A visit to a coffee farm

The 'Casa del Pozo Azul' takes its name from the nearby waterfall, one of the main destinations for hikes in the area, the pools above it also well used as a swimming hole for tourists and locals alike: thus the amount of motorcycle traffic even on the very bumpy part of the road leading down to and by our hotel. It is only ten minutes away from the hotel, so we decided to postpone a visit and do a longer hike instead yesterday.

Another point of interest on the Minca map was La Victoria coffee farm, an organic farm that has produced coffee here since the late 19^th century. A German couple we met at the hotel told us it was well worthwhile, and since we were halfway there from Minca already we decided on this hike as the day's destination. 

Kenny, our friendly host who speaks English well, suggested we'd take the shortcut through the Faunal, the nature reserve that starts a short walk above the hotel. The road coming from Minca would have been the alternative, but the shortcut, though much steeper, would also be more enticing. With his directions we easily found the turnoff from the waterfall road. After the first short, steep climb we arrived at a small cafe where we paid an entrance fee, hopefully used to maintain the nature reserve and its trails, maybe to make it possible to keep it as a place not to be developed. The trail, very narrow and steep, led steadily upwards in tight turns through dense vegetation. We had to look out for roots, climbed over a couple of fallen trees, and – were hot and sweaty within minutes, of course. The strange loud noise that had caused us to wonder about its origin accompanied us for the first while, ebbing and swelling, so shrill that it almost hurt our ears. In the evening I had ascribed it to some kind of man-made device, wondered if it had possibly to do with the sprinkler system in the neighbouring garden, but now it seemed possible that it was caused by some kind of insect. The higher we got the less intense it became, swallowed up into the general insect cacophony. As everywhere here on the coast biting insects had a feast; the assumption that relative immunity against mosquito bites at home might translate into a reduced susceptibility here proved totally false. We suffered right with the rest of the visitors, probably some of the locals as well.

The dense vegetation opened up from time to time to  grand views of the hills across the valley, revealing the steep flanks dropping off below us. Whenever the sun had a little more access there was the usual multitude of butterflies, though I didn't again see a Morpho Azul.

After maybe forty minutes or so the nature reserve ended in a barbed wire fence; we now rejoined the dusty road leading up from Minca. It was easier walking, however, not as steep, and of course we didn't have to watch so carefully where we put our feet. Also, we could now enjoy the open view to our left continuously. Across the valley some dots of intense lemon yellow had caught my eye; they looked like they might be blooming trees. Rounding a bend I gasped: there was one of these trees right in front of me, stunning in its brightness, the scent sweet like vanilla. What a gorgeous specimen! Trees seem to be in several different seasonal stages, some with mature leaves, others partly bare, others yet in the tender light green of early spring, with foamy pink blossoms, long dry pods still suspended from the branches: a legume of some sort, obviously.

We hiked for another half hour until a sign to the left showed us that we had to turn off to La Victoria coffee farm. From now on it was downhill again, the road shaded by huge bamboo groves, which made for a very pleasant walk. It still took about twenty minutes more until we saw the farm nestled into the jungle vegetation, a pleasant location beside a small river.

We were invited to sample the coffee while we waited for a few more people to arrive to make up a group for the guided tour. This coffee, while dark, lacked any hint of bitterness; it was by far the best coffee I have had here in Colombia. Why this is so we found out a little later.

A tall young Colombian woman (a rarity in a country where people tend to be on the shorter side) gave us a very informative tour. 

 

This finca – farm – started in 1882 when a couple from London, England bought 1200 ha of land here from the Colombian government which, of course, had taken it for free from the indigenous people who lived here and forced them higher up into the hills. The English couple planted 300 ha of coffee right away, which was later expanded to 700 ha, the area that is still in use now. They brought almost all of the necessary machinery to process the beans from England, some from New York as well. All of the buildings, all of these machines are used the way they were when the farm was established in 1892. The coffee is produced organically, is hand-picked – bean by bean or, more correctly, cherry by cherry, the proper name for coffee before it has undergone fermentation – from October to the end of January. There are 22 permanent employees here, and about 120 pickers, migrating workers who move from one coffee area in Colombia to the next. The work must be gruelling: the slopes are so steep that it would be difficult to find a foothold, the plants close together, the heat oppressive, and, in the early months of picking, still in rainy season. The pickers fill baskets that are then emptied into big bags that hold 40kg, which in turn are dumped into huge funnels from where they are washed down to the plant with water from the river. 

Pressurized water coming from the hill is used for all of the transporting of coffee during the cleaning process, from the hills, and in the plant as well, and also to produce power. I won't go into too much detail, because there was a lot of information to remember, but a few things are worth mentioning.

Mostly due to a small beetle that bores into the coffee fruits and hollows them out, something that cannot be controlled on an organic farm, about 40% of the harvested beans are of lesser and low quality. To separate them from the undamaged ones water is used again, making use of the fact that the undamaged beans are heaviest while the ones hollowed out completely will float on top. All of the harvested coffee is used, but only first-quality beans are used for export. The 'La Victoria' coffee farm sells 70% of its number one crop for export and keeps the other 30% for roasting at the farm; this will be sold to visitors and used in their restaurant. The lower quality coffee is sold as well, and this is what is used almost exclusively in the country – thus the much superior taste of the coffee at the farm. Our guide explained that additives are used to improve the taste of the lower grade coffees to make them more palatable.

She also explained the roasting process: at the farm, they roast medium dark (French) coffee. This produces a mellower taste while leaving a higher caffeine content. The darker the roast, she said, the more bitter, of course, and the less caffeine. Caffeine-free coffee has undergone the longest roasting process.

After another free sampling of coffee we had the opportunity to buy the 500g packages, either whole bean or ground, and we all took advantage of it, of course: we knew exactly what we were getting, after all. One interesting fact I didn't know: our guide told us that coffee is best stored in the vegetable drawer of the refrigerator. As long as it is in its original package with the little breathing hole and kept closed at the top it will keep its freshness for nine months, unaffected by the taste or smell of anything else it is stored with.

It was an interesting, informative tour, and I left with a renewed appreciation of what goes into the making of good coffee.

By now it was early afternoon, so Johann and I had a snack down by the little river before we embarked on the hike back to our hotel. We had decided to not take the shortcut this time but the road; traffic didn't seem to be too heavy, and it would be easier walking, requiring less attention – plus we'd have the grandiose view the whole time.

I was amazed at the multitude of flowers growing along the way now that I had time to keep my eyes open and look at leisure. From poinsettias to verbenas to many other vaguely familiar looking blossoms which I couldn't name, however, not to mention the many coffee plants we only now realized were growing along the road. We hadn't noticed them on the way up. 

Unfortunately a little blurry: coffee blossom on a plant along the road, thus the dusty leaves

 

 

Dusty, hot and tired we arrived back at the hotel late in the afternoon after this beautiful day. The beer tasted great!