La Union: Nariño, Colombia

From the Importer

Fundación Agraria y Ambiental Para el Desarrollo Sostentible (FUDAM) is a 300-member association of organic-certified (and Rainforest Alliance–certified) growers that was founded in the year 2000 by just seven producers who shared a vision of sustainable agriculture as well as environmental protection and development. This group of smallholders lives in and around the small municipality of La Unión in Nariño, where the terrain differs greatly from in other coffee-growing areas like Cauca: Instead of walking up from the town to the farms, as elsewhere, here the towns are at such high elevation that the farms are typically lower elevation, surrounded by high peaks and rough road.

The farmers pick their coffee during the day and depulp it in the afternoon, typically fermenting the lots for 16–24 hours dry. The coffees are generally washed two or three times before being dried either in small "casa elbas," mechanical dryers, or parabolic dryers. The mechanical drying takes between 25–40 hours, while the other drying structures can take up to 15 days.

From the Roaster

Contrary to popularly held ideals, modern day, specialty Colombia coffees produce more than just boring, one-liner cups. Advances and implementation of new growing and processing methods have drastically improved their quality and consistency. This offering from La Union showcases this well with big, syrupy cooked strawberry flavors that mingle with familiar sweet tones of chocolate sauce, butterscotch, and caramel. It’s an incredibly balanced and refined “union” of flavors that are sure to please any palette.

How we’re brewing it

Here’s how we’re brewing this coffee in our cafe. We use the Barazta Vario grinder and a Kalita dripper in this recipe.

Grind size: B3 (Medium)

Coffee dose: 25.8

Water dose: 400g

Brew time: 3:00

Water temp: 208F

Yield: 12oz