Colombia
El Mirador
Wilder Lasso

Wilder Lasso, a vet by trade, took over the family business in 2017 and is now producing some of the most interesting coffees in Huila. This cup feels like hops, hibiscus tea and red apple.

Washed process Pink Bourbon

Flavour: hops, hibiscus tea, red apple

Body: Acidity:

Roast: omni (filter + espresso)

A refined washed Pink Bourbon with an unusual hoppy profile.

VERY SPECIAL

This lot by Wilder Lasso has a softer character than our previous VS feature (Aricha Natural Anaerobic). It feels humble and delicate, with a distinctive floral and hoppy flavour profile that we don’t often taste on Pink Bourbons. These traits put this coffee a step higher from our usual single origins, earning a spot in our VS collection.

VERY SPECIAL BACKGROUND TOO

While Wilder grew up in a coffee-producing family, he never really got into it. He just played under the trees on the farm and eventually left to study and work as a veterinarian. He’d ‘see’ coffee “only in the mornings and with panela sugar, always.”

One day, his dad called him to say he was tired and ill, ready to sell the coffee farm, but he wanted to share his feelings with him before doing anything. Nostalgia and memories filled Wilder’s mind, and to his own surprise, he told his dad, “no, don’t sell it. I’ll take charge of the farm. I’ll manage it. I’ll take care of your coffee.”

So, around 2017, he left for San Adolfo, Acevedo, Huila, and invested his savings in regenerating the old estate, called El Diviso. Starting from almost zero, but with a scientific approach, he took all the wisdom he could: Cupping classes, lessons about soil and plant properties, visits to other producing countries…

The quality of the coffee rose very soon after applying his knowledge, becoming a known name in the specialty coffee market produced in San Adolfo. He expanded to other farms like El Mirador, where this coffee was grown, and keeps adding exotic varieties and experimental processes to the family brand—Café Tocorá—in which brothers, mother and dad are involved.

“I don’t add panela sugar to my coffee anymore,” says Wilder. No wonder!

(Head to Café Banna and apply your translator to read about Wilder’s story in his own words, from back in 2018. Really nice.)

PINK IS THE NEW RED/YELLOW

This microlot is 100% Pink Bourbon, a varietal currently under research to determine its true origin. It’s an endemic hybridization of Red and Yellow Bourbon, said to have originated in San Adolfo, right where El Mirador is located.

MASTERFULLY WASHED

This coffee grew at ~1700 m.a.s.l. in volcanic ash soil.

Once the cherries achieved full ripeness, they were floated and hand-sorted to remove any defects. Then, they went through 30 hours of under-water fermentation, then pulped and gently washed to remove parchment. Finally, the cherries (beans) were dried in temperature-controlled conditions until reaching an ideal moisture content, under Wilder’s directions.

Time to brew and have a good time (beware of our new recommended window!). Check out any brewing notes below, add your own or talk to us via email/Instagram about tips and guidance. Enjoy!

All the images and information about this coffee and its producers have been kindly shared by the importer, Cofinet, and edited by us, Sample Coffee (unless linked to or credited otherwise).

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: Wilder Lasso
Country: Colombia
Region: San Adolfo, Huila
Altitude: 1700-1750m above sea level
Variety: Pink Bourbon
Process: washed
Importer: Cofinet
Body
Acidity
Tasting notes: Hops, hibiscus tea, red apple
Roast style: Omni (filter + espresso)

Variety

Pink Bourbon variety

Pink Bourbon is an Ethiopian Heirloom variety (or subvariety)—though, until very recently (~2023), it was thought to be a rare and spontaneous hybrid/mutation of Red and Yellow Bourbon.

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 Huila region of Colombia

This region boasts the perfect combination of high quality soil and geography and is quickly becoming one of the largest coffee producing regions in Colombia. One of the best regarded regions for high quality, fruit driven coffee.

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.