La Pradera, Colombia

Berries. Caramel. Citrus.

This washed lot is a sweet, bright, fruit-forward coffee. Bringing big tart berry notes with caramel sweetness and bright citrus acidity. As a medium roast, it works well with basically every brew method and we love using it in the roastery for espresso brewing.

Origin: Santander, Colombia

Producer: Oscar Daza

Process: Washed

Varietal: Castillo

Altitude: 1700-1900 MASL

About the producer: This coffee comes from Hacienda La Pradera, a fourth generation coffee farm run by the Daza Batista family, currently Oscar Daza, in the Cordillera Oriental Eastern Mountain Range. The farm is situated near the Chicamocha Canyon which creates a unique and favourable microclimate for coffee production with warm air currents during the day and light rainfall and cool breezes at night. The quality and success of La Pradera reflects the experience and value the family places on their land and their coffee. The focus remains on sustainable land use, organic practices, and respect for the farm and the natural world it inhabits. This coffee is grown with organic and bird friendly certification. Today, La Pradera family farm is joined by 8 other farms, a QC lab, and wet and dry mills as part of the La Pradera coffee company. The quality control laboratory houses a team of certified professionals headed up by Luis Alfredo Archila. The wet mill and dry mill include state-of-the-art equipment, including an eco-washer, a pre-drying deck, and both solar and mechanical dryers. In total, Hacienda La Pradera employs 15 permanent employees and 172 seasonal employees, including 30 women—22 of whom operate the Manos de Mujer certified Finca Santa Maria.

About harvesting/processing: Coffee flowers between Jan-March with harvests between Sept-Feb. All processing at La Pradera is done by Oscar's brother Hector Jr. This lot of Castillo underwent washed processing. Manually harvested ripe cherries are washed, sorted, put in airtight bags and left to ferment for 18 hours. After being pulped, it undergoes secondary fermentation in plastic tanks for 24-36 hours before washing. Parchment coffee is mechanically dried to 11% humidity before milling and storage.