Colombia - Las Flores Red Bourbon

TASTING NOTES

Cherry, strawberry syrup, roses

WHY WE LOVE IT

An elegant and captivating coffee that truly lives up to the name of its farm: floral, sweet, and delicate.

The first impression is of ripe cherry, followed by an intense, enveloping sweetness reminiscent of strawberry syrup. Fresh rose notes add depth, while a gentle floral finish lingers on the palate, lifted by a soft, balanced acidity that keeps the cup alive.

There’s something enchanting about its subtlety, a coffee that doesn’t seek to impress through power, but through harmony and quiet grace.

STORY

The story of Finca Las Flores began in 1990, when Edilberto Vergara and Nubia Ayure decided to build their home between the municipalities of Pitalito and Acevedo, in southern Huila. At the time, only three of their sixteen hectares were dedicated to coffee, but through constant effort and the yearly planting of new lots, the farm soon became a regional benchmark for coffee production. By 1996, Las Flores was fully covered in coffee trees and recognized for its excellent daily management and the dedication of its founders.

With the arrival of the second generation — Johan and Carlos Vergara Ayure — the farm entered a new phase. Both trained in physical and sensory analysis, the brothers brought a renewed vision focused on quality, sustainability, and varietal research. In 2000, their mother, Nubia Ayure, decided to enter the Cup of Excellence Colombia, earning 32nd place nationally — a milestone that marked the beginning of a profound transformation: crop renovation, the creation of a natural reserve, and the study of fermentation processes that would redefine the profile of their coffees.

After Nubia’s passing, the family doubled down on their commitment to quality and innovation. Johan, in particular, turned the farm into a true sensory experimentation lab. His persistence led him to win first place in the 2019 Master of Café competition organized by Amativo, with a Pink Bourbon lot that brought the name Las Flores onto the international stage.

We personally traveled to Acevedo to meet Johan and his family, walk through the farm, and experience every detail of their work firsthand. Rarely have we encountered a project with such rigor and authenticity: the Vergara family lives coffee with a blend of science and emotion that’s hard to put into words.

We can attest that everything said about Las Flores is true — the dedication, the precision of their processes, the human warmth, and the deep respect for the land are evident in every conversation and every cup.

Today, Finca Las Flores represents the best of Huila: a farm that honors its family roots while driving the future of Colombian coffee. It is a place where knowledge passes from one generation to the next, and where each harvest becomes an honest expression of its environment and the people who make it possible.

VARIETY AND PROCESS

Red Bourbon is one of the most classic and cherished varieties in Latin America. A direct descendant of the old Typica and Bourbon lines, it stands out for its natural sweetness, floral profile, and silky texture in the cup. At Finca Las Flores, this variety finds a perfect balance of altitude, temperature, and fermentation control — resulting in a coffee that is delicate in character yet remarkably expressive aromatically.

After a careful hand selection of ripe cherries, the coffee undergoes a meticulously managed natural process. First, the cherries ferment for 36 hours in sealed bags, still in cherry, and are then depulped to continue another 36 hours submerged in their own mucilage, which has been previously inoculated with a lot from a past harvest and enriched with panela for a month — creating a unique fermentation ecosystem.

Once fermentation is complete, the coffee is rinsed twice, subjected to a thermal shock with water at 60 °C, and slowly dried in dehumidifiers for about eight days, until it reaches its optimal moisture level.

The result is a clean, juicy, and deeply aromatic coffee, where precise processing highlights the full potential of the Red Bourbon.

RECIPE

For filter:

20 g of ground coffee

340 g of water

Total time: 3' - 3'30"

Ratio - 1:17

We pre-infuse 60g of water for 30" to 45".

First pouring up to 140 g. near the bed and in spirals

Second pour up to 240 g (when the water from the first is almost filtered, but the bed hasn't dried out). Use up-and-down movements to heighten the pour and generate agitation while swirling again.

Third pour up to 340g. Poured near the bed, without height, in a spiral.

Variables to take into account:

METHOD: Orea V4

MILL: EK43

WATER: 70 ppm