Spot Continental NJ Archives - Arango Specialty Coffee

242 | La Marcela

Producer Oliva Madrid	Description Chocolate, honey, spices, floral
Process Washed	Varietals Castillo, Colombia
Region Antioquia	Elevation 1,900 meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

Oliva has dedicated more than nine years to cultivating exceptional coffee. At her farm, La Marcela, she tends to 8,000 coffee trees of the Castillo and Colombia varietals. For Oliva, there is nothing more rewarding than spending her days outdoors, walking the fields and nurturing each tree with intention and care.

Her commitment extends well beyond cultivation. Oliva pays close attention to every step of the processing, a dedication that clearly shines through in the cup. The result is a beautifully balanced coffee with layered complexity and an engaging character that makes it truly memorable.

An entrepreneur at heart, Oliva has also spent the past few years roasting and selling her own coffee under her own brand—an accomplishment she is deeply proud of. With more time, or the right support to help grow distribution, she hopes to expand that side of her business even further.

Above all, Oliva loves the lifestyle that coffee farming provides. She envisions herself remaining on the farm for years to come, continuing this work with passion and pride for as long as her health allows.

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74 | Travesias

Spot Continental NJ

Producer Amparo Mazo	Description Chocolate, maple syrup, sugar cane, citrus
Process Washed	Varietals Castillo, Colombia
Region Antioquia	Elevation 1,900 meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

Amparo has been working with coffee for over 17 years. She has 3,000 trees planted at Travesias, between Castillo and Colombia varietals. Amparo is a dedicated coffee farmer and she works with a group of woman to pick the coffee at her farm. She has been working with this group for over 5 years now, and states that the quality of work and work ethics of these woman is unmatched.

Things haven’t come easy to Amparo though, the region where her farm is located has suffer from violence for years. Multiple displacements during the harvest, as she and her family were forced to leave cherries in the fields, pack their belongings, and move the family to the nearest town in search of safety.

Amparo continues to look towards the future and it does not surprise us that she remains so dedicated in the face of adversity. Amparo is grateful for coffee, as she has been able to provide education for her two daughters, who are now in college. She believes if you develop strong relationships with buyers and have discipline with the money, you are able to accomplish amazing things.

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243 | Retoños

Spot Continental NJ

Producer Alba Zuleta	Description Chocolate, brown sugar, dry fruit
Process Washed	Varietals Castillo, Colombia
Region Antioquia	Elevation 1,800 meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

Alba has dedicated her entire life to coffee. She began working at a young age on her parents’ farm, learning the craft from the ground up. After marrying, she and her husband established their own farm, building it through perseverance and hard work. Through coffee, Alba was able to support her four children and provide them with educational opportunities—an accomplishment she holds close to her heart.

Today, Alba cultivates approximately 5,000 coffee trees at her farm, Retoños, planted with Castillo and Colombia varietals.
Farming in Alba’s region is far from easy. Its remote location presents significant logistical challenges, making production costs considerably higher. The area has also endured years of armed conflict, adding further hardship. Alba has been displaced from her farm multiple times. Yet despite these challenges, her commitment to coffee remains unwavering—a testament to her resilience, strength, and deep connection to the land.

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232 | El Plan – Gesha

Spot Continental NJ

Producer Brayan Moncayo	Description Floral, lemongrass, honey, plum
Process Washed, sun-dried	Varietals Gesha
Region Nariño	Elevation 1,900 meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

Brayan has been working with coffee for more than 10 years. On his farm, El Plan, he cultivates 6,000 Castillo trees and 1,000 Pink Bourbon trees. In 2020, he expanded into exotic varietals by planting 500 Gesha trees. Brayan lives at El Plan with his wife, Marleidy; their young son, Alan; and his father, Luis. Coffee runs deep in his family—both his father and grandfather were coffee growers. Now, three-year-old Alan is already asking to join his father in the fields, just as Brayan once did at his age.

Brayan is committed to pursuing quality over quantity. He plans to continue increasing the share of exotic varietals on his farm, believing that focusing on high-quality coffees will give his family the best chance to thrive. He knows this path requires patience and effort, and he is taking each step thoughtfully and gradually.

Brayan dedicates significant time and care to ensuring the quality of his coffee. He harvests only the ripest cherries, puts them in water to identify and remove floaters, and ferments the cherries for 48 hours before depulping. The coffee then undergoes an additional 72-hour fermentation, followed by a light wash and a slow drying process on raised beds that typically lasts two to three weeks.

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179 | La Fortuna – Chiroso

Spot Continental NJ

Producer Maximiliano Vargas	Description Floral, maple syrup, green tea
Process Washed	Varietals Chiroso
Region Antioquia	Elevation 2,100meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

Maximiliano has been working with coffee since 2,000. He is grateful coffee gave him the opportunity to provide for his four now grown children and for his wife when she was alive. Maximiliano’s wife Maria Estela died in 2020. Maximiliano has 3,500 chriroso trees at La Fortuna. In 2021 Maximiliano participated in a coffee competitions with his coffee and placed in the top 10.
Maximiliano explains that he is very meticulous with his coffee processing, he picked one day, depulped 24 hours later, let the coffee sit in the fermentation tank for 72 hours, before washing it.
Maximiliano is planning on making some improvements at his farm starting with his drying facilities and also his wet beneficio. He believes these improvements will allow him to improve even more the quality of his coffee.

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202 | ARANGO DECAF E.A.

Spot Continental NJ

Producer La Miranda Community	Description Chocolate, caramel, brown sugar
Process Washed	Varietals Castillo, Colombia
Region Antioquia	Elevation 1,800 to 1,900 meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

La Miranda is a small community located in Ituango, Antioquia, Colombia. The region is rich in fertile soils and beautiful landscapes that produce excellent coffee. However, the beauty and the remoteness of the region comes with its own challenges. For the last 40 years, this region has struggled with violence. Massacres, displacements, and extortions have made coffee farming very difficult. We have a lot of respect for people that persist and still grow coffee in these conditions. It’s also amazing to us that farmers can produce the quality of coffees that we are getting under these difficult conditions.
The lots that we selected for the decaffeination process are solid 86+ coffees. We cupped the coffees again after the E.A. decaffeination process and we were very please with the results.
We understand that when people ask for decaf coffee they do it because the flavor not the caffeine. We shouldn’t neglect decaf coffee anymore and we should treat it with respect for people that produce it as well as people that drink it. That is our goal with our decaf program.

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15 | El Mango – Pink Bourbon

Spot Continental NJ

Producer Gilberto Giraldo	Description Floral, jasmin, blueberries, spices
Process Washed	Varietals Chiroso
Region Antioquia	Elevation 1,800 meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

Like other farms in the area, Gilberto and El Mango have experienced a couple of challenging years. Dramatic climate changes in the last few years have diminished the production yield considerably. On top of that, the resurgence of activity among armed illegal groups in the region led to multiple displacements from the farm, including once during the harvest last year.

While these obstacles proved difficult to overcome, Gilberto took them in stride and is still planning for the upcoming years. He has new varietals like Chirosos and Pink Bourbon, that are mature now and is excited to experiment with different processing methods. His unwavering commitment to El Mango is evident and we are equally committed to riding out the ups and downs with him.

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65 | La Primavera

Spot Continental NJ

Producer Lizardo Montoya	Description Floral, honey, molasses, green tea
Process Washed	Varietals Chiroso
Region Antioquia	Elevation 2,000 meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

Lizardo lives with his wife Luz Dary at La Primavera. They have been working with coffee for about 11 years and currently have trees of the Chiroso varietal at the farm. Chiroso is a relatively new varietal which is endemic to the region of Urrao, Antioquia, Colombia. A natural mutation of old-growth caturra, the beans are larger and have an oblong shape.

As this varietal gains recognition from importers and roasters, Lizardo is excited about the opportunity to grow relationships that will lead to sustainable prices. With a more predictable income, he would be able to budget for upgrades to the drying facilities at La Primavera. Even at 56 years of age, he is always looking for ways to improve.

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07 | El Naranjo

Spot Continental NJ

Producer Evelio Bados	Description Sweet, chocolate, stone fruit,
Process Washed	Varietals Castillo, Colombia
Region Nariño	Elevation 1,900 meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

El Naranjo began over 38 years ago as just a vision. Evelio invested in an untouched lot and worked very hard to clear the land and eventually plant coffee. He was working double duty during this time as he was also employed at other farms in order to provide for his family. After watching his dream come to fruition, Evelio hopes that his children will continue his legacy and produce coffee at El Naranjo in the future. For this reason, he continues to look for opportunities that will allow for sustainability and improved quality of life. It is important to him that his children and El Naranjo are successful for generations to come.

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116 | La Quinta

Spot Continental NJ

Producer Tiberio Correa	Description Chocolate, honey, sugar cane
Process Washed	Varietals Colombia, Castillo
Region Antioquia	Elevation 1,900 meters
Position Spot	Warehouse Continental, New Jersey

Tiberio was raised along with his 12 siblings at his parent’s coffee farm in Ituango, Antioquia. He learned everything about coffee from his father. Now he and his wife are raising their 4 children at their own coffee farm, La Quinta. With 6 hectares planted with coffee, La Quinta has around 25,000 coffee trees of the Colombia, Castillo and Caturra varietals. In addition to coffee, the family produces beans and corn. Some cattle are also raised at the farm. Tiberio is forever grateful for his land. He believes there is no better lifestyle than to be surrounded by fresh air, peace, and nature. On top of that, coffee has given him the resources to educate his kids. Tiberio believes that education is important even if you come back to work at the farm. If you have the knowledge to do things better your quality of life will improve he says.

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