La Esmeralda

Coffee Description By Francesco

César and his wife Maria are a great example for future coffee generations.
After visiting their farm, we left with one thought: how cool to grow up with
them and be able to talk about all the differences in their coffees 10 years from now!

In 2024, we met César Buesaquillo through a close friend, Santi, who now works for Cofinet, an exporter in Colombia.

César is 34 years old and uses agroecological practices. He has planted shade trees such as guamo, yarumo and carbonero, and grows various crops such as plantain, banana and avocado.

He experiments with different fermentation processes and works with great humility to distinguish himself in the market and improve the work started by his father, who was a coffee picker and later bought the farm La Esmeralda.

Process

After hand-picking only the ripe cherries, a second selection takes place where the team hand-sorts and floats them to remove any low-density, underripe or defective cherries. Then, a 45 hour aerobic fermentation takes place to enhance the cup profile.
After the fermentation, the cherries are spread out at the parabolic dryers, in thin layers to ensure consistent airflow and exposure to sunlight. They are carefully monitored and turned regularly to prevent over fermentation or mold.
The drying process can take between 10to 15 days.