Harvest in progress

105 | El Chocho

Harvest in progress

Producer
Andres Gomez		Description
TBA
Process
Washed		Varietals
Castillo, Colombia
Region
Nariño		Elevation
1,950 meters
Position
At origin – ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental, New Jersey
Andres inherited El Chocho from his father when he was 26 years old and has plans for expansion. With 4,000 trees of the Castillo and Colombia varietals already, Andres is planning on planting 4,000 more trees of Colombia varietal. 

As he continues to develop the farm, Andres would like improve his drying facilities and we hope to help him accomplish this goal (and many more) through the relationship we are building.
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104 | Los Meneses

Harvest in progress

Producer
Ramon Castillo		Description
TBA
Process
Washed		Varietals
Caturra, F4
Region
Nariño		Elevation
2,200 meters
Position
At origin – ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental, New Jersey
At 2,200 meters above sea level, Los Meneses is in the clouds. This elevation has allowed Ramon to produce healthy Caturra trees as the cooler climate helps protect the plants from common diseases. However, in his 40 years at the farm, he remembers a time when it was too cold to grow coffee. The family focused on producing potatoes, cilantro, celery, and yuca. As time progressed, and temperatures started to warm up, they were able to start cultivating coffee as well. In addition to the Caturra trees, Ramon also produces the F4 varietal.
For Ramon, the biggest step towards further improving the quality of his coffee is upgrading his drying facility. 
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57 | Santa Ana

Harvest in progress

Producer
Brayan Meneses		Description
TBA
Process
Washed, sun-dried		Varietals
Colombia, Castillo
Region
Nariño		Elevation
1,960 meters
Position
At origin – ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental, New Jersey
At just 29 years of age, Brayan is part of the new generation of coffee growers. He is one of the youngest farmers we work with, but that does not mean he is lacking in knowledge. He learned everything he knows about coffee from his grandfather and has fond memories of going to help in the coffee fields after school.

In addition to his hands-on coffee education, Brayan also completed school as a computer technician and wants to pursue a degree in agronomy. With this higher grade of education, he is able to look at the industry from a different perspective. He saw the need to shift from more traditional coffee harvesting to specialty coffee production about 4 years ago and is using his knowledge to improve quality on every level. Since then, he has participated in several competitions in the region over the last couple of years and has placed in the top 10 every time.
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22 | El Aguante

Harvest in progress

Producer
Marcial Lopez		Description
TBA
Process
Washed		Varietals
Colombia, Castillo
Region
Nariño		Elevation
2,000 meters
Position
At origin – ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental, New Jersey
Marcial has worked with coffee for 30 years and loves his job. The last 20 of those years have been at El Aguante where he also produces corn, yuca, and other crops for the family’s consumption. His love for farming, and coffee in particular, has manifested in his children and they hope to follow in his footsteps one day. We hope to play a role in making the business sustainable for these upcoming generations.
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25 | El Cajón

Harvest in progress

Producer
Carlos Castillo		Description
TBA
Process
Washed		Varietals
Castillo, Colombia
Region
Nariño		Elevation
1,950 meters
Position
At origin – ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental, New Jersey
El Cajón is home to Carlos, his wife, Rosa, and their three children. The whole family is involved in the farm and loves to grow coffee. A testament to their hard work and dedication, El Cajón has grown slowly from a small plot of land to what it is today.

With all they have invested in the coffee industry, the family has decided to focus on the quality of their coffee in an effort to achieve some sustainability. They have started working with the geisha variety of coffee and are planning improvements to the farm including a new storage area and a new wet mill.
 
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54 | Bodegas

Harvest in progress

Producer
Edwin Benitez		Description
TBA
Process
Washed		Varietals
Colombia, Castillo
Region
Nariño		Elevation
1,750 meters
Position
At origin – ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental, New Jersey
Edwin has worked with coffee all his life, originally learning to the trade from his father. After his father passed away, he inherited part of his land and continued growing coffee. Edwin knows first hand the hard work and dedication that coffee demands and believes the low coffee prices do not fairly compensate for them. He sees great opportunity in developing direct trades relationships that recognize the quality of the coffee he is producing.

Edwin lives with his wife Blastenia, his son Jaider, and his daughter Graicy at Bodegas. He wants to continue the legacy that his father left him, and is now teaching his son the best practices for improving quality. He is hopeful that the evolution of the specialty coffee market will provide some stability for the future generations of coffee growers.
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05 | Los Pinos

Harvest in progress

Producer
Colombia Portilla		Description
TBA
Process
Washed, sun-dried		Varietals
Castillo, Colombia
Region
Nariño		Elevation
1,800 meters
Position
At origin – ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental, New Jersey
Colombia inherited Los Pinos from her parents and raised her 3 children there as well. As a divorced mother, she relied on coffee production to provide for her family entirely. Her children helped on the farm while they were growing up, but now that they are all married with their own families, her brothers Hernan and Guillermo assist her during the harvesting season.

Colombia is still dedicated to her farm and wants to improve her drying installations. She intends to continue coffee production for years to come and is excited about the possibility to work hand in hand with roasters overseas.
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20 | El Aguacate

Harvest in progress

Producer
Raul Bados		Description
TBA
Process
Washed		Varietals
Colombia, Castillo
Region
Nariño		Elevation
1,810 meters
Position
At origin ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental, New Jersey
Raul has worked with coffee for 20 years and calls El Aguacate home with his wife, Mariela, and their two children. While he enjoys his life on the farm, he wants to give his kids an education- an opportunity he never had. Currently, his daughter Catherine, 21, is in college at the University of Nariño and Richard, 16, is in high school. While he would welcome either of them at the farm, he knows the younger generations are hesitant to pursue a career where the profit margins are so low or can even be negative.

For now, Raul works hard tending to his 4,500 trees of the colombia and castillo varieties. He is continually trying to improve quality and foster a profitable business. His short term focus is supporting his family and his long term goal is creating a profitable business so his children might continue the legacy.
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14 | Bellavista

Harvest in progress

Producer
Albeiro Solarte		Description
TBA
Process
Washed, sun-dried		Varietals
Colombia, Castillo
Region
Nariño		Elevation
1,850 meters
Position
At origin ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental Terminals, New Jersey
Albeiro and his nine siblings grew up at Finca Bellavista. He and four of his brothers still live at the farm today, caring for both the coffee and their aging parents. They have fond childhood memories and learned everything they know about coffee from their now 96 year old father.

While Albeiro takes pride in growing excellent coffee, providing his parent’s with a comfortable lifestyle in their golden years is the ultimate reward for his hard work. He sees potential in our business model and hopes that this move towards sustainability will allow him to grow old at Finca Bellavista as well.
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94 | Pedregal – Bourbon

Harvest in progress

Producer
Menardo Diaz		Description
TBA
Process
Washed, sun-dried		Varietals
Pink bourbon
Region
Nariño		Elevation
2,160 meters
Position
At origin – ETA October, 2022		Warehouse
Continental, New Jersey
Menardo lives with his wife Luz Marina and their adopted son Carlos at Pedregal. Originally working in the remote region of El Putumayo, Colombia, Menardo raised cattle and pigs. Through hard work, smart budgeting, and a credit from Banco Agrario he was able to purchase El Pedregal. The one hectare farm benefits from its location and high altitude, allowing Menardo to produce the Pink Bourbon variety coffee without the high risk of leaf rust.

As he becomes more experienced with coffee, Menardo is now very interested in learning how to improve processing practices in order to continually improve quality. Currently, he would like to improve his wet mill and his drying facilities. We are very excited to be working with him and hope to help him achieve all his goals.
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