La Colina translates to ‘the hill’

Antonio ‘Tony’ Medina is a second generation farmer, but didn’t grow coffee himself until 1991. Tony’s father gave the farm its name; La Colina translates to ‘the hill’, named for the high elevation here in the Chimaltenango hills. La Colina is located just outside the town of San Martin Jilotepeque, only about one and a half hours from the Guatemalan capital, Guatemala City. It’s also a short drive from the famed Antigua region, the source of Tony’s inspiration to start growing coffee, after initially growing corn and beans on his plot of his father’s lands.

Washed Geisha

This lot is a great illustration of Tony’s years of experience. Even before planting, Tony was aware of the great level of care the Geisha plant requires, and has slowly become accustomed to how the plant acts and what it needs when growing here. Ripe cherries from his Geisha plot are transported to the wet mill and de-pulped, before fermenting in tanks for 32 hours. This long and slow fermentation is typical at these high altitudes in Guatemala, creating a great deal of complexity and a soft overall cup profile. Here, we find deeply complex florals of jasmine and magnolia, and a soft cup profile reminiscent of lemon balm with a poached fruit sweetness.