Erlita’s Lot Coffee from Peru

Grown, harvested, sold, and shipped by women

Ari Weinzweig, CEO & Co-Founder of Zingerman’s


Back in 2004, Isabel Uriarte Latorre co-founded Café Femenino, an organization dedicated to empowering women on the front lines of the coffee industry. From the get-go, she built the business to support women in the work world financially, spiritually and socially. The project allows women to produce high-quality coffee and get paid commensurately—they’re not stuck bargaining with aggressive buying agents out on the marketplace. And, as per what I wrote above, to boost the energy of women who had generally been left out, ignored, or even abused, and help them reclaim the full lives to which they have always been entitled. The folks at Café Femenino share that:

“Women in remote and rural coffee communities face a host of challenges that keep them trapped in poverty. Many of these isolated women live in male-dominated societies and have very little financial control or decision-making power. 464 women farmers in northern Peru decided to change this dynamic by separating their coffee production from the men’s. In that moment, for the first time, this group of women created their own product and income… to support social justice and empowerment for women coffee producers worldwide.”

Coffee farmer and Cafe Femenino co-founder Erlita Baca Arce with her daughter, Ketty, holding baskets of red hand-picked coffee cherries
Farm owner Erlita Baca Arce and her daughter, Ketty.

Coffee production came to Peru in the 1700s. After two centuries, the heirloom typica variety still comprises 60 percent of the country’s exports. There are more than 110,000 coffee growers in Peru, most of whom are indigenous to these landscapes and speak Spanish only as a second language. The average land-holding farmer lives on less than three hectares, hours from the comforts of electricity and running water. Erlita Baca Arce’s farm is near the Peruvian village of Nueva York, a small coffee community in the Amazonas region of northern Peru, east of the Andes Mountains, at 5700 to 6500 feet above sea level—an ideal altitude for high-quality Arabica coffee trees. Erlita has been part of the project since its inception and now serves as the treasurer of the coop, and as she explains:

“Café Femenino has given me many opportunities to improve the quality of my coffee and the quality of life for my family. I invest the premium I earn in improving our community, providing education for our daughters, and improving the food that we feed our families. Café Femenino has been wonderful in improving the self-esteem and empowerment of the women in our community.“

Erlita is not alone in her positive comments. Every article I’ve read about Café Femenino details outstanding results: increased local recognition of the work the women are doing, both in the fields and on the home front; a reduction in abuse (physical, emotional, and sexual); an increase in income; more men are participating in child care and housework; and upswing in school attendance among local girls. In addition, because the female coffee producers in the area now have the potential to get a better price for their coffee, many men are signing the deeds of their land over to their wives so their coffee will be eligible for Café Femenino designation.

While dignity, meaningful work, and good coffee are always in season, National Women’s History Month is a particularly good time to take notice of Erlita’s Lot. The history of the event goes back over a century to the years before WWI and the Spanish flu, to the end of February 1909, when “National Women’s Day” was sponsored by the Socialist Party of America. By March of 1911, International Women’s Day (IWD) was marked by over a million people demanding the right to vote for women, workplace safety, equitable pay, etc. Six years later, on March 8, 1917 in the Russian capital of Petrograd, women workers took to the streets for National Women’s Day, demonstrating en masse in an event that unexpectedly turned into the Russian Revolution. The Tsar abdicated a week later, on March 15. Leon Trotsky wrote, “March 8th was International Women’s Day, and meetings and actions were foreseen. But we did not imagine that this ‘Women’s Day’ would inaugurate the revolution.”

The Erlita’s Lot coffee is as great as the story behind it. Smooth, a bit of dark chocolate, maybe even like a piece of toasted Country Miche bread from the Bakehouse. The coffee has a surprisingly clean finish and modestly full mouthfeel. All the brew methods have been good, but I’m stuck on the smoothest flavor of the bunch, which I found to be Chemex (the syphon pot and the Clever brewing weren’t far behind). Sip some of this great new coffee and nibble on a Bakehouse oatmeal raisin cookie. Erlita’s Lot is available at the Coffee Company, Next Door at the Deli, and at the Roadhouse. Sit, and appreciate the morning as we move into spring. And because I seem to have a proclivity of late for Peruvian poets, here’s a short one that seems right for the moment from surrealist writer Blanca Varela:

it’s seven in the morning
it’s the perfect time to start
dreaming

the coffee becomes eternal
and the sun eternal
if you don’t move

Excerpt from Ari’s weekly Top 5 E-Newsletter. To stay in-the-know about things that Ari is excited about in the Zingerman’s family, sign up here! 

Cold Brew

PREPARE TO BE THRILLED & CHILLED.

Cold-steeped 16 hours for a silky smooth sip.

At Zingerman’s we say “you really can taste the difference”! This belief drives everything we do. Zingerman’s Cold Brew coffee uses a unique and extensive process that extends shelf life without any additives. Our cold brew blend includes carefully sourced coffees from our friends at the Daterra Estate in Brazil as well as coffee from the Apo and Angra coffee cooperative in Papua New Guinea – we believe these are some of the finest coffees the world has to offer. Both coffees stand on their own as outstanding single origin coffees and make for terrific hot brewed coffee. We use these coffees for the cold brew because of the body, finish, and flavor they bring to the final product. When drinking this coffee we hope you will agree with us when we say “you really can taste the difference!”

“For caffeine enthusiasts looking to steer away from traditional hot coffee and saccharine frozen drinks, this rich new cold brew is a good start.”

– Current Magazine

Why Zingerman’s cold brew is the best:

1. Flavor

Zingerman’s Cold Brew Coffee is second to none when it comes to flavor. The patent-pending process of extraction used to make Zingerman’s Cold Brew provides for an exceptionally sweet and rich beverage with hints of chocolate. It is smooth, crisp, and refreshing. Beyond being thirst-quenching, Zingerman’s Cold Brew is highly caffeinated, providing an exhilarating boost. And better yet, just like hot coffee, our full-flavored cold brew has zero calories.

2. Convenience

Featuring a reclosable bottle and convenient, portable size, Zingerman’s Cold Brew can be taken nearly anywhere. Perfect for the on-the-go, busy morning or as a quick, afternoon pick-me-up.

3. Versatility

While we are fans of drinking Zingerman’s Cold Brew straight-up, there are so many ways to enjoy it: summer cocktails, in place of espresso in an iced latte drink, poured over gelato to create an affogato with kick, or doctored up using good ol’ cream and sugar. Zingerman’s Cold Brew is an all-around great beverage for any time of the day.

4. Stability

Unopened, Zingerman’s Cold Brew Coffee is shelf-stable for up to one year, yet has none of the additives or preservatives found in similar beverages. Coffee and water are the only ingredients!

5. Patent Pending

We could have produced and sold a product that required refrigeration along the entire path of the supply chain. Our customers told us it would be great if they could take it anywhere they wanted. That meant ruling out the use of stabilizers, additives, preservatives, or acidifiers to ensure shelf-stability. We spent years researching methods and processes to produce a safe, delicious beverage. We also realized our extensive process research had led us to something very special, and submitted a patent. We won’t know the outcome of our application and submission for a while, but we are excited to offer a great product in the meantime!

All the Ways to Get Your Fix

cold brew coffee bottle illustration

10 oz. Bottle

cold brew coffee bottle liter illustration

1 Liter Bottle

cold brew coffee four pack 10 ounces

10 oz. Bottle 4-Pack

coffee cold brew four pack liter bottle

1 Liter Bottle 4-Case

coffee cold brew 14 pack ten ounce bottles

10 oz. Bottle 14-Case

You Can Really See The Difference!

Our café-going friends may be wondering what the heck is going on here at the Zingerman’s Coffee Company.
We’ve completed renovations to our patio space (loving the beautiful Autumn that’s allowing us to break it in..!), and have alluded to café improvements as well.
Renovated Patio Space

Happily, the Coffee Company has seen a big boost in café and wholesale business over the last few years. Our ever-increasing staff need space to work their magic, and at times our guests have found seating to be maxed out in the café. When our partners next door at the Zingerman’s Creamery and the Zingerman’s Candy Manufactory announced their expansion plans, we felt that we should hop on board. Over the years, we’ve embraced the wonderful feedback we’ve received from our guests, and have incorporated it into our vision.

Here’s all of the goodness that we’ll be rolling out:

Restroom for Every Kind of Bean

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don’t fear! Our café will still be open for regular business hours during this process.

We will be featuring a classic drip coffee/espresso menu during this time. Your Big Brew Board favorites will be offline, but they will be back – with gusto! We’re thrilled to share our improved café and menu with you in the not-too-distant future. Thanks for your patience while we’re bettering ourselves!

P.S. Let your barista know that you did your renovation homework (i.e. read this post), and get a half-off cup of your choice of the day’s brewed coffee! Redeemable one time, and at the Zingerman’s Coffee Company exclusively.

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Sweet Yellow Brazilian Coffee

The Sweet Yellow is a really exceptional batch of beans from Daterra, a very special grower in Brazil that’s Rainforest Alliance Certified with half of its land considered a nature reserve. Fruit trees are still interspersed with the coffee trees in order to provide feed for native birds. The farm is active in its community and in promoting the rights of the workers on the coffee farms. And the coffee itself? It’s made from a series of very special varietals (bourbon, catoise and caturra) that the folks at Daterra have spent years working on. Zingerman’s Roastmaster Allen treats it gently, so the brewed cup is amazingly sweet, very nutty, and super smooth, almost buttery, with lots of happy high notes.