Colombia

Lizardo Herrera

One of our favourite lots from Colombia over the past few harvests, we’re excited to share Lizardo Herrera’s coffee again this year. Lizardo has been aiming to produce very high quality coffee for some time, but also has a vision for the sustainability of his farm. He is a certified beekeeper, and keeps several hives on the farm to produce honey for export. This program ensures a well planned ecosystem on the farm; most widely used pesticides are harmful to bee populations, and the plants are of course kept well pollinated.

Lizardo has distilled all of this experience into what he does on the farm today, using very minimal chemical inputs, and using his bee population and a high level of biodiversity to ensure healthy plants. Lizardo has even begun to educate the next generation, handing over much of the responsibility for processing to his nephew Jensen.

Pink Bourbon

Lizardo also grows a good selection of high-quality varietals, and follows strong fermentation protocols together with Jensen. They have a good idea of how they can affect flavour through fermentation, and aim for a slightly more ferment-heavy character than most others in Huila. For this coffee, they used an in-cherry pre-fermentation of 12 hours, before de-pulping and fermenting for a further 48 hours in mucilage. This lot is from Lizardo’s stock of the Pink Bourbon varietal, known for its high quality and distinct aromatic character in the cup. Lizardo and Jensen’s fermentation ties both together in a juicy and complex cup, with layers of sweet ripe fruit.