Araku - Viishalakshi FPC

Every harvest brings the excitement of new partnerships and new coffees. This season, we’re proud to introduce our debut lot from Viishalakshi Farmer Producer Company (FPC) in Araku Valley. Named after the valley’s wide-eyed goddess, the FPC brings together 33 tribal villages around Kusumaguda. This lot comes from seven of those villages, where coffee cultivation is led by women and processed at a communal facility. Rooted in natural farming practices for generations, the farmers use composted fruit and vegetable waste to nourish the soil and neem oil treatments to safeguard against pests. Formed last year, Vishalakshi has helped guide these villages from commercial coffee cultivation towards specialty practices. There is now a growing focus on pruning plants, selective picking, proper storage of beans, and careful processing. Roasted to a medium profile, this honey sun-dried lot brews clean, balanced cups. It opens with brown sugar and melon, giving way to roasted almonds, prunes, and a whisper of brown spice. The body is round and syrupy; the finish is long and zesty. We recommend brewing it as an espresso, or using a French Press or Channi. It tastes great black as well as with milk.