Ecuador — Bernard Uhe & Elder Family Finca El Dorado Gesha (Anaerobic Washed)

Tastes Like — 🥝 Kiwi • 🐉 Yellow Dragonfruit • 🍋 Lemonade • 🌸 Peach Blossom

DETAILS

• Producer: Bernard Uhe (ChocoVilcaMundo) & Elder Family
• Farm: Finca El Dorado
• Region: Loja, Ecuador
• Varietal: Gesha
• Process: Anaerobic Washed (1-Day Cherry + 5-Day Parchment Fermentation)
• Altitude: 1,700–1,750 MASL
• Roast: Light
• Rest: 4–6 weeks from roast date
• Size: 125g

INTRO

From Bernard Uhe and the Elder family at Finca El Dorado — a spectacular Gesha that immediately stood out on Moonwake's cupping table. Packed with tropical fruit and florals, vibrant without being overwhelming, and becoming more elegant and expressive with every sip as it cools. A multiple Cup of Excellence and Golden Cup finalist farm, delivering one of its finest expressions yet. In the cup: tangy kiwi, sweet yellow dragonfruit, lemonade brightness, and peach blossom florality.

THE PRODUCER

Finca El Dorado was established in 2017 when the Elder family — a father and his sons — purchased the land in Loja with the intention of growing almonds. After connecting with Bernard Uhe of ChocoVilcaMundo (CVM), the plan evolved toward coffee. CVM is an Ecuadorian agricultural company owned by Bernard Uhe and his coffee-growing family from Ibagué, Colombia — a family whose immersion in coffee cultivation spans multiple generations. Together, the CVM team and the Elder family have combined Colombian generational expertise with the Elders' deep knowledge of the land, and the results have been extraordinary: placements at both the 2021 and 2022 Ecuador Cup of Excellence, and recognition at the 2022 and 2023 Ecuador Golden Cup.

Gesha, first collected from the forests of Ethiopia in the 1930s, found its most celebrated expression in Panama before spreading to South America — where the cool highland conditions of Loja's Andean growing environment allow the variety's hallmark florality and delicate complexity to develop with exceptional precision.

THE PROCESS

The Anaerobic Washed process at Finca El Dorado involves:

🍒 Hand-picking — Gesha cherries selectively harvested at peak ripeness 🔒 1-day in-cherry fermentation — Whole cherries fermented for one day before peeling 🔧 Peeling (depulping) — Outer skin removed after the initial fermentation 🔒 5-day anaerobic parchment fermentation — Depulped beans sealed and fermented anaerobically for five full days in parchment 🏡 21-day greenhouse raised-bed drying — Dried slowly over raised beds in a greenhouse for at least 21 days

The five-day anaerobic parchment fermentation is the defining step — an unusually extended sealed fermentation after depulping that builds the vivid tropical fruit intensity and layered aromatic complexity that define this lot, while the 21-day greenhouse drying ensures a controlled, even finish that preserves the tangy kiwi brightness, dragonfruit sweetness, and peach blossom florality that emerge so beautifully as the cup cools.

THE CUP

A vibrant, elegant, and beautifully tropical anaerobic washed Gesha from one of Ecuador's most consistently decorated specialty farms — tangy kiwi and sweet yellow dragonfruit lead with juicy vibrancy, a refreshing lemonade brightness lifts as the cup cools, and a delicate peach blossom florality lingers long into the finish. Bernard Uhe and the Elder family at their most spectacular.

Flavour Notes

🥝 Kiwi 🐉 Yellow Dragonfruit 🍋 Lemonade 🌸 Peach Blossom