How Jazz Alley Nights Came to Be

We’ve always have been captivated by local music.  Though Seattle is best known for the grunge movement sparked in the 1990s. But before grunge, there was jazz. In the early 1900s, underground jazz clubs dotted Jackson Street, and the whole city, regardless of race, religion, or economic standing, came together around a love of music. From the early jazz scene we found inspiration for this blend, as smooth as her namesake, Jazz Alley Nights is slightly sweet and goes down easy.  The full Jazz Alley Nights story “Jackson Street & Food for the Soul” can be found here.

Highlighted Peruvian Coffee Defines Jazz Alley Blend

Cajamarca is nestled in Peru’s highlands, a fertile mountain valley. The high altitudes here and tropical weather patterns create an ideal environment to grow heirloom Typica or Arabica coffee varietals. In Jazz Alley Nights, the Peruvian coffee from this origin yields sweetness like caramel with cranberry and walnut flavors.

Historically, the region has been primarily known for its dairy products, but today Cajamarca is gaining a reputation for fine coffee. The mountain valleys get regular sun and the high altitudes allow for cool nights. Women wear traditional serapes and bowler hats as they climb the slopes, picking coffee cherries.The locals have a deep respect for the natural areas surrounding their villages. They have developed a rich folklore in which monsters appear, mountains kill approaching birds, and animals can steal a person’s soul.

The awe for the inviolable land is obvious.Increasingly Peruvian farmers are banding together to form cooperatives as a way of getting fair prices for their coffee in the global market. These cooperatives are providing money for better roads and for diversified sources of income like sheep, farmed trout, and guinea pigs (a source of food here).

The farmers continue to protect the land and the land takes care of the farmers: a symbiotic relationship.