As lauded as southern Huila is with roasters all over the world, a true gesha separation from this part of Colombia is still exceedingly rare. This microlot comes from Carlos Ortiz who owns and operates Finca El Encanto, a high elevation family farm located in the municipality of Pitalito in the southern department of Huila. This is a fully washed gesha anaerobically fermented to enhance the floral and frutal expressions. Southern Huila Huila is arguably Colombia’s best-known department for top microlots. Huila’s geographical accessibility, dense population of knowledgeable farmers, warm and subtropical forests, high elevations, and microclimate diversity have for many years sustained one of specialty coffee’s most beloved regions. The fact that most of the departments are harvesting coffee almost every month of the year means that fresh coffee is always available. Huila is a long and narrow valley that follows a winding gap between two large cordilleras of the Andes. Colombia’s 950-mile- long Magdalena River has its source in southern Huila and has shaped the agriculture here for centuries. Uphill from the valley’s lush and picturesque lower slopes are a diverse array of coffee producing communities, often dramatically steep, and each with their own unique climate and history. Finca El Encanto & Processing This special anaerobic washed process began with the usual daily cherry delivery and a careful hand sorting for uniform ripeness. Cherry was then fermented in oxygen-deprived tanks to allow prolonged time for sugars to maximize and the fruit fibers to break down without risking oxydizing or rotting. After the anaerobic fermentation was complete, cherry was depulped and allowed to ferment in a plastic tank. Once fermentation was complete the parchment was hand washed with fresh water and moved to raised beds in the sun to dry until the internal moisture reached 10.8%. Fully dried parchment was then stored for multiple weeks to stabilize moisture content and water activity, then hulled locally and transported to the town of Chinchiná for final milling and export. Exporting Details Carlos partners with an exporting company called Sequoias, which operates a dry mill dedicated to the preparation of specialty coffee micro-lots and has years of experience bringing traceable individual farmer micro-lots to the international market. Sequoias is based in the town of Chinchiná within Caldas department.
