Hilda Leguía Gonzales has won the 2020 Peru Cup of Excellence, with a half washed Geisha, half SL-09 entry from the Cusco region.
“I feel happy and excited, I want to thank all my family, especially my husband and children, who have worked next to me unconditionally. Additionally, I would like to thank the cooperative ‘Valle De Incahuasi’, including the manager and technicians who helped me in this journey through many adversities,” says Gonzales.
“We started working with specialty coffees about three or four years ago, implementing all the care needed, and our next step is to plant more Geisha coffee plants in the following years. We trusted our coffee was going to give good results in the competition, because we drink it – roasted in clay pots – and it gives us a lot of energy. I’d like to invite everybody to drink Peruvian coffee.”
Of the 184 samples entered into the competition, 36 passed to the International stage of the competition held at Global Coffee Centers (GCCs) in Norway, the United Kingdom, United States, Korea, China, Australia, and Japan.
From this final evaluation, 24 coffees scored 87 points or more and were deemed Cup of Excellence coffees. There were also eight coffees passed as semifinalists, or National Winners. These winning coffees represent seven regions across the country.
The 24 winning Cup of Excellence coffees will be auctioned online on 3 December with opening prices starting at US$5 per pound. The National Winner auction will go from 30 November to 14 December with lowered, tiered opening prices.
Geni Fundes, General Manager of Central Café & Cacao and General Coordinator of Cup of Excellence Peru 2020, highlighted that this competition, which has been held in Peru since 2017, contributes to the increase in coffee exports. It has also promoted the professionalization of national coffee growers and increased domestic consumption of specialty coffees.
The Awards Ceremony was held virtually on 30 October via the Digital National Platform for the Promotion of Coffee.
For more information, visit www.cupofexcellence.org/peru-2020