EQUATEUR Terrazas del Pisque LAVE

🌿 A washed coffee grown in a hand-built forest in the Ecuadorian desert

Farm: Las Terrazas del Pisque
Producer: Arnaud Causse
Region: Pichincha, Quito, Ecuador
Altitude: 2000 m
Species: Arabica
Variety: Red Caturra
Harvest: —
Harvesting Method: Hand-picked
Process: Washed
Drying: 8–12 days in shade after 48h fermentation (24h immersed)

About this coffee

What’s the best way to grow coffee in a forest? Start by building the forest yourself. That’s exactly what Arnaud Causse did at Las Terrazas del Pisque — a pioneering farm established in a dry, desert-like zone on the Pacific side of the Andes. A trained agronomist, Arnaud planted over 25 species of trees, including ingas, lemon, and avocado, to create the perfect shaded microclimate for specialty coffee.

No pesticides are used here. Instead, coffee plants are treated with essential oils of lavender, marigold, and rosemary — all produced on-site. Flowering plants attract bees for honey production, leguminous crops enrich the soil, and fruit trees provide food and habitat for birds that naturally control pests.

This Red Caturra lot — a natural mutation of Bourbon — thrives at 2000 metres above sea level. After careful handpicking, the beans undergo a 24-hour dry fermentation, followed by 24 hours in water, then slow drying under shade. The result is a refined, layered cup with notes of hazelnut, citrus, honey and floral undertones.

A rare, vibrant coffee grown in a living, self-sustaining ecosystem.