
Origin: Colombia
Farm: Los Nogales
Varietal: Yellow Bourbon
Altitude: 2000 MASL
Certification: Micro-Lot
Process: Mystic Flowers // Special Prep
Cup Score: 89+
Jasmine, Orange Blossom & Citrus Florals
A standout competition coffee from Colombia’s top next generation producer.
This innovative 4x stage Yellow Bourbon Amarillo is a unique process-led experimental micro-lot from Oscar Hernandez at Los Nogales.
“This coffee is part of a new range where coffees are dried with flower petals to enhance floral notes.”
The resulting cup has light citrus sweetness and an incredibly fragrant floral complexity - one of the finest lots globally.
We were lucky enough to have met Oscar in person back in 2023, along with Diego Bermudez, Nestor Lasso and other world renowned producers as part of their Europe tour with Cata Export.
He explained to us his vision and stylistic approach to his coffee production at Los Nogales - with a balance of terroir representation compounded with controlled fermentation and unique post-harvest techniques.
Process:
Firstly cherries are meticulously hand-sorted by selecting only ripe coffee cherries.
The cherries are then pulped to remove the outer skin by being placed in water. This is the initial cleaning step and separation of quality beans; defective or unripe beans float and are removed.
Following the pulping and floating the cherries are then oxidised before fermentation occurs. The cherries are oxidised in Cerexa tanks for a controlled 96 hours (4 days).
Once completed, the cherries undergo a submerged alcoholic fermentation in plastic tanks for 144 hours (6 days) at a temperature of between 19–22°C. A specific strain of Lactobacillus RN2 is used to guide fermentation.
This serves dual purposes, primarily this enhances complexity and highlights acidity, it is also used to help break down the mucilage further.
Following the fermentation it is important to wash the coffee to inoculate the fermentation and remove any debris. This is done by gently washing using minimal water. The goal in this step is to remove residual mucilage and prepare beans for drying (clean beans dry more evenly).
Finally the coffee is taken to be dried. Unlike sun-drying on raised beds, this lot is mechanically dried for a duration of 96 hours in a Guardiola (rotating drum dryer).
This name is still used in Central America to refer to modern rotary dryers. These machines spin beans around in a drum, like an enormous clothes dryer. Most modern machines are gas powered, however some interestingly still use husks from a previous season’s harvest.
The temperature is carefully maintained below 35°C and stirred twice per day.
(It is at this time we believe the hand-picked flower petals from the Los Nogales farm are introduced. Whilst the coffee is drying and impressionable the inclusion of these petals are used to enhance floral notes.)
Producer:
Oscar Hernández is a forward-thinking coffee producer known for his commitment to innovation and quality. With a deep respect for traditional practices and a passion for experimentation, Oscar leads processing methods that highlight the unique potential of his coffees through controlled fermentation and precise post-harvest techniques. His approach combines scientific precision with artisanal care, resulting in exceptionally clean, complex, and expressive cups.
Farm:
Finca Los Nogales, nestled in the mountains of Huila, has been in Oscar’s family for generations. Originally a smallholding focused on conventional coffee production, the farm has transformed under Oscar’s leadership into a hub of experimental processing and specialty coffee excellence internationally recognised for their creativity.