Shoebox Coffee Roasters - Marlon Bolaños Aji Washed | Colombia

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Colombia — Marlon Bolaños The Three Coffee Farmers Aji (Washed)

Tastes Like — 🥝 Golden Kiwi • 🌿 Spearmint • 🌸 Orange Blossom

DETAILS

• Producer: Marlon Bolaños (The Three Coffee Farmers)
• Region: Huila, Colombia
• Varietal: Aji
• Process: Washed

INTRO

From Marlon Bolaños's project The Three Coffee Farmers in Huila — a washed Aji of extraordinary botanical clarity, processed with deliberate minimalism to let the variety speak entirely for itself. In the cup: golden kiwi and bright apple acidity when hot, cooling beautifully into a herbal and floral fusion of spearmint and orange blossom.

THE PRODUCER

Marlon Bolaños grew up in a coffee farming family in Huila but didn't develop a serious interest in coffee until the age of 17, when he enrolled in a barista education course at SENA — learning brewing, green coffee grading, and sensory analysis. Returning to the farm transformed, he began planting differentiated varietals including Pink Bourbon, Gesha, Chiroso, and Aji, while experimenting with new fermentation techniques with each successive harvest.

Today the farm is owned and operated by Marlon and his two brothers, Pedro and Hemerson. Marlon leads quality control, fermentation protocols, and sampling — a role that suits a producer who has also competed and won in multiple barista and brewing competitions. His family's spring water, notable for its natural trace mineral composition, has become something of a legend among peers after earning the nickname "Champion's Water" through competition use.

Aji is a newer variety being cultivated primarily in Huila — colloquially referred to as "Bourbon Aji" though genetic testing confirms no relation to Bourbon. It is 100% Ethiopian Landrace, belonging to the Core Ethiopia group of varieties alongside Chiroso, Sidra, Gesha, and Pink Bourbon, and is increasingly celebrated for its vibrant botanical and herbal character at altitude.

THE PROCESS

The Washed process for this Aji lot involves:

🍒 Hand-picking — Cherries selectively harvested at peak ripeness 🔧 Depulping — Outer skin removed before fermentation 💧 Flotation — Floated to remove defects 🧪 Open-tank fermentation — Fermented in open tanks for just 12 hours — a deliberately minimal intervention designed to preserve the Aji's intrinsic botanical and floral character ☀️ Drying — Dried for 10–15 days to optimal moisture content

The 12-hour open-tank fermentation is the defining step — Marlon's intention here was an extremely clean processing profile with the lightest possible intervention, allowing the Aji's inherent florality and herbality to emerge with maximum clarity and minimal fermentation influence.

THE CUP

A pristine and botanically vivid washed Aji from one of Huila's most talented young producers — golden kiwi brightness and granny smith apple acidity up front, cooling into an immaculate herbal and floral fusion of spearmint and orange blossom. Exceptional clarity from first sip to last.

Flavour Notes

🥝 Golden Kiwi 🌿 Spearmint 🌸 Orange Blossom