This is our first lot directly from Luz Ángela Rojas and her family farm Chorro Alto, however she is the partner of Edinson Argote, and we have been purchasing coffee from their flagship farm Quebraditas for a couple of years now. Due to this, through Mi Café we have been aware of the fantastic lots being produced at Chorro Alto, and then this lot on the table could simply not be ignored. Made up of the rare Orange Geisha variety and undergoing a heavy intervention processing, the flavour profile is one that makes you do a double take, one that has you fighting over who can slurp the last of the cupping bowl. An intensely sweet and floral cup, syrupy sweet and tangy orange Starburst combine with heavy lavender florals. Add in a dose of that purple grape found in many a mouthwatering sweet and you get the idea.
LUZ ÁNGELA ROJAS
Luz Ángela Rojas grew up surrounded by coffee plants and immersed in the nature while helping her father with every task the farm required. Her childhood and adolescence were spent amidst the green landscape of the coffee fields, where she learned from a young age the value of hard work in the fields.
During a time of coffee crisis, her parents, seeing how difficult it was to survive in this world, advised her not to stay there. "Study, do something different," they said. The idea was for her to go to university and follow a different path, away from the challenges of the coffee sector. Moreover, being a woman in this sector is not easy, as the role of women on coffee farms was generally limited to household duties, looking after children, and maintaining the home.
With the decision to attend university, Ángela began her career in healthcare, where she became a head nurse. However, as she advanced in her career and gained professional experience, something was calling her back to her roots: coffee. Once she completed her studies, she began to realise that the coffee plant, just like humans, requires care, attention, and a life cycle to thrive. At that moment, her connection to the farm deepened, and the tranquillity of the countryside captivated her once again.
It was then that Ángela began to reconsider her life. Coffee became part of her dreams, and she saw it not only as a family tradition but as a project that could be reinvented. She decided that her life would not just be about studying and working in the city, but about integrating her knowledge of health and management into the coffee world. She specialised in audit management, discovering that the principles of administration she had learned could be applied to any business, even to her family’s coffee farm.
Although her parents insisted she follow her professional career, Ángela worked for two years as a nurse and then five years as an audit leader. However, the pandemic changed her course. Her administrative job allowed her to work from anywhere, giving her the opportunity to return to the farm. It was there that she rediscovered her purpose. She reconnected with life on the farm and decided to stay and work alongside her parents.
Thus, the new project was born: a family dream that not only seeks to preserve the roots of coffee but to transform, innovate, and make it unique. Ángela is committed to offering differentiated coffee with a wide variety of flavours, but to achieve this, it is essential to begin with quality agronomic work. Her goal is for the coffees to be so exquisite that, without the need for complicated processes, they can captivate the final customers.
The project is entirely family-run, and everyone involved is more motivated than ever to continue learning and taking the coffee from the farm to new horizons. Ángela, with her experience, dedication, and vision, has transformed the family legacy into a model of innovation within coffee farming, never losing sight of the essence of what it means to work the land and the coffee.
PROCESSING
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Harvesting: This is carried out ensuring a minimum of 90% ripe cherry.
- Floating: This ensures the removal of green, overripe, and dry cherries.
- Oxidation: This is done in food-grade plastic drums for 24 hours.
- Pulping: The cherries are pulped dry.
- Oxidation after pulping: For 24 hours in order to remove the mucilage. The coffee is then washed at temperatures of 45°C, creating a thermal shock.
- Fermentation: For 72 hours at temperatures below 25°C with specific yeast, Gesha pulp and mosto from previous fermentation.
- Fermentation completion: After 72 hours, the coffee is washed at temperatures of 5°C to seal the fermentation.
- Drying: After the 72 hours of fermentation, the coffee goes into drying, which is carried out for 76 hours at average temperatures of 38°C.
- Stabilisation: This is done in grainpro-type bags.
(In partnership with Mi Café)
