Origin: Finca Chakana Cruz
Producer: Ramiro Coronel
Region: Quinara / Chirusco, Loja Province, Ecuador
Altitude: 1,700 MASL
Cupping Score: 87.25
Process: Washed
Price: $14.55/lb | 22lb Box: $320.10
Producer & Origin Story
In the lush Andes of southern Ecuador, near the legendary valley of Vilcabamba, lies Finca ChakanaCruz – a 150-acre permaculture coffee farm with a truly unique origin story. The farm was established in 2020 by a group of adventurous coffee lovers who spent years searching across continents for the perfect place to live and grow exceptional coffee. After exploring 59 countries, they found their dream land in the Quinara region of Loja province, along the Piscobamba River – a locale famed for its mild year-round spring climate (55–75°F) and rich volcanic soils at about 4,500 feet elevation. This high-altitude microclimate, combined with clean air and abundant sunshine, proved to be perfect for growing coffee.
The very name “Chakana Cruz” reflects the farm’s deep connection to the land and local culture. Chakana is the Andean cross – an ancient Inca symbol representing the bridge between the earthly and the cosmic. Fascinatingly, the ChakanaCruz farm sits almost exactly on an ancient alignment of the Andean cross, a line used by pre-Inca travelers that passes over the Quinara area. Inspired by this symbolism, the founders infused their project with a philosophy of harmony between people, nature, and the universe. From the beginning, their vision was not only to grow great coffee, but to build a self-sufficient, sustainable community on the farm. They envisioned an off-grid haven where coffee quality, ecological permaculture, and community well-being go hand in hand. In fact, the team’s stated mission is “to produce the best coffee in the world and use its income and influence to build a community of like-minded people” that can “survive and thrive” together. This ethos can be felt in every aspect of ChakanaCruz.
One of the most remarkable chapters of the ChakanaCruz story is how the coffee itself got started. The farm’s founders managed to acquire 20,000 seedlings of the famed Geisha variety, sourced from beans that won the 2020 World’s Best Coffee Award in Colombia. In other words, the genetic lineage of ChakanaCruz’s coffee stems from a champion lot, giving the farm a head start in potential cup quality. Planting these Geisha trees was a top priority from day one. To ensure the young plants thrived, ChakanaCruz brought in experienced soil and coffee agronomists and even timed the planting with the lunar cycles – a practice rooted in biodynamic farming to align with natural rhythms. The farm’s approach to cultivation is resolutely organic and sustainable: they use only natural fertilizers and bio-friendly pest controls, and they manually weed around the coffee trees to avoid any chemical herbicides that could contaminate the soil or crop. This hands-on care reflects a deep respect for the environment and results in extraordinarily healthy coffee plants.
Today, Finca ChakanaCruz is a thriving ecosystem unto itself. Besides coffee, the farm is cultivating a variety of fruits, citrus, vegetables, honey, and even raising tilapia fish and dairy livestock in a permaculture model. An old hacienda house on the property has been lovingly restored and expanded to serve as the farm’s heart, alongside new additions like a hydroelectric generator (fed by the farm’s mountain spring), solar panels, a greenhouse, and even an ancestral Inca-style hut built by local craftsmen. The farm is essentially off-grid, drawing pure water from a high-Andes source that flows through gravity-fed irrigation to nourish the crops. (This spring water is so pure it contains trace minerals like colloidal silver and gold from the mountain – a natural treasure that nurtures the coffee trees.) The small team behind ChakanaCruz includes both the visionary founders and local Loja coffee experts, all working side by side. Their passion and combined expertise have quickly turned this young farm into a rising star in Ecuador’s specialty coffee scene.
Processing Details
The coffee we’ve selected from ChakanaCruz is a Geisha (Gesha) varietal, processed in the fully washed method. Geisha is a legendary Arabica variety renowned for its exquisite floral and tea-like cup profile, and at ChakanaCruz this varietal truly shines. The processing begins with meticulous picking: only the ripest, perfect red coffee cherries are hand-selected during harvest. Given the farm’s relatively young trees and smaller scale, pickers can be extremely discriminating, often doing multiple passes to ensure each cherry is harvested at peak sugar content. On the same day of picking, the cherries are brought to the farm’s micro-beneficio (processing station) to begin the washed process.
First, the cherries are de-pulped to remove the outer fruit skin, exposing the sticky mucilage-covered parchment beans. The beans then undergo a carefully monitored fermentation in tanks to break down the mucilage. ChakanaCruz’s team takes a very hands-on, experimental approach to fermentation; in some cases they’ve even tried double-fermenting or other innovative techniques to enhance clarity and sweetness (a method inspired by some East African coffee traditions). For this Geisha washed lot, the fermentation was likely a traditional style: the beans sat in their own natural enzymes for a set period (often 24–48 hours) to loosen the mucilage. Throughout this stage, purity of water is crucial – and ChakanaCruz has an advantage here. They use crystal-clear spring water from the Andes to wash the coffee, which means no off-flavors, only clean processing. This pure water, enriched with natural minerals from high in the mountains, gently washes off the fermented mucilage once the timing is just right. The result is parchment coffee beans that are impeccably clean, ready to dry.
Drying is done with equal diligence. At ChakanaCruz, the beans are sun-dried in the dry mountain air, most likely on raised drying beds or patios that allow good airflow. The sunny days and mild temperatures of the Vilcabamba/Quinara area are ideal for slow, even drying. Over the course of around 10–14 days (depending on weather), the beans are constantly tended: moved and raked to ensure uniform drying and prevent any mildew or over-fermentation. This slow drying locks in the coffee’s vibrant flavors and sweetness. After reaching the optimal moisture level (around 10–11%), the dried parchment coffee is rested in reposo (storage) for several weeks to stabilize. This resting period allows moisture and flavor to equilibrate throughout the batch – a step that the ChakanaCruz team values highly, as evidenced by their patience in only releasing coffees that have “settled” properly. In fact, during our conversations the producers emphasized waiting for the coffees to fully stabilize after processing before sending samples, underscoring their commitment to quality control at every stage.
Notably, Finca ChakanaCruz doesn’t shy away from experimentation. Although this particular lot is a classic washed Geisha to highlight purity of profile, the farm has also processed small batches of their coffees in various methods – including natural (dry process), honey (partial pulp removal), carbonic maceration, and even double fermentation anaerobic styles – in search of new flavor dimensions. This innovative spirit means they are constantly learning and refining techniques to bring out the very best in their beans. For the washed Geisha, however, the goal was to let the intrinsic qualities of the Geisha variety and terroir shine through without too much fermentation influence. The result is a clean yet expressive coffee that beautifully represents ChakanaCruz’s terroir and careful craft.
Why This Coffee is Special
In a world of specialty coffee, ChakanaCruz’s washed Geisha stands out as something truly special. Here are a few key reasons this coffee is exceptional and worth seeking out:
- Rare Variety & Award-Winning Lineage: This coffee is of the Gesha (Geisha) variety, one of the most celebrated and sought-after coffee varieties in the world. The farm’s 20,000 Geisha trees were grown from prize-winning seed stock – beans that took first place in an international coffee competition in 2020. That pedigree is evident in the cup. Geisha is known for its extraordinary aromatics (think jasmine, honeysuckle, bergamot) and silky sweetness, and ChakanaCruz’s careful cultivation maximizes those traits. Tasting this coffee is tasting the progeny of a world champion, now nurtured in Ecuador’s soil.
- Unique Terroir of Loja, Ecuador: Grown in the Quinara valley of Loja – a region already famed for producing award-winning coffees – this lot benefits from a truly unique terroir. The farm’s location at ~4,500 feet in the Andes provides warm days and cool nights that slow the coffee cherry maturation, leading to more complex sugars and flavors in the bean. The trees are nourished by pure mountain spring water, rich in natural minerals from the Andean highlands. The combination of fertile soil, ideal climate, and pristine water yields a cup with exceptional clarity and brightness. There is a certain “taste of place” in this coffee – a crisp sweetness and gentle acidity that reflect the Valley of Vilcabamba’s clean air and soil. In each sip, you get a sense of the Andes.
- Meticulous Sustainable Farming & Processing: ChakanaCruz’s coffee is the product of painstaking care at every step. The farm is run on permaculture and organic principles – no chemical fertilizers or pesticides are ever used, and even weeds are removed by hand to protect the ecosystem. The trees were planted following lunar cycles for optimal growth, and are intercropped with other plants in a biodiverse environment. During processing, the beans are handled with equal attention: hand-picked at peak ripeness, fermented with precision, washed in pure water, and slowly sun-dried. This lot was only released after sufficient resting to ensure peak flavor. Such thoughtful practices result in a remarkably clean and high-quality coffee. You’ll notice how transparent and vibrant the flavors are, free of defects or off-notes – a testament to the farm’s sustainable craftsmanship.
- Passionate People & Community Vision: What truly sets ChakanaCruz apart is the passion of its people and the bigger purpose behind the coffee. This farm is the brainchild of visionaries who literally traveled the world to create a coffee paradise in Ecuador. Their dedication – from building infrastructure by hand to experimenting with new processing methods – is driven by love for coffee and respect for the local land and culture. Every cup of ChakanaCruz coffee carries that human story. Moreover, when you enjoy this coffee, you are supporting a project with heart: the farm aims to reinvest its coffee proceeds into the local community, planning initiatives like a future health clinic and education center for the region. In the founders’ own words, they want to “use [coffee’s] income and influence to build a community of like-minded people” who can prosper together. This means your purchase helps fuel sustainable jobs and community growth in a remote part of Ecuador. It’s coffee with a conscience, rooted in family, tradition, and hope for the future.
In summary, Chakana Cruz Geisha (Washed) is far more than just a cup of coffee – it’s the culmination of a dream and the product of unwavering commitment to quality. From the moment the seed was planted to the final drying of the beans, extraordinary care and intention have gone into this coffee. The result in the cup is a vibrant melody of flavors: expect a fragrant floral bouquet on the nose, a lively sweetness like yellow fruit and honey, and a delicate tea-like finish that lingers. It’s the kind of coffee that can stop you in your tracks and make you reflect on the journey it took from a remote Andean valley to your cup.
By featuring this coffee, we not only get to savor a rare Ecuadorian Geisha at its finest, but we also help shine a spotlight on Ecuador’s emerging specialty coffee scene. Ecuador may be a smaller origin on the world stage, but farms like ChakanaCruz are proving that it can produce coffees of world-class caliber – with distinctive character and a story that resonates. We’re proud to share this remarkable producer’s coffee with you, and we hope you taste the inspiration in every turn of its story and flavor. Enjoy the journey in your cup, knowing it’s a journey that connects you straight to the cloud forests of Loja and the passionate people of Chakana Cruz.
Sources: The above information was gathered from direct conversations with the ChakanaCruz team and their official website, which details the farm’s mission, history, and processing practices. Each fact – from the farm’s founding vision to its use of champion Geisha seeds – is grounded in those firsthand sources to ensure authenticity. The ChakanaCruz website and our discussions provided insight into how this exceptional coffee came to be, and why it’s truly one-of-a-kind. Enjoy this coffee knowing the care and story behind it are as real as the wonderful flavors in your cup.