Huadquiña 'Espresso' – Peru

About the Coffee

C.A.C. Huadquiña has been operating since 1964 in the province of La Convención, Cusco, making it one of Peru's longest-running coffee cooperatives. It brings together 300 farming families in the Santa Teresa district, where coffee grows on steep Andean slopes at elevations between 1,500 and 2,200 meters above sea level. The main varieties grown are Bourbon, Typica, and Catimor.

The cooperative holds USDA Organic, EU Organic, and Fair Trade certifications, reflecting a farming approach built around sustainable and organic production. Farmers are trained in these methods as part of how the cooperative operates, not as an add-on. That combination of high altitude, small-scale family farming, and long-standing organic practices gives Huadquiña a consistent foundation that has made it a reliable source for quality coffee over many decades.

This is Pilot's first release from Huadquiña since 2021. It's offered as an espresso roast but performs well across brew methods, including V60, AeroPress, and espresso. Pilot recommends a short rest period before brewing: around 7 days for espresso and 5 to 10 days for filter methods.

About Pilot

Andy Wilkin and Jessie Holmes opened Te Aro Roasted in May 2009 in Toronto's Leslieville neighbourhood, in a former car garage. Andy came with a Q Grader certification and a background in the cafe culture of Te Aro, Wellington, New Zealand. The space ran as both a cafe and a micro-roastery from the start.

By 2013, the operation had grown and rebranded as Pilot Coffee Roasters, with roasting moving to a larger facility at 50 Wagstaff Drive. Pilot's sourcing approach is built around long-term relationships with producers, returning to the same farms and cooperatives over time rather than chasing one-off lots. Huadquiña is a good example of that: a cooperative Pilot has sourced from before, now returning to after a few years away.