El Nogal
2022 tasting notes TBC.
Maria Rosa Oidor runs her farm, El Nogal, with her husband Antonio Pillimué and their four children. The farm is situated a thirty minute walk from the small town of San Antonio, where the couple also own a small shop. Maria Rosa and Antonio saved the money to buy their two-hectare farm from the savings they made from their shop some twenty years ago.
Today, Maria Rosa’s entire family is dedicated entirely to coffee. Her eldest son, Robinson, is a distinguished, well-known coffee producer in his own right, with a passion for organic farming practices. Her younger son, Nilson, has also inherited part of the family farm and is working to learn more about coffee. Maria, now in her 60s, still takes a hike up the mountain every day to organise pickers and to schedule the work for the day. She is an impressive woman, and an inspiration to many in the region.
Despite the small size of the farm, Maria and Antonio decided to plant three different varieties in the high hills upon which their land lies: Caturra, Typica, and Tabi. This lot is made up of 100% Tabi. The high altitude of their farm (2,000 metres above sea level) makes it possible to continue growing these more disease-vulnerable varieties, despite the dangers of coffee leaf rust. It also means the coffee cherries are able to ripen more slowly, allowing a higher concentration of sugars to develop, resulting in a sweet and complex cup.
The coffee trees at El Nogal are fertilised up to three times a year depending on the state and quantity of coffee on the tree, and seeds for new trees are collected and germinated on the farm itself. During the harvest, up to 15 workers help with picking, and the family employs one permanent worker who helps maintain the crop throughout the year.
ABOUT INZÁ
The municipality of Inzá is located in the corner of the state of Cauca, bordering with Tolima and Huila and looking out to the west over the Pacific Ocean. This region has excellent conditions for growing high-quality coffee, with high elevations and rich volcanic soil. The plateau has very stable climate year-round thanks to its proximity to the equator and the surrounding mountains, which protect the coffee against the humidity of the Pacific and the trade winds from the south. This region is an important source of water and wildlife, in addition to being prime coffee-growing land.
Coffee from Cauca has historically been very difficult to access due to the region’s isolation and instability. For many years this part of Colombia was under the control of Colombia’s notorious rebel group, the FARC, and as a result, it was unsafe and violent. Since 2012, safe access to this region has been possible as a result of peace talks between the national government and the rebels. Thanks to these efforts, more and more stunning coffees from small producers in the region have become accessible.
Our export partners for this coffee, Pergamino, have worked hard commercialise specialty-grade coffee throughout Cauca, and have uncovered some stunning coffees and very dedicated producers in the process. They work closely with the producers to give them feedback on their coffees (provided by Pergamino’s expert team of cuppers) and provide top up payments when the coffee is sold at a higher premium.
Head here to learn more about the work of Pergamino.
HOW THIS COFFEE WAS PROCESSED
The coffee in this lot was selectively hand-harvested, with most labour being provided by Maria and her family. It was processed using the washed method at the farm’s ‘micro-beneficio’ (mill).
The coffee was pulped using a small manual or electric pulper and then placed into a fermentation tank without water, where it was fermented for 36 hours and then washed using clean water from nearby rivers and streams.
The coffee was then carefully dried (over 10–18 days) on raised beds and concrete patio, which are covered by a greenhouse-style canopy that acts to protect the coffee from the rain and prevent condensation dripping back onto the drying beans. The greenhouses are constructed out of plastic sheets and have adjustable walls to help with airflow, and temperature control to ensure the coffee can dry slowly and evenly.
Once dry, the coffee was delivered to Pergamino’s warehouse in Medellín, where it was cupped and graded. Once approved, coffee rested in parchment until it was ready for export.
