Colombia
Tolima
Nolberto Olaya
La Cinta
Wush Wush
Washed
September–November
Blackberry, Brown Sugar, Lemongrass, Green Apple
1700 meters
N/A
35 kg w/ GrainPro
SOLD OUT
Nolberto Olaya’s family farm can be found in the hills of Planadas municipality in the Tolima department of Colombia, 40 km from the municipality’s capital. The farm has produced Organic coffees for many years now, including having been a member of ASOPEP (Association of Organic Producers of Planadas) beginning in 2010. In 2018 however, Nolberto left the association in order to diversify the production of the farm and take more complete control of the operations at La Cinta. Since then, Nolberto’s knowledge and experience has opened up new access and opportunities, improved transparency, and created better income from his coffee crop. He’s also found success in helping other producers in the community transition to organic production, with five farms in the area now growing Organic coffee.
La Cinta rests in the woods 1700 meters above sea level and includes 8 hectares of planted coffee. The property includes processing equipment and infrastructure to dry coffee, along with a quality control lab which contains a one-barrel sample roaster, a mobile stove, and cupping gear. Nolberto’s oldest son, Jefferson, is a CQI Q Grader and helps his father with onsite quality control and feedback on post-harvest processes. The farm also produces and processes some cacao in order to cover costs and reduce risks. Nolberto’s daughter, Marcela, and her mother, Eloina, learned how to process cacao and now make chocolate bars and other products from their cacao for sale.
Nolberto stresses the importance of using onsite materials and compostables from processed food to create blends of organic materials that will act as a fertilizer, quality booster and immunity shield for the plant. He produces and mixes calcium rich ashes, mulch, and earthworms, as well as compost from coffee pulp and cane sugar molasses. Though the process requires lots of additional work and knowledge, this step is particularly important for Nolberto because he grows several varieties of coffee that aren’t particularly hardy or disease resistant. Through this additional work he’s able to continue getting quality crops and good yields from all of his coffee plants.
This lot of Wush Wush underwent Washed processing at La Cinta. Cherries are sorted in floating tanks to select only dense ripe fruit. Whole cherries are fermented in plastic tanks for 24 hours of aerobic fermentation. The fruit is then pulped and placed back into the tanks and sealed for 100 hours of anaerobic fermentation. During this stage, the tanks are opened after three days to manually release the CO2 that has built up during fermentation. Seeds are washed and moved to the greenhouse drying area where it is dried for 20–25 days.
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.
