Colombia
Tolima
Fabian Silva
Finca El Recreo
Caturra
Washed
April–June; November–January
Honey, Black Currant, Lime
1850 meters
N/A
70 kg w/ GrainPro
SOLD OUT
Coffee producer Fabian Silva lives with his wife, Livia Milena Ospitia, and their three sons, Michel, Andrew, and Jonatan, at Finca El Recreo in Tolima, Colombia. The family has lived at the farm since Fabian purchased the property in 1997, though they had to leave for a couple of years in 2003 due to threats from guerillas and paramilitary groups. When Fabian bought El Recreo, the farm only contained one hectare of coffee. Since taking over he has expanded his crops to include 7.5 hectares of coffee, including Variedad Colombia, Castillo, Caturra, and Pink Bourbon. Today the family’s sons attend technical school in a nearby town while also working at the farm full-time due to the scarcity of labor.
This lot of Caturra coffee underwent Washed processing. Pulped coffee was fermented without water for 36 hours prior to being washed. The washed coffee was then dried on a drying patio.
The Colombian Department of Tolima is nested in the heart of Andean region in the center-west of the country. The department ranks first in Colombia in the production of rice and sesame. Farmers here also grow coffee, corn, bananas, sugarcane, and beans. Livestock, particularly cattle and pigs, is quite common in the northwest and center-east valleys along the Magdalena River and its basins. 32 of Tolima’s 47 municipalities are dedicated to coffee production.
Tolima’s capital city of Ibagué, also known as “Musical capital of Colombia and America” is surrounded by the mountains and enriched with water resources stretching along the Magdalena River Valley to the east of the Department. Tolima is traversed by highways and railroads, linking Ibagué with Bogotá, Armenia (Quindio), and Neiva (Huila).
The geographical location, topographic diversity, and range of altitudes make Tolima one of the most favorable and unique departments for coffee production, allowing for harvesting throughout the year. Coffee farms are scattered on the mountain ranges of Santa Marta, La Macarena, and the western slopes of the eastern Cordilleras. Farms here are predominantly smallholder owned, and the farmers have made concerted efforts in the last ten years to produce specialty coffee that reveals the full character of the region’s terroir. The organic approach to coffee cultivation in Tolima is well-known and highly demanded around the world. Certifications like Fairtrade, Organic, Rainforest Alliance, UTZ, and Bird Friendly can be found throughout the region. Selective manual harvesting, attentive processing, and careful post-harvest sorting all contribute to the growing recognition of Tolima as a coffee producing region.
Tolima’s coffee sector has attracted numerous financial and educational resources over the past several years. State and private owned organizations have invested with social and economic programs throughout the region, strengthening the potential for sustainable coffee production and improving the livelihoods of thousands of families.
