Cleber Cordoba, Peru

Cleber’s story reminds us of many of the young producers Cloud Picker works with. After years of mastering traditional practices passed down in the family from generation to generation, he discovered the world of specialty coffee and the opportunities it offers to farmers willing to experiment with established cultivation and processing methods.

Of course, experiments on the farm are not without risk. Changing familiar processes can lead to exceptional batches like this one, but it can just as easily compromise an entire crop, making it difficult, and sometimes impossible, to sell.

Cleber also experiments with growing prized varieties like Geisha and Obata, but this coffee shows how much can be achieved even with classics – Caturra and Bourbon, simply grown and processed exceptionally well.

Before washing, the coffee undergoes 48 hours of anaerobic fermentation. And while such processes are often associated with rather wild and unusual flavour profiles, here the approach is exactly the opposite. The result is subtle and measured.

Everything about this coffee is elegant and unobtrusive – a complex yet classic cup that shows Peru from a very beautiful side.