Colombia | Quindio, Armenia, Lychee Infusion

Colombia

Region: Quindio, Armenia

Farm: Santa Mónica

Farmer: Jairo Arcila

Taste notes - lychee, peach, kiwi, hibiscus, grapefruit. 

Grown and processed by coffee infusion veteran Jairo Arcila at the Santa Monica farm, this coffee cup takes your breath away with its exotic and outstanding flavour profile. The coffee is anaerobically fermented with an infusion of wine yeast and lychees for 72 hours, then finished on patios using the traditional honey method.

Region

Quindío, located in the western central region of Colombia, is a UNESCO World Heritage site known for its lush green mountains, scenic landscapes, and thriving coffee industry. Quindío is part of the “Coffee Axis,” also known as the Coffee Triangle, which each year produces a significant portion of Colombian coffee. 

The region's climate is ideal for coffee cultivation, with average temperatures ranging from 18°C to 24°C year-round and consistent rainfall. Quindío's volcanic soil provides excellent drainage and aeration, enhancing the coffee's flavour profile. The altitude, ranging from 1400 to 1800 meters above sea level, also contributes to the unique characteristics of Quindío's coffee, which is highly prized globally.

Historically known for commercial coffee, Quindío has relatively recently shifted towards specialty coffee. This change is driven by young farmers who see the potential for a sustainable livelihood in high-quality coffee production. In the past, low prices for commercial grades drove many young people away from coffee farming and to try opportunities in the bigger cities. However, today’s growing specialty coffee market offers better opportunities, encouraging the next generation to stay on the farms and improve coffee quality.

Most of the farms in this region are family-owned farms, typically 2 to 5 hectares in size, and produce traditional Colombian varieties as well as exotic ones like Gesha and Pink Bourbon. This focus on quality has led Quindío's coffee to regularly place at or near the top of Cup of Excellence competitions. Also, farmers often compete locally to see who has produced the best coffee lots. This helps to foster a vibrant local culture dedicated to quality and growth.

Farmer

Jairo Arcila is a third-generation coffee grower from Quindio, Colombia.  His first job was at Colombia’s second-largest exporter, where he worked as their mill manager for over 40 years until his retirement in 2019. In 1987, Jairo bought his first coffee farm, Finca La Esmeralda, where he planted his first Caturra lot.

He was fortunate enough to earn money by producing coffee on his farm in addition to working full-time. Using his savings, Jairo gradually managed to purchase five additional farms: Villarazo, Mazatlan, Santa Monica, Maracay, and Buenos Aires. Within these six farms, Jairo is able to provide numerous jobs to locals during the harvest period, which has a significant economic impact on their community.

As a farmer and producer, Jairo has learned not only from his own experience but also from his two sons' knowledge of coffee. With their help, Jairo has greatly improved picking, sorting, and processing of coffees at his farms. His sons have also guided and encouraged him in the production of exotic varieties such as Pink Bourbon, Java, Papayo, and Gesha across all his farms. This synergy of generations has resulted in fantastic coffees with amazing flavor profiles enjoyed around the globe.

Processing

To reach outstanding results, before the harvest starts Jairo prepares wine yeast and lychee powder which consists of dried fruits that are coarsely ground. He says that powder better helps to control and transfer the complimentary taste of the fruit to coffee.

When Castillo cherries have reached the perfect ripeness they are harvested from trees and moved to processing stations. Then cherries are put inside a fermentation bucket together with already prepared wine yeast and lychee powder. 

There this beautiful mix overgoes 72 h anaerobic fermentation which helps yeast to break down sugars into alcohol and infuse coffee with lychee notes. Then cherries are pulped leaving some of the cherries' flesh on the beans to process them with the so-called honey method.

Beans are placed to dry on raised beds until the ideal moisture content is achieved. After all post-processing steps are done coffee is packed in vacuum bags and sent to Rocket Bean in boxes of 24 kg.