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Read the story behind our gorgeous coffee from Gitwe, Rwanda, supporting over 1000 farmers!

Luz Helena Salazar, Colombia - Espresso

  • Product Info

    PRODUCER: Luz Helena Salazar

    FARM: Maracay

    PROCESS: Washed

    REGION: Armenia, Quindio

    VARIETAL:  Caturra

    ALTITUDE: 1900-2000 MASL

    Tasting Notes: Notes of red apple and dried fruit with rich brown sugar and nougat body.

    About The Coffee 

    Luz Helena grew up in Armenia and has been producing coffee for the last 20 years. She owns Maracay, an 8-hectare farm located at 1450 m.a.s.l, in Armenia Quindio. Luz is Carlos and Felipe’s mother, the co-founders of Cofinet, who we buy this coffee from, and wife of Jairo Arcila.

    Luz’s passion for coffee was inspired by her husband’s work on coffee farms and as a dry mill manager. Luz would hear Jairo talking about coffee and wanted to be more involved in the industry. With the support of Jairo, Luz started learning how to care for coffee plants and what steps she needed to take to produce high-quality, ripe cherries. Luz found dealing with insects very challenging at the start and would draw on Jairo’s knowledge to help with this.

    For several years now, her focus has been on producing Specialty Coffee. With the support of Cofinet, Luz has been able to improve farm practices and focus on producing the best cherries she can. Once ripe, the cherries are then processed by Cofinet at their processing station, La Pradera.

    When Luz is not tending to her coffee trees, she enjoys spending time with her friends and being part of local support groups for vulnerable people.

    This coffee is harvested following strict ripeness criteria, floated and hand-sorted to remove any defects. Cherries are then exposed to 30 hours of underwater fermentation before being pulped. The parchment is then gently washed and then dried in temperature-controlled conditions until ideal moisture content is achieved.

    This microlot is 100% Caturra, a variety which originated in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Caturra is a natural mutation of Red Bourbon, it produces more coffee and is more resistant to plant diseases than Bourbon.