Jesus was the first person I met in Colombia. After years of wanting to visit Omar Herrera and what Café Imports and Genesis were doing there, I was finally able to make a trip happen, but I had to meet the team midway and get picked up from the Pitalito airport by one of the producers. I was a bit nervous since we’d never met but as soon as I walked off the plane it felt like a homecoming. Between my broken Spanish, and Jesus’ broken English (and a whole lot of Google Translate), we bonded the whole drive over to Huila.  
 
Jesus is relatively young to be a coffee producer- which is rare. Most of the jobs and opportunity these days for younger people is found in the cities and so to be a coffee producer is a risky prospect. Coming back home from University to take over the family farm, Jesus immediately started experimenting with processing and varietals to raise the quality of the coffee his family was producing. Infused with passion and kindness, this lot from Finca El Placer is a testament to his innovative work and to the incredible region that is Huila, Colombia. 
 
In the cup, this coffee immediately grabs your attention with its black tea tannins and dusky, chapparal notes. A lightly sweet praline keeps this coffee from being too mineral-forward but the experience in total is such a unique one that you can’t help but going back to it to discover more flavors. 

Enjoy!