The prodigal son has returned!
We have been searching for this coffee for years. Literally, since we found the El Diviso, Sidra in 2022—which was the same green coffee used by Anthony Douglas to claim the world barista championship for Australia that year—we have been searching for a coffee on that same level.
We have cupped every anaerobic and Sidra varietal that we could lay our hands on and have passed on each one. As it often happens when someone wins the world championship, the coffee that they used floods the market and all of us ‘coffee roasters’ and brewers alike scramble for some of the good stuff. This often results in an abundance of similar tasting coffees that are close but don’t quite match up. However, we have finally found a Sidra that comes as close as possible to the clarity and intensity of flavour that the original El Diviso had. We have secured just 65kg in an exceptionally limited run.
This coffee comes from the Las Flores farm of the Vergara Family. You may recognise this farm as it is the same as two of our current Top Shelf coffees; Pink Bourbon and Tabi. The farm rests at 1730 metres above sea level in the Huila region of Colombia. In fact, Las Flores and El Diviso are two farms that have joint forces in recent years, sharing knowledge to help each other create exceptional coffees.
At this point we would like to throw a special shoutout to H.A. Bennetts who are our true heroes. They introduced us to Las Flores (amongst a plethora of other special coffees) and to Crop Del Monte, who have brought us this Sidra. We will do everything we can to best express this coffee with our roasting style!
18 hours after this Sidra reaches the processing station at the Las Flores farm it is placed in plastic tubs and fermented in an anaerobic environment for 36 hours. The cherries are then floated to sort for density before undergoing a thermal shock. Afterwards, the cherries are shade dried in their parchment for 12-15 days.
As with many anaerobic coffees, everybody finds something different in the cup. They are intense and complex! We have been tasting a pronounced, confectionary sweetness with a pleasant, dry style of finish. In terms of flavour and aroma, we have been finding canned yellow peaches in syrup, strawberry jam, Molasses and blood orange, alongside a sweet and lingering aftertaste similar to the warm spice found in mulled wine.
Let us know what flavours you can find and celebrate in this long-awaited coffee!
Please, enjoy!