Like a classic rocky road chocolate bar. Rich cocoa layered with creamy sweetness and bursts of fruit.

In the highlands of Cajamarca, within the community of La Palma in Chirinos, Joel runs Finca La Palma alongside his wife, Elizabeth Ortiz de la Cruz. A third-generation coffee producer, Joel’s connection to coffee runs deep, shaped by grandparents who migrated to the region in search of opportunity. Entrusted with half a hectare after finishing school, Joel slowly expanded through patience and reinvestment, choosing to focus on coffee over other crops and building a farm grounded in family, resilience and quality.

Finca La Palma is planted primarily with Bourbon, alongside Geisha and Catimor, grown under shade from romerillo, cedar and guaba trees. Joel produces both natural and washed coffees, with a strong focus on selective harvesting and careful fermentation. Naturals undergo a two-stage fermentation before slow drying on covered patios, while washed lots are dried more quickly under the same conditions. Now Rainforest Alliance certified, specialty coffee has enabled Joel to support his family, invest in his home and become a quality benchmark in his region.