Colombia
Finca La Providencia

Producer Julio Cesar Soscue’s knowledge and passion for coffee has been passed to him via generations of family members. His coffee reminds us of wine gum, orange rind, and honey.

Washed process Castillo, Catuai, Caturra, V.Colombia

Flavour: wine gum, orange rind, honey

Body: Acidity:

Roast: omni (filter + espresso)

In Ibague, the capital of the department of Tolima, we take the road towards the mountain where, depending on the climate, you can watch the snowcapped mountain of Tolima. The road leads us to the area of a municipality called China Alta, and here, is where we meet Julio Cesar Soscue, his wife Rocio Sanchez and his daughter Camila and son Daniel.

Their farm, La Providencia, is 5 hectares in size with 4 hectares in coffee. It is also full of other minor crops such as yuca, plantain, corn, bananas, oranges and a small garden with carrot, onion, and coriander. The passion and knowledge of Julio for coffee has been passed to him through generations of family members. He started around 2005 producing coffee but at first in the traditional way and selling it in the local commerce.

It was around 2012 when he started producing high quality coffee and since the beginning with the accompaniment of Pergamino’s Allied Producer Program. This has been paramount for him to learn more about process and farm management. Specialty coffee has brought him better earnings with which he has been able to provide to his family and seeing his kids grow. Nowadays, Julio is focused on renewing some of the parcels where the coffees are getting old and improving the infrastructure of his drying area.

The process of this coffee starts with a selective picking of the ripe coffee cherries which are left to ferment in for 24 hours before being pulped. Afterwards, the beans are fermented in dry from 30 to 35 hours, although this can vary depending on the variety and what he wants to accomplish. Then, the beans are washed and taken to the parabolic covered patios where a thin layer is formed and dried for 15 to 25 days depending on the climatic conditions.

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

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Our packaging

Producer: Julio Cesar Soscue
Farm/Coop: La Providencia
Country: Colombia
Region: Tolima
Altitude: 1710m above sea level
Varieties: Castillo, Catuai, Caturra, and V.Colombia
Process: washed
Harvested: July 2023
Importer: Caravela
Body
Acidity
Tasting notes: Wine gum, orange rind, honey
Roast style: Omni (filter + espresso)

Varieties

Castillo variety

Castillo is named after the researcher Jamie Castillo, who helped develop the varietal in 2005 by Cenicafe, Colombia’s coffee research centre

Catuai variety

Created by the Instituto Agronomico do Campinas in Brasil, Catuai is a hybrid varietal between Caturra and Mundo Novo.

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.

V.Colombia variety

Also known as “Variedad Colombia”, this varietal was developed by Colombian researchers at Cenicafe by crossing Caturra and Timor Hybrid

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.