COLOMBIA
ARGCAFEE

Tastes Like: dark chocolate, butterscotch & root beer

Medium Roast: 12oz / 340g BAG

Region: Cauca
Farm: Various Smallholder
Varietal: Castillo + Colombia
Altitude: 1400 -2000 m.a.s.l
Processing: Washed

ABOUT ARGCAFEE

ARGCAFEE (Association de Transformadores y Comercializadores de Cafe Especiales de Argelia Cauca) is an association that started in 2014 with only 17 member producers. As Argelia is relatively remote, it had been hard for the small farmers in the area to reach the marketplace and have leverage in their selling. Through their work, however, the association grew to over 230 members, about 150 of whom are presently active in farming and delivering lots to the association.

ARCAFEE partnered up with Banexport in 2017, and the group now has a warehouse and a cupping lab. The lab is staffed full-time by five professionals, all of whom are young members of multigenerational coffee families who have decided to stay in the family business.

WATCH OUR FRIEND JOEY PLAY AROUND WITH THE 4:6 METHOD. LEARN MORE ABOUT THE 4:6 METHOD HERE.

ABOUT COLOMBIAN COFFEE

Coffee came to Colombia in the late 1700s. The first plantings were in the north of the country. Coffee plants spread throughout the 19th century, with a smaller-than-average farm size more commonly found in other Latin American countries. Colombia still produces Arabica coffee exclusively. Our offerings come from the southwestern departments of Cauca and Huila, which have higher-altitude farms. This shines through in the more complex flavour and heightened chocolatey profiles.

Commercial production and export of coffee started in the first decade of the 1800s but remained somewhat limited until the 20th century. The establishment of the Federación Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia was a tremendous boost to the national coffee industry. Colombia quickly established itself as a significant coffee-growing region, vying with Brazil for the top global producer. The Federación Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia is a prominent NGO providing various services and support to coffee producers. Regardless of the size of their landholdings or production volume, the FNC helps out.

The FNC also guarantees a purchase price for any coffee grown in Colombia, providing farmers with financial security. This is designed to eliminate some market pressures and provide reliable income to the coffee sector. The scientific arm of the organization, Cenicafé, is devoted to research, development, dissemination, and support throughout the country. They provide A wide-ranging extension service employing more than 1,500 field workers. They are deployed to consult farmers on soil management, processing techniques, variety selection, disease prevention and treatment, and other agricultural aspects of coffee farming. A tax is imposed on all coffee exports to fund this work and the FNC's other provisions and protections.

Since our earliest days, our importer has had boots on the ground and spoons in the cup there. We fall in love repeatedly with the regional variations, the varieties, the landscape, and the producers themselves. Our work-sourcing strong, versatile workhorse coffees will keep you coming back for more.