Colombia Villa Betulia #1

Roaster’s Notes:

Once again, we have a rich and complex Colombian selection on our hands! We had the desire to add a new Colombian coffee to our imports even before the first samples arrived. However, among the samples we received, we couldn’t find any Colombian coffee that piqued our interest. But, with the arrival of new samples of different Colombian coffees, we had the chance to taste them at the stand during the fair with our friends. 😊 Out of five Colombian coffees, one stood out as exceptionally complex, and if we were doing a blind tasting, we could have easily mistaken it for a high-quality Kenyan coffee. We all agreed that this coffee should definitely be part of our selection!

Luis Anibal Calderón Castro is the producer of Villa Betulia, a third-generation coffee grower. His entry into coffee farming began at the age of 9 when he inherited 100 coffee trees from his father. After learning to harvest and care for the coffee cherries, Luis Anibal decided to work as a collector at a few farms in his hometown of Huila. Later, until he got married to Mercedes Perdomo, he settled down and started growing his own coffee. At the beginning of his coffee production, he faced very little profit or no profit at all, as he started growing commercial coffee alongside different agricultural products.

After marrying Mercedes, they purchased Finca Villa Betulia together, where they utilized their experiences to cultivate high-quality coffee.

Coffee Processing:

After harvesting the ripe coffee cherries, they are taken to the processing station. Before fermentation begins, the cherry skin and some of the mucilage are separated from the coffee beans. After this separation, parchment coffee beans are loaded into tanks, and water is added to the tanks. The water is periodically changed to ensure a controlled and slow fermentation process, preventing excessive fermentation defects. During this fermentation period, unripe or defective cherries are also easily removed.

Following fermentation, the coffees are taken to elevated beds inside shaded areas for drying. They are dried until the humidity level reaches approximately 11% or slightly above. The drying process can take anywhere from 10 to 18 days, depending on environmental conditions.

Despite being a washed Caturra, this coffee exemplifies the benefits of a well-executed fermentation process!

Villa Betulia’s aroma welcomes you with notes of blackberry and green apple, while the flavor profile offers a high acidity and enjoyable notes of pomegranate, apple, black grape, and lemon.

Enjoy