Why We Love This Coffee:
Finca La Pradera, managed by Luis Enrique Cuellar and his brother Robinson, is a special place. Sitting at an elevation of 2,050 meters above sea level, there are 3.5 hectares dedicated to coffee growing, with about 13,000 coffee trees currently. Varieties range from Caturra and Pacamara to the more exotic Pink Bourbon, Chiroso, and Gesha varieties. They even have plans to plant really exclusive varieties like Laurina, Sidra, and Bourbon Aji, to elevate the farm’s portfolio and increase their quality.
This particular lot is 100% Gesha and is processed in the same way as their Pink Bourbon. The coffee undergoes a short 24 hour fermentation in cherry, after which they are floated, de-pulped, and left to dry for 48-52 hours. From there, they undergo a more traditional washing process. However, a little bit of mucilage is left around the beans (this is not normally done in the washed process), which are then dried in a greenhouse for 18 - 25 days, depending on the weather. So, in reality, this coffee is almost a hybrid between a washed process coffee and a honey process coffee.
Water Recommendation:
For those of you who want to get every last drop of excellence out of this coffee, our preferred brewing water is full-strength Third Wave Water (130ppm GH, 40ppm KH).
Full-strength Third Wave Water gives the most fruit sweetness with an emphasis on the ripe mango, peach, and honeydew.
Half-strength Third Wave Water (65ppm GH, 20ppm KH - very similar to Lance Hedrick’s Light & Bright water) gives a less intense, more acid-driven cup profile. The florals appear a little softer.
Rao/Perger water (90ppm GH, 42ppm KH) is also excellent, probably our second favorite water for this coffee. As is often the case when we do these different water cuppings for our Black Label series coffees, this water gives the most complex flavor profile but it’s just slightly less sweet than full-strength TWW.
Philadelphia water (Baxter water supply) filtered with a three-stage carbon system with a little softening (somewhat similar to what a Brita pitcher would do) still gives an amazing cup profile, very similar to Rao/Perger water, but the finish fades a bit quicker than it does with Rao/Perger water.
If this is all very confusing—check out our blog post on water for coffee!
