Peru — Isaac Espinoza Flores SL9 (Washed)

Tastes Like — 🥭 Mango • 🌹 Rose • 🍍 Pineapple

DETAILS

• Producer: Isaac Espinoza Flores
• Region: Inkawasi, Cusco, Peru
• Varietal: SL9 ("Inca Gesha")
• Process: Washed
• Altitude: 2,150 MASL

INTRO

From Isaac Espinoza Flores — a true specialty coffee veteran with over 40 years of dedication to cultivation in Inkawasi, and one of the first producers to establish both a coffee plantation and processing facility in the district. A rare and vibrant washed SL9 from a producer who helped put Peruvian SL9 on the map. In the cup: mango, rose, and pineapple.

THE PRODUCER

Isaac Espinoza Flores has been farming coffee in Inkawasi, Cusco for more than four decades — a pioneer of the district whose work establishing a coffee plantation and beneficio inspired many neighbouring families to build their own specialty operations. He is one of the key figures behind Inkawasi's growing reputation in the international specialty market, and his long years of accumulated knowledge are directly evident in the quality and consistency of what he produces.

SL9 — affectionately known as "Inca Gesha" among local producers and the wider specialty community — has become one of the most captivating discoveries in Peruvian coffee. Genetic testing has found it closely resembles SL09, a rare cultivar belonging to the Ethiopian Legacy group, originally identified through single-tree selections made by the Scott Agricultural Laboratories in the 1930s. At 2,150 MASL in Inkawasi, the variety's inherent aromatic intensity and tropical fruit expression find their fullest expression in a washed lot of exceptional clarity and vibrancy.

THE PROCESS

The Washed process involves:

🍒 Hand-picking — SL9 cherries selectively harvested at peak ripeness 💧 Flotation — Floated to remove defects before processing 🔧 Depulping — Outer skin removed before fermentation 🧪 Fermentation — Beans fermented to break down remaining mucilage 💧 Washing — Thoroughly washed after fermentation to remove all residue ☀️ Raised-bed drying — Dried on raised beds to optimal moisture content

The meticulous washed processing is the defining step — stripping back all fruit influence to allow the intrinsic mango sweetness, rose florality, and pineapple brightness of the SL9 varietal and Isaac's 2,150 MASL Inkawasi terroir to express themselves with vibrant clarity.

THE CUP

A rare and vibrant washed SL9 from one of Peru's most experienced and pioneering specialty producers — mango sweetness, rose florality, and pineapple brightness in a clean, expressive cup that speaks of forty years of dedication and the extraordinary potential of Inca Gesha in Inkawasi.

Flavour Notes

🥭 Mango 🌹 Rose 🍍 Pineapple