COLOMBIA – EL PASEO THE JOURNEY

The farm El Paseo is located near Buesaco, on the Suma Paz trail. This family farm is where Huver has had the opportunity to work alongside his father. Huver is a third-generation coffee grower, but his close relationship with coffee is recent. Until a few years ago (before 2015), he was a math teacher at a school in Nariño. El Paseo has been in the family for over 20 years and is one of three farms they own. It is a beautiful farm with an altitude range of 1750 meters to 1950 meters, featuring several native shade trees and situated on the slopes overlooking the valley of Buesaco.

This unique Caturra undergoes a meticulously crafted anaerobic semi-washed process with several detailed steps. The process begins with 60 hours of aerobic fermentation in a concrete tank, where the cherries are floated to remove any that do not meet quality standards. Following this, the coffee is depulped and transferred to special anaerobic steel tanks, where the pH is monitored daily to ensure optimal fermentation conditions.

Huver explains that the coffee is ready when the pH is close to 4.5. At this point, he adds a lactic acid bacteria mix, made from cooked sugarcane and passionfruit, to the tanks to cultivate a specific fermentation profile that Huver has perfected over the past four years. After fermentation, the coffee is sun-dried for an average of 20 days. Finally, it is stored in GrainPro bags for an additional 20 days before milling, ensuring stability and preservation of its unique characteristics.