/028 Colombia — Julián Calderón

“This is an amazing coffee. Everyone involved, producer, Q team and clients alike, agreed on that. Didn’t require much effort, as it was arguably the best coffee LaREB assessed back in 2021.  Clean, bright, transparent; a true representative of what a good Colombian Gesha is, but also a proud exponent of its terroir.

What makes a coffee good? Is it the terroir, the variety, the process? Is it a combination of all those factors, or just the virtuosity of the producer?

Julián is much likely a coffee virtuoso, but we do not know it yet. He probably doesn’t either. This is the first harvest of his first small plot with a heirloom varietal. The same seeds have yielded amazing cups in the hands of more experienced local producers, with recognition as high as COE finals. But Julian’s cup is superior. Complex, clear, with no room for disagreement. It is probably a result of the lack of glitter, the modest approach. This is an honest, straightforward coffee, intended to be like that. The first step in the career of someone with a possible bright future ahead.

Sometimes we’d rather be lucky than good. But is it luck when we predetermine the result? For us, it is definitely serendipity. The power of intention.”