Tsiriari

Type
Cooperative
Location
Tsiriari, Peru
Tasting Notes
Herbal, Olive, Butterscotch
Varieties
Native Criollos
Fermentation Style
6 days in Tornillo wooden boxes
Drying Style
7 days, tarps and drying shelf
Elevation
600 - 900 meters
Harvest Season
April - August and October - November

Tsiriari is a small region within the VRAE region, located in the mid-southern jungle of Peru. Even though they are within the VRAE region, the flavor profiles of Tsiriari offer a wonderful contradiction to the typical flavor profiles found here. Tsiriari cacao is shade grown and made up of a variety of native criollo beans.

Working hand-in-hand with the small coop "Asociación de Mujeres Emprenadoras Warmi Tsinani" to offer this unique and highly aromatic bean. The Co-op was founded in 2010 by women, and all farmer members are women, there are currently only 14 active members. Aside from cacao, they also farm coffee, corn, ginger, tapioca and banana, believing that the best way to bring harmony to the environment is with diversity.

Regarding the geographical region: This area in the past was dominantly a coca plant farming area. Though there is absolutely nothing wrong or illegal with planting coca, as it is a fantastic plant for various medicinal purposes and has a rich history with the Incan past and the descendant communities (it is a sacred plant for many), we all know that unfortunately it is also the main ingredient in the illegal production of cocaine. The area was ripe with malicious, dangerous, oppressive activities…So, for some years, both the Peruvian government and also various international governments, including the USA, France, Switzerland and others, have helped in the promotion of alternative crops, this is where coffee and cacao have come in. Despite the fact that the cacao tree has been in this region for millennia, it is now used as a great promoter for a better way of life, a more sustainable income and better for the sustainability of the rainforest.