Colombia
Tolima
Yeferson Olaya
El Tesoro
Colombia
Natural
September–November
Dark Chocolate, Prune, Strawberry Jam
1600 meters
N/A
70 kg w/ GrainPro
SOLD OUT
Yeferson Olaya owns and operates Finca El Tesoro 1600 meters above sea level in the hills of Planadas municipality in the Tolima department of Colombia, 40 km from the municipality’s capital. Yeferson comes from a coffee producing family, with his father Nolberto operating his family farm Finca La Cinta nearby. Nolberto is recognized in the area for his commitment to protecting the environment through his farming practices, and this commitment is carried on by the whole family, including Yeferson and his farm.
Yeferson’s family stresses the importance of using onsite materials and compostables from processed food to create blends of organic materials that will act as a fertilizer, quality booster, and immunity shield for the plants. They produce and mix calcium rich ashes, mulch, and earthworms, as well as compost from coffee pulp and cane sugar molasses to create these agricultural inputs. Though the process requires lots of additional work and knowledge, this step is particularly important for them because it helps them to continue getting quality crops and good yields from all of the coffee plants.
Coffee cherries from El Tesoro are taken for processing at the nearby Finca La Cinta, which is outfitted with processing equipment and infrastructure to dry coffee, along with a quality control lab which contains a one-barrel sample roaster, a mobile stove, and cupping gear. Yeferson is a CQI Q Grader and assists his father with onsite quality control and feedback on post-harvest processes for all coffees processed at La Cinta.
This lot of Variedad Colombia underwent Natural processing at Finca La Cinta.
The Colombian Department of Tolima is nested in the heart of Andean region in the center-west of the country. The department ranks first in Colombia in the production of rice and sesame. Farmers here also grow coffee, corn, bananas, sugarcane, and beans. Livestock, particularly cattle and pigs, is quite common in the northwest and center-east valleys along the Magdalena River and its basins. 32 of Tolima’s 47 municipalities are dedicated to coffee production.
Tolima’s capital city of Ibagué, also known as “Musical capital of Colombia and America” is surrounded by the mountains and enriched with water resources stretching along the Magdalena River Valley to the east of the Department. Tolima is traversed by highways and railroads, linking Ibagué with Bogotá, Armenia (Quindio), and Neiva (Huila).
The geographical location, topographic diversity, and range of altitudes make Tolima one of the most favorable and unique departments for coffee production, allowing for harvesting throughout the year. Coffee farms are scattered on the mountain ranges of Santa Marta, La Macarena, and the western slopes of the eastern Cordilleras. Farms here are predominantly smallholder owned, and the farmers have made concerted efforts in the last ten years to produce specialty coffee that reveals the full character of the region’s terroir. The organic approach to coffee cultivation in Tolima is well-known and highly demanded around the world. Certifications like Fairtrade, Organic, Rainforest Alliance, UTZ, and Bird Friendly can be found throughout the region. Selective manual harvesting, attentive processing, and careful post-harvest sorting all contribute to the growing recognition of Tolima as a coffee producing region.
Tolima’s coffee sector has attracted numerous financial and educational resources over the past several years. State and private owned organizations have invested with social and economic programs throughout the region, strengthening the potential for sustainable coffee production and improving the livelihoods of thousands of families.
