This coffee was produced by Gloria Gómez on her small farm, El Nogal, located near the town of El Tabor, in the municipality of Inzá in Cauca state, Colombia.

Gloria and her three siblings started their careers in coffee-growing at their parent’s farm, La Argentina. Over time, they have each saved enough money to buy their own plots, though they continue to work together to manage their collective plantations during the season.

El Nogal is mainly planted with the hybrid Colombia variety, which was introduced by Colombia’s Coffee Federation in the 1980s as part of the country’s efforts to reduce the incidence of coffee leaf rust without affecting cup quality. Gloria farms her coffee with traditional techniques and most of the labour is provided by her and her family. Fertilisation occurs around three times a year, usually after manual weeding, and pesticides are rarely used.

The coffee in this lot was selectively hand-harvested, with most labour being provided by Gloria and her family. It was processed using the washed method at the farm’s ‘micro-beneficio’ (mill).

The coffee was pulped using a small manual or electric pulper and then placed into a fermentation tank, where it was fermented without water for around 24 hours (depending on the weather and the farm’s location) and then washed using clean water from nearby rivers and streams.

The coffee was then carefully dried (over 10–18 days) on concrete patio. Rakes are used to turn the coffee regularly during the drying stage, to ensure even drying.