Colombia — Jairo Arcila Finca Santa Mónica Pink Bourbon (Rose Process — Anaerobic White Honey)

Tastes Like — 🌹 Rose • 🍊 Grapefruit • 🍯 Honey • 🥭 Mango

DETAILS

Producer: Jairo Arcila

Farm: Finca Santa Mónica

Region: Quindío, Colombia

Varietal: Pink Bourbon

Process: Anaerobic Inoculated — White Honey

Altitude: 1,500 MASL

Harvest: September

INTRO

This Pink Bourbon from Jairo Arcila's Finca Santa Mónica is one of the most delicate and considered co-fermented coffees to come out of Colombia — a 72-hour anaerobic fermentation with dried rose petals, followed by a white honey drying process, producing a cup of rare floral precision. In the cup: rose, grapefruit, honey, and mango — perfumed, tea-like, and extraordinarily composed.

THE PRODUCER

Jairo Arcila is a third-generation coffee grower from Quindío, Colombia, whose relationship with coffee spans over four decades. He began his career as Mill Manager for Colombia's second-largest exporter — a role he held until retiring in 2019 — whilst simultaneously building his own farming operation, having purchased his first farm, Finca La Esmeralda, in 1987. Over the years, careful planning and dedication enabled him to expand across six farms in total: La Esmeralda, Villarazo, Mazatlán, Santa Mónica, Maracay, and Buenos Aires.

Jairo is the father of Carlos and Felipe Arcila, co-founders of Cofinet, whose expertise in picking, sorting, and processing has helped Jairo embrace both exotic varietals — Pink Bourbon, Java, Papayo, and Gesha — and increasingly precise fermentation techniques. His farms are a meaningful part of the local community, providing employment during harvest season, and reflect a broader vision of coffee as both livelihood and legacy.

THE PROCESS

The Rose Process at Finca Santa Mónica involves:

🍒 Hand-picking — Ripe Pink Bourbon cherries selected at peak maturity 🌹 Anaerobic rose petal fermentation — Whole cherries fermented for 72 hours in an anaerobic environment with dried rose petals, allowing floral esters to penetrate the permeable structure of the seed 🔧 De-pulping — Skin removed following the anaerobic fermentation stage ☀️ White honey raised-bed drying — Depulped seeds dried on raised beds with a minimal amount of mucilage remaining, preserving sweetness whilst allowing a slow, clean drying process

The defining step is the 72-hour anaerobic fermentation with dried rose petals — by sealing the cherries with the petals in an oxygen-free environment, the floral esters are absorbed directly into the seed structure, producing a lasting and remarkably clean perfumed character that carries through roasting and into the cup. The white honey finish keeps the profile light, bright, and focused rather than heavy or jammy.

THE CUP

Subtle, composed, and memorably floral — Jairo Arcila's Rose Process Pink Bourbon is a coffee that demonstrates the full potential of co-fermentation when applied with restraint and intention. The rose character is genuine and integrated rather than artificial, supported by the brightness of grapefruit, the warmth of honey, and a soft, lingering mango sweetness that carries long after the final sip.

Flavour Notes

🌹 Rose 🍊 Grapefruit 🍯 Honey 🥭 Mango