Buena Vista Ignacio Quintero - Colombia

This micro-lot was produced and processed by Ignacio Quintero, a smallholder member of the Inzá, Cauca producer group. Produced at 1,850 metres above sea level, this very special lot was selected out from the rest of the organization’s producers as being of exceptional quality. This coffee provides a great showcase for what this remote and often overlooked region of Colombia has to offer.

The municipality of Inzá is located in the corner of the Department of Cauca, bordering with Tolima and Huila and looking out to the west over the Pacific Ocean. Situated on the “Macizo Colombiano” (the Colombian Plateau), which surrounds the high peaks of Tolima and Huila, the region is an important source of water and wildlife, in addition to being prime coffee growing land.

Ignacio is a medium size grower, but during the past two decades he has worked hard to improve his farm and to expand it; and his hard work has paid off! We found out about this coffee through our good friends at the Santa Barbara Estate, who serve it in their flagship specialty café, Pergamino, in Medellin. Specifically in Cauca, they have launched a new pilot project with the Pillimue family in San Antonio. In order to offer upmarket access more widely in the region and to put more control in the hands of local people, the family (who has long supplied coffee to Pergamino from their various family member farms) has opened a small warehouse and cupping lab with funding from Pergamino. They act as logistics and sourcing partners and are able to provide quality assessment services for nearly 150 families in the area, which is far more impactful than any other regional association in the area, reaching not just San Antonio, but now also the towns of Belen, La Palmera, Aguablanca, Pedregal, Palmichal, San Jose and Santa Teresa. Most importantly, the Pillimue/Pergamino partnership enables more families than ever before to access higher prices by placing coffee on the specialty market.

During the harvest season, Pergamino has committed to monthly visits to the group in order to cup and advise on quality. All coffee produced by the group that cups at 85+ points will be purchased, and higher scoring lots may be held aside as micro lots to be marketed under the farmer/family’s own name