About This Coffee
Elkin Guzman cultivates coffee on 31 hectares at Finca El Mirador in Palestina, Huila. Huila’s high altitude and fertile soils provide excellent growing conditions for cultivating specialty coffee. To further differentiate his coffees, Elkin has been experimenting with innovative processing methods. This lot is comprised of Tabi variety, a cross between Typica, Bourbon and Timor.
Cultivation
Elkin’s farm is 31 hectares in size. The farm has nutrient-rich soil that’s sandy loam and clay loam with a good reserve of humus and organic matter. As a result, the coffee trees are well-fed with great nutrition.
Coffee is grown under a semi-shade system that helps with temperature regulation and optimizes photosynthesis.
Harvest & Post-Harvest
Cherry is selectively handpicked, and only cherry of perfect ripeness is used for this process. The average Brix degree for cherry used in this processing is 20 to 24. Elkin provides periodic training for workers to ensure they are selecting the best cherry for processing.
Cherry is selectively handpicked, and only cherry of the perfect ripeness is used for this process. Cherry is placed in plastic tanks in an anaerobic environment for 60 hours. Then cherry is moved to larger tanks to aid oxidation, where for 60 hours water between 35°C and 40°C is added constantly and homogenously. To stop oxidation, cherry is washed with cold water for 8 hours. Following fermentation, cherry is sun-dried for 18 to 24 days. Cherry is raked every 3 hours to ensure even drying.
About Tabi
Tabi is a cross between Typica, Bourbon and Timor created by Colombias National Coffee Research Institute (CENICAFE). It was released in 2002 and combines Coffee Leaf Rust (CLR) resistance with the good cup quality of Bourbon and Typica. Similar to those two parents, Tabi is tall with long branches. However, Tabi has slightly larger fruits and seeds and can be grown at high altitudes, and in high density, with up to 3,000 trees per hectare. The name come from the word “tabi,” meaning “good” in Guambiano, the dialect of a native Colombia tribe.
Source: https://sprudge.com/a-users-guide-to-colombian-coffee-varietals-5205.html & https://dailycoffeenews.com/2019/02/07/the-coffee-roasters-complete-guide-to-coffee-varieties-and-cultivars/
Clearpath
Founded by experienced agricultural trader Vicente Mejía, Clearpath Coffee works with producers in Colombia and exports high quality, sustainable single-origin coffees from smallholders, cooperatives and estates. Clearpath partners with producers to support ethical, sustainable growth through fair prices, direct communication with buyers and building long term relationships with sustainability-minded buyers.
Coffee in Colombia
Colombia has been producing and exporting coffee renowned for their full body, bright acidity and rich aftertaste, since the early 19th century.
Colombia boasts a wide range of climates and geographic conditions that produce their own unique flavors in coffee. This also means that harvest times can vary quite a bit. In fact, between all its different regions, Colombia produces fresh crop nearly all year round.
The increasing focus on the specialty industry is changing the way traders and farmers do business. It is becoming more common for farmers to isolate the highest quality beans in their lots to market separately. These higher-quality lots are often sold under specific brands or stories.
Besides its wide variety of cup profiles, Colombia has quickly expanded its certification options over the past 10 years. The most common certifications available are Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance and Organic.