Juan Eduardo Chamorro Velez FW

Located in the Eje Cafetero, the coffee triangle where most coffee in Colombia was once produced, Juan Eduardo Chamorro Velez has a long family history of producing coffee. A 5^th-generation coffee farmer, he can trace his family back to the ancestor that purchased FInca La Delfita. Today, he runs the farm alongside his mother and together they produce excellent specialty coffees that we’re excited to source. This Fully washed lot combines juicy tropical and stone fruit with cacao nibs and smooth florals. 

Trained laborers hand pick ripe, red cherry and deliver it to the wet mill on Finca La Delfita. At the wet mill, cherry is pulped and fermented for 20 hours. Following fermentation, cherry is washed in clean water and placed in a mechanical dryer. It takes approximately 72 hours for parchment to dry in the mechanical dryer.

The Huila region is one of the most well-known coffee growing areas of Colombia. The Department of Huila has a population of 1.125 million and is located in the southwest of the country. The capital of the department is Neiva, a city of about 380,000.  

Along with Cauca and Nariño, Huila is one the three departments where the Colombian Massif is located. A massif is a group of mountain ranges and the Colombian Massif, which is known locally as Nudo de Almaguer, provides up to 70% of safe drinking and agricultural water for the Colombian population. 

The Magdalena River, Colombia’s largest river, runs through the region, providing plenty of water for coffee farming and generating (directly and indirectly) up to 86% of Colombia's GDP. The mountain range also features the fertile volcanic soil so typical to the Andean Mountains. 

Azahar Colombia works directly with producers to source excellent, traceable coffee from Colombia’s best producing regions. They pride themselves on transparent relationships that improve incomes and quality.

In addition to their exporting arm, Azahar also operates a roastery in Quindío and several cafés in Bogotá that serve superb locally-produced coffees to Colombian consumers.