Colombia — Fernando Bocanegra El Oasis Gesha (60hr Washed)

Tastes Like — 🌸 Jasmine • 🍑 White Peach • 🍯 Honey • 🍇 Shine Muscat

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DETAILS

• Producer: Fernando Bocanegra
• Farm: El Oasis
• Region: Ortega, Tolima, Colombia
• Varietal: Gesha
• Process: Washed (60hr fermentation)
• Altitude: 
• Size: 125g

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INTRO

Fernando Bocanegra is one of the more unusual characters in Colombian specialty coffee. A former professional chef with a background in quality control at one of Bogotá's most respected restaurants, he brought a chef's sensibility to farming when he purchased a plot in Ortega, Tolima — a region only recently reclaimed for agriculture after decades of conflict.

The result is El Oasis, a farm planted exclusively with Gesha at unusually wide spacing to maximise sun exposure, producing a lot of extraordinary delicacy: jasmine florality, white peach sweetness, layered honey richness, and the distinctive shine muscat grape note that marks truly exceptional Gesha from the right terroir.

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THE PRODUCER

Fernando's culinary background gives him a rare perspective on flavour development — he has tasted his own coffee in ways most Colombian producers never have, and applies that sensibility to every decision on the farm and in the processing. His decision to plant only Gesha, at deliberately wide intervals, reflects a philosophy that prioritises quality over volume and maximises each tree's access to light and airflow.

El Oasis sits on land in Ortega, Tolima, that was once too dangerous for agricultural development. Fernando was among the first producers to move into the region as conditions stabilised, recognising the potential of Tolima's high-altitude volcanic soils for premium specialty production. The farm reaches approximately 2,000 metres above sea level — high enough for the slow cherry maturation that builds complexity in the cup.

Fernando's connection between his culinary career and his farming practice is rare in Colombian coffee. He understands, better than most, that what happens after harvest shapes the cup as profoundly as what happens in the field.

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THE PROCESS

The 60hr Washed process at El Oasis involves:

• 🍒 Selective Harvest — Only ripe, uniform cherries are hand-picked; Fernando's culinary background informs a strict selection standard
• ✅ Flotation Sorting — Cherries float-sorted to remove defects and ensure only dense, high-quality fruit enters processing
• 🔧 Depulping — Outer skin removed to expose mucilage-coated parchment
• 🧪 Extended Fermentation — Parchment ferments for 60 hours, allowing a full, controlled breakdown of mucilage and the development of the complex aromatic compounds that define the cup
• 💧 Washing — Thoroughly rinsed to remove fermentation residues and preserve clarity
• ☀️ Raised Bed Drying — Dried on elevated beds in Tolima's mountain air until optimal moisture content is reached

The extended 60-hour fermentation is central to what separates this lot: it draws out the Gesha's floral and stone-fruit character whilst building the honeyed sweetness and the luminous shine muscat note that makes the cup so distinctive.

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THE CUP

El Oasis is Gesha as it should be: pure, perfumed, and effortlessly elegant. Jasmine florality opens the cup and carries through to the finish, framed by white peach sweetness and a gentle honey richness. The shine muscat note — that unmistakable luminous grape character — arrives mid-cup and lingers beautifully. Precision-processed and immaculately clean.

Flavour Notes

• 🌸 Jasmine
• 🍑 White Peach
• 🍯 Honey
• 🍇 Shine Muscat

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