Our final offering from Oscar Hernandez and Los Nogales is something special again. This 'Origins Typica' is part of their Alchemy range, a category that offers coffees with more focus on post harvest processing. Using these techniques for the initial part of the harvest, where quality of cherry isn’t at its highest and benefits greatly from more intensive post harvest processing.
With these coffees, they apply longer thermal fusions of 60 hrs, extended fermentations of up to 7 days and a greater quantity of pre-fermented yeast and bacteria on top of the juice of the coffee itself. Using these techniques during the fermentation they are able to create intensely aromatic profiles.
The farm, located in Bruselas, Huila, is family-owned and operated, with a strong emphasis on sustainability and innovation in coffee production. Los Nogales has gained recognition for its unique processing methods, including anaerobic natural processes and meticulous drying techniques, resulting in complex and flavourful coffees.
The Typica used for this profile comes from the Pulpito lot at 1900 m, where the Typica trees grow alongside Yellow Bourbon and part of their Geisha production. At this altitude, the cooler climate fosters consistently high-quality cherry production, making this one of the most exceptional areas on the farm.
The steps in processing this Origins Typica are firstly, selective harvesting, floating and cleaning to select the best cherries. Then Thermal Fusion..cherries bathed in 90C water for 60secs, followed by depulping and then 7 days anaerobic fermentation with an added pre-fermented Typica yeast culture. Finally drying on raised beds for 15 days.
Roasting style: We've roasted this coffee fast and light to highlight the complexities of the variety and processing without overpowering it with too much sweetness or body. This means this coffee is better suited to filter style brewing, rather than espresso.
Bean colour: You may notice a variation in bean colour with this coffee. The darker beans are those that have undergone more fermentation (not roasted darker), and therefore the colour change happens at a different rate. We reached out to Los Nogales for their explanation of why this would happen and received this answer:
"In fermented coffees, it’s quite common to see some variation in bean colour. This happens because during fermentation, acids are produced that affect the bean’s structure differently depending on its density.
Even when coffee is harvested from the same tree, density is not always uniform. Factors such as the bean’s position on the branch influence how many nutrients it receives, which in turn impacts its density. As a result, some beans react more to fermentation, showing a darker colour or a more ferment-forward profile.
We believe that, in the end, the complexity of the cup comes precisely from the combination of all these beans, each contributing depth and nuance to the final profile."