The Zamora Family
Jorge, his wife Teresa, and their two youngest children— Kiara Noemi and Jesus Paolo— live in the mountaintops of San Ignacio, Peru.
Jorge is the first in his family to have ever produced coffee. Within two years of taking over his family’s farm, he hit the ground running in no time growing his very own high-grade specialty coffee— coffee of that one-of-a-kind quality found only in the Andes.
When we first came to visit Jorge in Peru, his daughter Kiara Noemi (joined by the family dog, Shey) greeted us eagerly on the road to their coffee farm. They had so much to say about us, welcoming us warmly and openly as we winded our way towards their property. Kiara then led us up a beautiful mountain path to her family's home. While there, we met the rest of the family, right in front of the Zamora’s picturesque adobe home designed and built by the Zamoras themselves.
Jorge himself next led us across the spectacular ridges of his property after our introductions. He explained various sections of his farm all the while: what the Zamoras grow, what they wish to grow, and what plans they had for the future.
Jorge is a man of few words. But, when he does speak, you can feel the pride he takes in everything— including his deep passion for producing only the very best and most authentic specialty coffee.
A local coffee growers’ association claims that Jorge, a member of their group, is one of the most forward-thinking among them. Even within a short time of meeting him, we quickly understood why. Jorge constantly works to improve all aspects of his coffee production. He has a single-minded willingness to learn from and work with others to make that happen, no matter the stakes.
The Zamoras have also been investing their own money into working with agronomists to better their production even further. They’re working closely with their local coffee grower association, too, in order to keep improving and streamlining their processes, boost profits, and improve their way of life.
Regardless of improvements they’ve made thus far, however, harvest time is always the most difficult and busiest time of year for the Zamoras— Jorge and his family collect 100% of the coffee themselves due to the lack of seasonal workers. It takes them days to selectively harvest only the ripest coffee cherries from their six acres spanning the steep mountain slopes of their property.
After each harvest, these hundreds of pounds of cherries are pulped, fermented, washed, and spread out over shelves in the drying house Jorge constructed in 2018. There, the coffee fruits await grading from potential buyers.
Though the workdays and lifestyle on Zamora’s coffee farm are challenging (and not for the faint of heart), the family’s dedication and love for coffee cultivation shine brightly through it all. It’s more than enough to inspire and humble any coffee lover— and it’s a very real and special privilege to experience.
We absolutely loved our time on the Zamora farm. It was a huge honor to meet Jorge, Teresa, and their children. The Zamoras are a wonderful farming family with an inspiring outlook for the future of their farm: their production processes, their product, and the welfare of other coffee growers like them, too.
The Zamoras are only one farming family we partner with to bring specialty coffee from Peru all the way to coffee lovers all over the US in turn. All the while, we endeavor to work with these specialty coffee farmers in partnerships that are as ethical and fair as possible—beyond fair trade, beyond environmentally-friendly, and beyond organic.
We're excited to see how our relationship will continue to develop with the Zamoras. Most of all, we look forward to seeing them and visiting them on their farm someday again soon.
