Jose Elmer Tineo Mendoza, El Diamante, Peru | Natural MMY-0206

Elmer Tineo Mendoza owns 6 hectares of coffee farm in the El Diamante area of Jaén. Elmer and his son, Elvis, manage their farms together, and between them have around 10 hectares dedicated to coffee production. They grow a mix of Caturra, Catuai, Castillo, and small areas of Geisha and Maragogype, although these varieties are not yet producing much fruit. The Tineo family picks ripe cherries, which they deliver to the family home, where they share a small pulper and fermentation tank. Don Elmer's farm has large areas under shade, and with his excellent management of pruning, avoiding herbicides, and his ongoing annual renovations to improve trees affected by diseases, he has cultivated a beautiful farm full of fruit trees and moist soil. Over the years, with the premiums he has earned from his specialty coffees, he has built a three-story structure with raised drying beds, covered like a greenhouse.