Ana Maria & Nicolas Crespo ‘Pillcocaja’ Ethiope • Natural // Azuay, Ecuador

by Hex

Ana and Nicolas, friends of our who we’ve been purchasing from for the past four years, run Pillcocaja together in southern Ecuador.  Their farm employs over 20 families from the local area, with 95% of the workforce being women. Grown in the same biodiverse, high-elevation environment that shaped our earlier Typica releases from this farm, this particular release highlights how terroir and genetics interplay when cultivating coffee. Ethiope draws from a pool of Ethiopian genetics carefully propagated and selected for expression at altitude. Processing follows the method that has been refined throughout Pillcocaja’s lots: hand-harvested cherries undergo selective picking over multiple passes, with drying carried out over 25–30 days on raised beds in the upper section of their shaded drying room. By maintaining a controlled, slow drying at lowered temperatures, they’re able to minimize overfermentation and preserve varietal precision and clarity. Farm Pillcocaja Region Yung