SMALL BATCH SERIES
Colombia El Vergel Estate
Guava | Plum | Cacao Nibs | Raspberry | Lemon-Lime
If you love a fruity coffee, you’ll be dazzled by the spectacular Red & Yellow Bourbon microlots grown by Elias & Shady Bayter at El Vergel Estate. The former avocado farmers switched their crops to coffee in 2006, evolving into a focus on specialty coffee and—as with this lot—much success with anaerobic fermentation.
The Bayter family is committed to continuous research and experimentation in their processes, which have resulted in quality benefits year after year. This particular coffee—planted among the guava trees of the estate—undergoes a 48- to 60-hour anaerobic fermentation with controlled pH levels, followed by an intermittent drying process at varying moisture levels for added complexity of flavor. It is then stored in silos to attenuate moisture, and given a 45-day chilling period to enhance that beautiful spectrum of fruit flavors.
The farm’s constant focus on innovation includes a diverse planting of varieties, continued farm improvements such as new storage silos, modernized equipment, and a solar panel array to reduce their carbon footprint. Native shade trees surround the area, planted as part of the ReForest program started by the Bayter’s export partner, Forest Coffee. Forest Coffee also invests in the farmers themselves—providing family housing on the El Vergel estate, and contributing to vital infrastructure upgrades at the local school. Together with the Bayter’s commitments to sustainability and innovation, this offering represents everything we want to celebrate in coffee.
Together with their partner Martha Montenegro, Elias and Shady Bayter have taken the fruit-forward profile of Colombian coffees from this region to a truly elevated level. We’re thrilled to share it as one of our fruitiest Small Batch Series offerings ever: tropically bright with punchy berry and plum notes, citric acidity, and a touch of cocoa sweetness.
Swiss Water
The Swiss Water process is an organic, 100% chemical-free option for decaffeination. It was discovered in the 1930s in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, and is commercialised by the Swiss Water Decaffeinated Coffee Company Inc, founded in 1988.
This method does not require the addition of chemicals, instead relying on a super saturated green coffee solution called Green Coffee Extract (GCE).
To decaffeinate coffee, fresh GCE is introduced to a batch of green coffee. As the GCE is already saturated with all the water-soluble compounds found in green coffee, minus the caffeine, the matching molecules won’t diffuse out of the coffee beans—but the caffeine will. The flavour is retained in the beans while the caffeine is removed.
Thanks to some scientific smarts and creativity, it’s possible to have decaf coffee that tastes the same – just without the caffeine!
