Colombia Santa Mónica Cherry Anaerobic

Our final coffee of the year from Jairo Arcila and his Santa Monica farm in Colombia is made from the Castillo variety and has undergone 48 hours of anaerobic fermentation together with fresh cherriesDuring fermentation, the coffee cherries retain their sweet pulp, while the added cherries contribute extra sweetness and an intense, vibrant fruitiness. After fermentation in the sealed, oxygen-free environment, the coffee cherries are depulped, and the beans are left to dry slowly.

The result is a wonderfully fruity coffee with distinct notes of cherry and caramel, bright acidity, and a lively sweetness. Once again, Jairo demonstrates his mastery of creating coffees with unique flavour profiles – a modern, curious, and innovative coffee producer at the very top of his game.

ABOUT THE PRODUCER JAIRO ARCILA

Jairo’s first job was with Colombia’s second-largest coffee exporter, where he was responsible for its export operations for more than 40 years, until his retirement in 2019. In 1987, he purchased his first coffee farm, Finca La Esmeralda, where he planted his first Caturra lot. Alongside his full-time job, he was also able to generate additional income by producing coffee on his own farm.

Jairo Arcila and his team of pickers harvest selectively, choosing only the ripest coffee cherries. The cherries are then transported to the sorting facility at Santa Monica, where they are carefully hand-sorted and floated in water. This process removes underripe, defective and low-density cherries. They are then transported to the La Pradera processing facility in GrainPro bags or other suitable containers to preserve their freshness.

Upon arrival, the rigorous quality-control process continues. The cherries are placed in water tanks, where low-density cherries and foreign material float to the surface and can be removed. The water is reused for several rounds of sorting. Once it is no longer suitable for this purpose, it is filtered through a series of specially designed tanks before being channelled into vetiver-grass beds, where it is purified and oxygenated. This natural filtration process prevents contaminated water from leaving the facility and contributes to more environmentally sustainable production.

After being sorted in water, the cherries undergo another careful round of hand-sorting. Underripe, overripe and defective cherries are removed, ensuring that only those with a high sugar content continue to the next stage of processing.