a tough situation, and ultimately the coffee industry in Peru fails to help the lowest links in the chain, the community coffee farmer, to get better prices for coffee cherryOriginally coffee literature referred to the fruit of the tree as a "berry" but in time it became a cherry. It is of course neither. Nor is the.... Why? Because beyond OrganicGrown without the use of artificial fertilizers, herbicides, etc.: Organic coffee has been grown according to organic farming techniques, typically without the use of artificial fertilizers. Some farms... certifications, and beyond Fair TradeFair trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach to empowering developing country producers and promoting sustainability.: Fair trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach..., there are the price benefits that comes from roasters and consumers who recognize better cup quality.
Holding a Peru Cup of Excellence would allow the quality of Peru coffee speak for itself, influence coffee buyers, and shift the perception of Peru coffee. It would also provide a new model for the correct harvesting, fermentationFermentation in coffee processing traditionally referred to the stage in wet-processing of the coffee. We now understand that fermentation happens more broadly in nearly all processes, including honey..., drying, milling, sortingCoffee is sorted by size, density, and color in its preparation for export.: Sorting refers to several steps performed in the preparation of coffee for export. Coffee is..., warehousing and transporting of coffee.
I realize, I have some strong opinions about Peru coffee, about the problems here, and the way the coffee trade could change … but only because I see the great potential from what we cupped here at the competition, and in our innovative small lot purchases facilitated by KC O’Keefe, who now runs Cafe Verde in Lima.Here is a couple little movies I uploaded to YouTube. Then we can get into the pictures. Click on small images for the larger versions.
I found a plastic “gothic cross” in Lima that was very humerous, until i realized i paid nearly $10 for it. It’s not good to forget your US dollar to Peruvian Soles conversion rate while shopping. Peru 1990s spanish language trekkie zine from Lima Peru – wahoo! Star Trek in any language spells “g-e-e-k” … which is, I suppose, why I watched every single episode in order last year… that, or just masochism. Peru 
He had a lot of good comments, that the competition was a good start, but nowhere near the Cup of Excellence … well, it was good in terms of the cupping, but not in terms of the auction they want to have. They don’t have the lots secured, they don’t have a 3rd party auditor, or a bonded warehouse … Peru Huaca Pucllana is the only Incan or pre-Incan site in all of the Lima area. It’s in Miraflores, and is a pretty nice restaurant too. Peru while strolling around with the 2 chrises, i did some record shopping, yeilding a couple goofy things. If you are looking for knock-offs of Ratt or Saxxon, perhaps some Madonna, or other MOR stuff, you might find it in Lima. Funny though, this little xerox was probably worth more than most of the stuff in the store… Peru The people who set up the samples, pour water and clean up are so important for a cupping. Following tradition, we made a monetary collection and presented it to them to show our gratitude. Peru The doors of the main Cathedral. We took a car tour and were so fouled in traffic, and late for lunch, we didn;t even get out at the main square … hence the crappy pictures. Peru The main square in Lima, showing the govenors house across the way. Peru There’s no shortage of hot nightlife in Lima, Including Ray from New York and Dimension Latina from Venezuela. Peru Oddly, this Venus seems to have her assets showing a bit more than the Italian one … Peru Grafitti of Lima No. 2. The Cockroach was here!!! Peru It’s good to know that, where ever you go, lousy pizza is close at hand. Peru Grafitti of Lima No. 1 Peru Next to Miraflores is Barranca, more colonial, with a great town square. I like it more … very nice. Peru It’s good to know they still serve Expreso here… Peru They secured this bridge acriss from the park so nobody else could jump from it – egads! Peru This bus was full of Japanese tourists (in case you don’t know, there is a lot of Japanese in Peru as tourists, as business owners, as investors, as former Presidents …) but what was funny was that they were all so confused why I was taking a picture of their bus. I said I was a tourist. That didn’t answer their question, I think. Peru In perhaps one of the most bizarre happenings, this woman came up to our dinner table to tell us how happy she was to find a husband from the US using “Christina’s of Peru” marriage service, and left us a card. Huh? We all must have looked somehow desperate. It was bizarre, and at a nice restaurant too. I told her we were all plastics salespeople and would she like to buy anything from our catalogs… Peru Miraflores part of Lima is filled with nice parks, planted boulevards, and traffic circles with fountains like this. It’s definitely upper middle class. Peru We stayed at a clean yet fairly basic hotel since it was near the Instituto San Martin where we were cupping. But it’s nicer to stay close to the Plaza de Armas (main square) in Miraflores. Peru We returned a bit later, and the sculpture gave a different impression in the dark, with spotlights on it … Peru We ate here later this restaurant on the pier … and the food is quite good, but not too cheap. Peru At the lover’s park … nobody is too embarassed of being a cliche… Peru Oh that latin blood, they really know all about romance, celebrated by this hulking spray concrete ode to middle age romance In Miraflores part of Lima, Peru. Peru In Miraflores part of Lima, Peru … a closed-out and stormy day. The waves are fairly gentle but sizable too. Peru Immortalized (?) on a cactus near the so-called Love Park In Miraflores part of Lima, Peru. Peru Colorful knit finger puppets, imported from Nicaragua. well, probably not. But did you know a lot of crafts sold in Costa Rica and Guatemala, sold as local, are from Nicaragua, or Honduras, or the south of Mexico? It’s true… Peru 
There was a flower festival in town, but really it was just a disappointing assrtment of commercial booths. This was one of the few things there….In Miraflores part of Lima, Peru. Peru In Miraflores part of Lima, Peru. I just thought it was a funny display … Peru In Miraflores part of Lima, Peru. It’s a big shopping area, but I prefer small-town shopping to this… Peru I liked this hunched over stencil guy. a lot of the other grafitti was lame-o. Peru Chris Wade, from CBI in Portland, now a part of Farmers Brothers; Chris Kornman from Intelli, Aleco Chigounis from Stumptown, Geoff Watts from Intelli Peru Fruit vendors and others use some killer 3 wheel cargo bikes in Lima. A few are based on motorized mopeds. Peru I was so excited to see that you can surf in Lima. I was not so excited that it was damn cold, air and water, and that the water is reportedly quite dirty with city sewage. Groan… Peru The mark of a true cupper, dry grounds on the nose. Chris works at Intelligentsia in Chicago Peru Alex was the chicharra (cicada) for the distinct sound he made while cupping. Peru Alex was the chicarra (cicada) for the distinct sound he made while cupping. Peru why take a picture of the boots? why not? Why upload the picture of the boots. Because I like it. Peru or El Toro para Obama Peru Lourdes misheard Julio … he was talking about Miss Peru and she thought he said mispero, a sweet Peruvian fruit … so that was her nickname, mispero. Peru Breaking the crusts to judge wet aroma. Peru Cleaning the cups … Peru Julio works for Mitsubishi in Guatemala. 2 million bags a year, baby. He’s a nice guy too. Peru Wait, I think I came here for the wrong “concurso.” Wasn’t this supposed to be coffee we were judging. I mean, I like potatoes, but I don’t know much about them. Anyway, it appears they take “papas” more seriously than “café” in Peru, sometimes. Many of the coops fight here, and one company controls nearly 50% of the exports. It’s one reason that cup of excellence has never been held in Peru, to date. Peru still ahs too much of a “bulk coffee” (or even “bulk organic”) mindset. Maybe the Concurso de Papas Peruano is more progressive than the Concurso de Cafe? Peru The facilities at ISAMP were great for a group this size (12 cuppers total, 6 Peruano, 6 International). Peru Miraflores grafitti, plus kitty kat Peru Flying from Atlanta to Lima over the Carribean. Beautiful clouds … On my way to judge in the ellusive, exclusive, all-expense-paid, Concurso de Cafes de Calidad IV. It was one of the first times I have been on a trip and NOT seen a coffee tree, walked a farm, visited a mill … it was all held in Miraflores section of Lima, Peru Peru I don’t know why I even try, but the thought of a decent beer in Lima seemed enticing. The sign should have been a warning. This is located on the Calle de las Pizzas, I kid you not, Pizza street. Peru So we visted our friend K.C. O’Keefe at his cafe, Cafe Verde in Lima. KC just returned after working for a while at Intelli in Los Angeles, with his wife Tatiana and son Jeremiah. They live above the cafe, where they have the best, freshest coffee in Lima hands down. Peru KC is also founder of Jungle Tech and sources some really nice Peru coffees. Peru It’s a neat shop, with wi-fi and lotsa glass. I think they are going to do well, and they have expert baristas, since KC also runs the cupping and the barista school here. Peru All the coffee is roasted on sample roasters, what the serve and sell by the pund in the store. Peru They have a lineup of 3 sample roasters, 2 barrels each, I guess that makes them 6 barrels, more than 4 barrel coffee in sf! Peru A dollar bill cleverly folded into a shirt, at Cafe Verde in LIma Peru Peru We came unannounced and KC was in the window with his 6 month old son, Jeremiah. Kinda funny… Peru Ground coffee samples are lined up for each table, so judges can visually inspect them for roast color variations. Peru On the poster for the competition, it was funny how they used images of french roast coffee. it’s typical. Peru The green samples waiting to be roasted for the competition. Peru We held this competition in a institute for training food workers in Miraflores. It was a good facility. Peru Maritsa received the knickname Mama Cata, after the farm in Panama, and Mother who cups (catar, to taste) Peru Geoff was knicknamed “Oso Ambrodsado” i.e. Huggy Bear. Peru or AKA Gene Simmons, or Richard Simons, or just “Simmons” Peru The two Chrises. Wade was called “Sailor” since he’s a sailor (!), and Kornman was “Young Iggy” since he looked like young Iggy Pop, sez me. Peru Geoff was head judge (Intelligentsia), Aleco (Stumptown), Thompson (Sweet Maria’s), Chris Wade (Coffee Bean International), Julio (Mitsubishi, Guatemala) Peru Leading the discussion, Geoff at the computer Peru 
Cristobal AKA Chicha, has worked in coffee since 1983 and was the main cupper for the Junta de Cafe, the central coffee association for Peru. Peru
