Colombia
Dario Martinez

Washed process Caturra

Flavour: nashi pear, currants, treacle

Body: Acidity:

We’re back in Tolima with this delivery, a region that’s proving to be one of our favourites in Colombia this past year. Dario’s farm, Los Sauces is located in a small village near Rio Blanco.

He has been running the farm for around seven years, and is currently growing three varietals on the 7 hectare farm: the Caturra that we’re sharing in this delivery, as well as Castillo and Gesha.

Dario Martinez at Los Sauces Dario Martinez at the farm Photo: Caravela Coffee

Dario has been working with Caravela Coffee, our export partner in Colombia, for around two years and he says the move to specialty coffee is making a big difference.

By focusing on higher quality, he’s receiving premiums over commodity coffee prices that have helped provide better for his family, and improve his farm to produce even better quality coffee. He’s also able to focus on running the farm more sustainably.

Across the whole farm, he’s now producing mostly AA grade (the second-highest in Colombia’s grading system) and 20% the highest grade: AAA.

Dario Martinez Photo: Caravela Coffee

On Los Sauces he also grows sugar cane, plantain and corn to diversify his income and ensure he’s producing crops throughout the year and not just the main coffee harvest.

Learn everything about this coffee:

Ethical, traceable sourcing

This page has all the sourcing information (variety, process, region, story, importer, and more) that our importers share with us, and give us permission to use.

The transparency helps us talk confidently about the quality and background of our product, and it helps you know exactly what you’re buying.

Learn more:
Coffee page transparency legend
Our coffee philosophy
Our business approach

Fresh harvest coffee

We only source and roast coffee from each country’s latest harvest season (so the green coffee is never older than 1 year from the time of picking, processing and packing). This ensures the sensory qualities are always at their peak and unaffected by excessive ageing.

Roasted for espresso and filter (best enjoyed black)

Roast style: omni. Omni roasts are designed to brew and taste great both as espresso and filter. Our omni single origins generally sit on Agtron values in the ~70-60 value range. So, technically, they are somewhere in the lighter side of the medium spectrum.

Designed for espresso and filter brewing. Best enjoyed black.

Learn more:
Our Loring Kestrel S35 roaster
Our roasting style and approach

Best brewed within days 15-49 post-roast

The ‘fresh is best’ saying doesn’t apply to coffee (contrary to popular belief). Waiting before opening and brewing your bag of whole coffee beans helps develop peak flavour and acidity.

But heads up: if you buy pre-ground coffee, brew it as soon as possible.

Learn more:
Our recommended brewing window

Try our custom brewing recipes

Our recipes and ratios are tailored to our coffee sourcing and roasting styles, bringing the best flavour and feel out of each coffee.

For pour over, immersion, and other filter brewing styles, check our brew guides.
For our espresso single origins, we recommend a coffee:yield ratio of 1:3:

Dose: 20g ground coffee
Yield: 60g espresso
Total brew time: ~24-28 seconds

This is just a starting point! We encourage you to experiment, taste, and adjust to find the recipe that you enjoy the most.

Learn more:
Our espresso brew guide (single origin)
Brewing ratio calculator

Packaging and sustainability

Bags: ABA-certified home compostable (AS 5810-2010)
Labels: recyclable
Valves (only on +250g bags): general waste
Box and tape (online orders): recyclable

Learn more:
Our packaging

Producer: Dario Martinez
Country: Colombia
Region: Planadas, Tolima
Altitude: 1760m above sea level
Variety: Caturra
Process: washed
Importer: Caravela
Body: Medium
Acidity: Medium
Tasting notes: Nashi pear, currants, treacle
Roast style: Omni (filter + espresso)

Variety

Caturra variety

Caturra is a natural mutation of Bourbon that was originally discovered in Brazil in 1937, considered to be the first naturally occurring mutation ever discovered.

The location

Coffee from Colombia

Colombia is one of the largest coffee producers in the world and benefits greatly from having one of the most unique and complex set of micro-climates of all coffee producing nations.

The Tolima region of Colombia

The word ‘Tolima’ comes from the local indigenous language and means a “river of snow or cloud”.

Farm processes

Washed process

Machines are used to remove the flesh from the coffee cherry before being fermented in water, washed again, and finally sun dried. This process tends to result in more distinct, cleaner flavours.