Ecuador Finca Cruz Loma

We’re excited to announce our very first Ecuadorian coffee into Roaster’s Choice history. Experimentation is at the heart of Ecuadorian specialty coffee production, and Galo Morales’ lots are no exception. Grown between 1,400 and 1,700 masl, where coffee matures more slowly, giving it its sweet time to gradually develop highly sought-after flavors like berries and spiced wine, we taste notes of chirimoya, papaya, and pear. If you’ve never had a chirimoya (because we haven’t either), it’s an Andes-native fruit that resembles a bumpy pear. According to 19^th-century botanist Berthold Carl Seemann, chirimoya are “the masterpiece of Nature,” tasting of a blend of berries and stone fruit.

Galo’s operation, like that of other top-tier Ecuadorian producers, is organized around Finca Cruz Loma, whose commitment to processing evolution and improved export capacity has helped elevate the coffee industry in Ecuador. Galo’s farm is one of intense experimentation: examining differences between growing altitudes, soil types, and cutting-edge plant care techniques.

Because of Ecuador’s prime position on the equator, Pichincha and Imbabura provinces, where Finca Cruz Loma is based, experience a practically perfect year-round growing season. This requires a long-term workforce to undertake the meticulous, careful harvest. It’s washed after depulping and fermenting in sealed tanks, and dried on raised beds under shaded canopy. To do their tireless work justice, we roast this coffee light, giving it a mild body, trying our best not to detract from its world-class origin flavor. If you’re not a Roaster’s Choice subscriber yet, this coffee will make you want to become one.