Ecuador — Bernard Uhe & Tim Leahy Finca La Noria Lot 2 Geisha (Anaerobic Washed)

Tastes Like — 🌸 Acacia Flower • 🍑 White Peach • 🍊 Mandarin

DETAILS

• Producer: Bernard Uhe (ChocoVilcaMundo) & Tim Leahy
• Farm: Finca La Noria — Lot 2
• Region: Loja Province, Ecuador
• Varietal: Geisha
• Process: Anaerobic Washed (Double Fermentation)
• Altitude: 2,000–2,270 MASL
• Size: 100g

INTRO

A second lot from Finca La Noria — the 2023 Ecuador Cup of Excellence winner, situated in the Vilcabamba Valley of Loja at up to 2,270 MASL. Where the first lot delivers the classic double anaerobic expression of La Noria's Geisha, this Lot 2 takes a softer, more delicate direction — acacia flower, white peach, and mandarin in a clean, refined cup of exceptional florality.

THE PRODUCER

Finca La Noria sits at 2,000–2,270 MASL in the Vilcabamba Valley of Loja — a growing environment shaped by Pacific Ocean currents and mountain airflow from the nearby Podocarpus National Park. Cool nights of around 13°C, warm days up to 23°C, and a dry season aligned with the June–September harvest create ideal conditions for slow, even cherry development and exceptional aromatic concentration.

The farm was acquired by Tim Leahy in 2017 and developed in collaboration with Bernard Uhe and the ChocoVilcaMundo (CVM) project — a coffee, cacao, and honey venture with roots in a Colombian coffee-growing family from Ibagué. Farm management centres on agroforestry, on-farm fertility inputs, and natural pest and fungus management. La Noria won the 2023 Ecuador Cup of Excellence and has established itself as one of Ecuador's most compelling and consistently awarded specialty addresses.

Geisha, first collected from the forests of Ethiopia in the 1930s and distributed through research stations in Tanzania and Central America before arriving in Panama in the 1960s, finds exceptional conditions in the cool, high-altitude Vilcabamba Valley — where the variety's hallmark florality and delicate complexity reach their fullest expression.

THE PROCESS

The Anaerobic Washed Double Fermentation process at Finca La Noria involves:

🍒 Hand-picking — Geisha cherries selectively harvested at peak ripeness 💧 Washing & flotation — Cherries washed and sorted, with floaters removed 🔒 24-hour whole cherry anaerobic fermentation — Whole cherries sealed in anaerobic conditions for 24 hours 🔧 Depulping — Outer skin removed after the initial fermentation 🔒 24-hour post-depulp anaerobic fermentation — Depulped beans sealed again for a further 24 hours 💧 Thorough tank washing — Thoroughly washed after fermentation to remove all residue ☀️ Drying — Dried to optimal moisture content

The sequential double anaerobic fermentation — 24 hours in the whole cherry, then 24 hours after depulping — is the defining step, building the acacia flower florality and white peach sweetness that define this lot, while the thorough washing preserves the clean mandarin brightness and refined structure that make Lot 2 such a delicate and elegant expression of La Noria's Geisha.

THE CUP

A delicate, floral, and beautifully refined anaerobic washed Geisha from one of Ecuador's most celebrated Cup of Excellence winning farms — acacia flower delicacy, white peach sweetness, and a bright mandarin finish in a clean, precise cup that reveals the full aromatic potential of La Noria at its most elegant. Lot 2 at its most quietly expressive.

Flavour Notes

🌸 Acacia Flower 🍑 White Peach 🍊 Mandarin