Colombia
Marco Fidel Rodriguez
"X Grade" Pink Bourbon

This is one of our team’s favourite coffees. Marco’s very special lot has some juicy peach and strawberry acidity, with a delicate black tea finish.

Washed process Pink bourbon

Flavour: peach, strawberry, black tea

Body: Acidity:

Roast: omni (filter + espresso)

Marco Fidel Rodriguez (lovingly dubbed MFR by our Sample bar crew) has been in our shelves numerous times, first back in 2015. But the lot we’re sharing this month? Well, we’ve been looking forward to it for a while.

VERY SPECIAL

This lot is a washed process Pink Bourbon varietal, classified X-grade by importers Caravela Coffee. When we last shared Marco’s X-grade Pink Bourbon in 2020 it was a natural process, and back then he was hinting at preparing a washed process next.

Well, we’re thrilled to say: it’s here at last.

MARCO, AND PINK BOURBON

Marco first planted Pink Bourbon coffee trees seven years ago, and planted a second lot of this varietal around two years ago. It’s now 20% of his crop, with the remainder being Caturra.

Growing Pink Bourbon brings its own challenges, though: more attention has to be paid during cherry picking to make sure they are at the right level of ripeness, because the varietal can over-ripen very quickly and doesn’t last as long on the tree. Pink Bourbon trees are more resilient to coffee leaf rust, but also produce fewer cherries than other varietals.

WHAT IS X-GRADE?

Two of Marco Fidel Rodriguez’s lots have already made it to the X-grade category. This denomination or program is a relatively new initiative by coffee importer Caravela, currently selling mostly within their US customer base.

One of the motivators behind X-grade was to open new opportunities for buyers to purchase exotic varietals and processing alternatives that Caravela’s producers are experimenting with or implementing at their farms. Another drive was to set a framework within the exotic coffee market, as the global demand grows and a lot of producers decide to run experiments on a farm level.

With the X-grade program, “we commit to purchasing exotics at better prices only IF we are buying other qualities (RTB-AA) from the producers and IF the coffee is excellent quality” says Caravela.

“The idea is to continue buying different quality tiers from producers, from 83 to 90+, but it is VERY important to note that we are not just supporting a trend but more than anything assuring producers can sell as much as possible from what they have. Yes, these are exotic beauties.

We have been working with the PECA team to understand the processes and varieties to support producers and help them minimize risk while processing this type of coffees. Still, again we do not encourage producers to experiment with the whole farm or only focus on those type of coffees unless they already have the experience and the customers to sell the lots too.”

BUT WAIT…

Here’s Reuben, Marco Fidel and his family back in 2015…

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A post shared by Sample Coffee (@samplecoffee)

Now you know a bit more about the background it’s time to enjoy this awesome coffee! If you don’t know where to start, you can use Reuben’s brewing recipe (coming soon, see below).

You can also try your favourite method and play around with some settings to get the best of it. Don’t forget to tell us how it went, adding your recipe here, via email or on Instagram at @samplecoffee.

We look forward to hearing about your experience with this VS coffee!

Certifications: UTZ, Rainforest Alliance, Fairtrade, PECA

All the images and information about this coffee and producers have been kindly shared by its importer, Caravela Coffee, 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: Marco Fidel Rodriguez
Country: Colombia
Region: Filo De Chillurco, Huila
Altitude: 1800m above sea level
Variety: Pink bourbon
Process: washed
Importer: Caravela
Body: Medium
Acidity: Medium
Tasting notes: Peach, strawberry, black tea
Roast style: Omni (filter + espresso)

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.