Our Riocofre and its origins
As you might have noticed, we have quite a thing for Colombian Coffees. I don’t know if it is something about that unique mix of fruitiness and chocolate or maybe something else, but Finca Rio Cofre is certainly one of the main reasons we love them so much.
Finca Rio Cofre is located only 12 kilometers away from Popayan, in the Cauca Department of Colombia. At an average altitude of 1780 masl, Finca Rio Cofre has a climate and soil quality that are particularly good for growing coffee. Axel Tveten, who inherited the farm that was originally bought by his father in 1962, decided to convert it into an organic farm in 2012. The farm is run upon the rules of ACEC (Asociación de Caficultores Ecológicos del Cauca) to meet the standards of BCS-OKO, and sustainability is of central importance at every stage of coffee production.
The farm is naturally gifted with one of the most diverse ecosystems in the South West of Colombia. The region borders eastwards with el Parque National Puracé, where the volcanos Puracé, Sotara y Coconuco have contributed to the fertility of the soil with their ashes for Millennia. The western border is instead delimited by the Parque Nacional Natural de Munchique, where the influence of the Pacific Ocean further favours the emergence of biodiversity and provides currents that are used by a great variety of birds that migrate through the farm. The river Rio Cofre and its tributary streams also participate by granting precious nutrients and fertility to the area. The farmers take great pride in this biodiversity, and place a lot of emphasis on protecting it.
The same amount of care is taken when processing coffee. Finca Rio Cofre’s current quality standards are the results of years of daily experiments continuously recorded and improved upon. They do pretty much all types of processing there is, but we are most fond of their mielado or honey.
Honey coffees are de-pulped but nor washed, so they dry out with some layers of the cherry still on, but not the whole fruit. This allows for an heavier and sweeter body compared to washed coffees, but still retaining the fruity and crispy notes and good clarity that are often less evident in natural coffees. To put it simple, the best of both worlds!
So if you are new to mielados, why not to start with our Riocofre and his sweet body of chocolate and caramel, with a clear note of blackcurrant. Ideal for your Chemex or V60, but also as a lovely bodied and bright espresso.
– Fabio Ungaro