Colombia | Jairo Arcila Lychee Coferment

Tasting Notes: Lychee, strawberry creamsicle, rose

Origin: Armenia, Quindio, Colombia

Farm: Finca Santa Monica

Producer: Jairo Arcila

Elevation: 1450-1500 masl

Variety: Castillo

Process: Anaerobic Washed + Co-fermented with wine yeast and lychee

About: I think a common thing you'll read here is that we're always "blown away" by what's on the cupping table, and I get tired of writing it, but I think it's important to know that we buy coffees that we love. We hope that you'll love them too by proxy. We got a sample of this from Cofinet, which is run by the children of Jairo Arcila and Luz Helena Salazar. The first showstopper on the table was Luz's Pink Bourbon. This bookended that set, and it's a really wild coffee. As far as coferments go, this feels approachable and not overwhelming or one dimensional, which makes it fun to drink.

In an effort to be as transparent as possible, especially regarding co-ferments, below is the information that was provided to us regarding the process, and nothing was changed, edited, or deleted.

From the producer: This coffee is harvested following strict ripeness criteria, ensuring that only perfectly ripe cherries are selected. Then, coffee cherries are packaged in grain pro bags and transported to our processing center, La Pradera. Upon arrival at La Pradera, the cherries undergo a meticulous quality control process, including hand-sorting and flotation, to remove any low- density, underripe, or defective cherries.

Then, the cherries undergo a dry anaerobic 48-hour fermentation, during this stage, lychees and wine yeast are added. The lychees transfer their delicate floral, sweetness and sparkling flavor to the coffee. Wine yeast is highly efficient at converting sugars into alcohol and other compounds during fermentation. In coffee, this process helps break down the mucilage more effectively, releasing organic acids and other compounds that contribute to the coffee’s flavor. By adding fresh lychees, we create a coffee with floral aromatics, grape bubblegum hints and a lingering, nectar-like finish, giving our washed coffees a bright and lively character.

Following fermentation, the cherries are pulped and thoroughly washed to remove the
mucilage. The wastewater generated during our washed process is then treated using our green filtration system.

This system filters the water through a series of specialized tanks before irrigating it into vetiver grass beds. Through this natural filtration process, the water is purified and released as oxygen. As a result, no contaminated water is discharged from our processing center, ensuring an environmentally sustainable operation.

Once coffees are washed, they are spread out on raised beds when they are exotic varieties or in our elbas drying station for bigger lots. The team monitors them closely to ensure even drying and optimal quality. We aim for 9.5%-11% moisture content, which is the perfect point for us. Our greenhouse concentrates a temperature range of 20 to 38°C, which helps us to maintain a constant drying time for our coffees.

House recipe: V60: 1:16.6. ~2:30 brew time. We use a bloom followed by 3 pours. ~24 clicks on the C40.

Rest: Minimum 2 weeks.

Roast Level:

 Intensity:

Whole Bean Coffee | Net wt. 8 oz.