Jhoan Vergara ~ Chiroso Innovative Washed | Huila, Colombia
US$24.00
In stock
PRE-RELEASE!
RESTED COFFEE is AVAILABLE – ROASTED JAN 7th, 2025
We’ll officially launch and begin selling new roasts on Friday Jan 31st.
Producer: Jhoan Vergara
Where: Huila, Colombia
Variety: Chiroso
Processing: Multi-stage Washed with an anaerobic step in cherry
Importer: Shared Source
Harvest: Late 2024
Tasting notes: Saison, Rosewater, Jasmine, Loquat, Baking Spices
Chiroso variety picked and processed by Jhoan Vergara on his farm in Huila, Colombia. Fermented in a three stage process with his own starter culture & gently mechanically dried. Bombastic florals and sweet tropical fruits dominate this cup.
24 hours anaerobic fermentation (in cherry) + 48 hours oxidation -> de-pulp + 12 hours oxidation
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Close to a decade ago in a SENA lab in Pitalito, Michael Jackson poster on the wall, a large round table, late into the evening, there were a couple teenagers excitedly tasting through experimental lots they commandeered from their respective family farms. I was there too but I may as well have been a fly on the wall witnessing the start of what was to be a rise of the nerds over the next decade (I mean that in the most endearing way possible). Jhoan Vergara was among these young folks. Along with the Lassos of El Diviso farm- both families have had a highly supportive relationship over the years. They’ve shared processing knowledge, tips and tricks, and even share drying and processing infrastructure when both their farms find themselves at capacity.
Jhoan’s parents migrated from Cundinamarca to Huila in the early 90s- they came after an uncle had found success in Huila. Though Huila was a new part of the country for the family, coffee farming was not- Jhoan’s grandparents were coffee producers in the north. The family started with about 15 hectares in total, but they started with just 2 ha in coffee- and grew from there to plant up to 90,000 trees- almost entirely caturra. For the first 15 years or so, the family focused on local markets, and commodity coffees- the specialty coffee industry was still very nascent. In the early 00s, Jhoan’s mother sent a coffee into the Cup of Excellence competition, and though she didn’t win, the family began to focus more on quality, and Jhoan began to learn more about coffee.
At just 15 years old, Jhoan left high school in Pitalito and began to focus on the farm, and on coffee. He began to get curious about coffee- specifically, where it ended up, and who was buying it- and he ended up at the SENA- the Servicio Nacional de Aprendizaje, or National Training Service- where many coffee producers learn agronomy, cupping, roasting, and basic brewing skills. At the SENA, Jhoan met Nestor Lasso- which will end up being a crucial friendship and partnership.
