Colombia Sisterhood of Huila

Cost per 250mL serving - $1.37

One of our projects this season has been to track down some more beautifully complex field blends from Colombia, following our earlier release of the Inza Community lot, and this coffee from the Sisterhood of Huila Cooperative represents the latest fruits of this project. Despite being made up of coffee from a number of different producers and varieties, this lot is as complex and expressive as one would hope an excellent single-variety, single-farm lot to be. This is a super sweet and juicy one, giving us an abundance of ripe yellow goose- and blue-berry, with a subtle hint of rosemary to round it off. It is an absolute delight to sip on, no matter the season.

In 2017, a larger cooperative operating in Huila launched an initiative to guarantee greater access to quality coffee-processing infrastructure and training to female small-holding farmers in the region. This coffee is a direct result of this initiative, which is the product of the organization of many of these producers into the Sisterhood of Huila Cooperative. This specific lot is made up of coffee harvested by producers whose farms surround the town of Garzon. Lectures on quality cultivation and processing of coffee were given to members of the cooperative, and as a reward, African raised beds, for drying coffee, were given away to those who participated in these lectures. These efforts have resulted in a direct increase of quality among participating producers, which has consequently generated a 20% increase in the price paid on the market for their coffees, when compared to the market average price of coffees sold by non-participating producers in the department.

Castillo, like colombia, is a cross between caturra and timor hybrid, also developed by Cenicafe. It was first released in 2005 in response to the persistence of coffee leaf rust. Where caturra was once the most common variety in Colombia, now castillo has taken its place, making up over 40% of all coffee grown there. Named for researcher Jamie Castillo, castillo does better than most varieties when planted in higher density due to the tree’s dwarfism, and as such has a relatively higher yield. Although its quality can range, castillo is able to yield beautiful final cups under careful cultivation, at altitude. In fact in a blind cupping alongside one of Colombia’s most lauded varieties, caturra, there was no notable difference in quality between the two varieties according to professional tasters.

Caturra is a natural mutation of the bourbon variety, and was first discovered in the Minas Gerais region of Brazil between 1915 and 1918. It is common throughout South and Central America, and is known for its flavor quality at altitude.

The colombia variety was developed by researchers at the Cenicafe laboratory in Colombia by crossing caturra and timor hybrid, and was first released for cultivation in 1982. It was bred in anticipation of future outbreaks of leaf rust in Colombia, and is relatively resistant as a consequence. Many credit this variety for saving the Colombian coffee industry following the arrival of leaf rust in the mid-1980’s. Although its quality can range, colombia is able to yield beautiful final cups under careful cultivation, at altitude.

All coffee is sold whole-bean to reduce oxidation, and increase the longevity of volatile organic compounds.