Colombia — Emiliano Lame Gesha

Tastes Like — 🌼 Elderflower • 🍋 Matcha Lemonade • 🍊 Ruby Grapefruit

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DETAILS

• Producer: Emiliano Lame
• Farm: Finca El Holguín
• Region: La Esperanza, La Plata, Huila, Colombia
• Varietal: Gesha
• Process: Washed (36-hour cherry hold, 40-hour underwater fermentation)
• Altitude: 1880 masl
• Size: 125g

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INTRO — Copa de Oro Second Place Winner

Emiliano Lame's Gesha secured second place in the Copa de Oro (Cup of Gold) competition—testament to both exceptional terroir at 1,880 metres and meticulous processing that included a 36-hour held-in-cherry step followed by 40 hours of underwater fermentation. The cup delivers exactly what you'd expect from competition-calibre Gesha: lively candied lemon peel alongside sweet matcha flavours that combine like matcha lemonade, loud florals (elderflower, lilac, jasmine) emerging as it cools, finishing with ruby red grapefruit and white tea.

Finca El Holguín in La Esperanza dedicates just four hectares to specialty coffee production, with the remainder planted to Caturra, Colombia variety, beans, and tomatoes sold locally. This diversified approach provides economic stability whilst allowing Emiliano to focus quality efforts on the specialty coffee acreage—producing competition-winning lots like this one.

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THE PRODUCER — Emiliano Lame & Finca El Holguín

Emiliano Lame manages Finca El Holguín at 1,880 metres above sea level in La Esperanza, La Plata, Huila. The farm's modest four-hectare specialty coffee allocation demonstrates that exceptional quality doesn't require massive scale—it requires expertise, attention to detail, and willingness to invest in varieties and processing that command premium prices.

Growing Gesha alongside more traditional varieties like Caturra and Colombia shows strategic thinking. Gesha provides the competition-winning, premium lots that generate headlines and top prices. Caturra and Colombia offer more reliable yields and easier cultivation, providing baseline income whilst the Gesha trees mature and produce their exceptional but lower-volume harvests.

The diversification beyond coffee—beans and tomatoes sold locally—represents practical risk management. Coffee prices fluctuate, harvests vary, and putting all agricultural effort into one crop creates vulnerability. By maintaining multiple revenue streams, Emiliano ensures farm stability regardless of coffee market conditions.

This second-place Copa de Oro finish validates Emiliano's approach. Competition success brings recognition, opens premium market access, and justifies the investment required to grow varieties like Gesha at this quality level. It also demonstrates that small-scale producers with limited specialty coffee acreage can compete with larger operations when they focus on excellence.

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THE PROCESS — Extended Fermentation with Underwater Stage

Emiliano's processing protocol for this competition lot involved multiple fermentation stages, each carefully timed and controlled:

• 🍒 Selective Harvesting — Only peak-ripeness Gesha cherries picked
• 🌊 Flotation & Sorting — Cherries floated and hand-sorted for quality
• 💧 36-Hour Underwater Cherry Hold — Whole cherries submerged for extended pre-fermentation
• ⚙️ Depulping & Washing — Cherries fully depulped and washed after cherry hold
• 🔬 40-Hour Underwater Fermentation — Parchment ferments underwater for additional development
• 💧 Double Rinsing — Coffee rinsed twice after fermentation
• 🏠 Greenhouse Raised Bed Drying — Slow, even drying for 12–15 days

The 36-hour underwater cherry hold is the first critical stage. Submerging whole cherries creates anaerobic conditions that begin fermentation whilst the seed remains protected inside the fruit. This develops precursor compounds that will influence final flavour whilst preventing the aggressive fermentation that can create defects.

After depulping and washing, the 40-hour underwater fermentation of parchment creates another anaerobic stage. This extended underwater fermentation develops the bright, lively character evident in the cup—those candied lemon notes and vibrant acidity that make this coffee sing.

The double rinsing ensures complete mucilage removal and stops fermentation at precisely the right moment. The greenhouse raised bed drying provides controlled conditions—protection from weather fluctuations whilst allowing the slow, even moisture removal over 12–15 days that preserves the delicate aromatics developed during processing.

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THE VARIETY — Gesha at Competition Level

Gesha remains the gold standard for competition coffees—the variety that consistently scores highest and commands premium prices when cultivated and processed at this level. Emiliano's second-place Copa de Oro finish demonstrates what well-grown Gesha can achieve when given meticulous processing attention.

At 1,880 metres in La Esperanza, the elevation provides ideal conditions for Gesha cultivation. The cool temperatures slow cherry maturation, allowing complex sugars and acids to develop. The significant diurnal temperature variation—warm days, cool nights—creates stress that concentrates flavours whilst the altitude ensures the pronounced florals and delicate fruit characteristics that define exceptional Gesha.

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THE CUP — Matcha Lemonade Transitioning to Loud Florals

This cup evolves beautifully as it cools, revealing layers of complexity that justify its competition success. Initially, there's lively candied lemon peel alongside sweet matcha flavour—combining into something genuinely reminiscent of matcha lemonade. As temperature drops, loud florals emerge: elderflower, lilac, jasmine. The finish settles into ruby red grapefruit and white tea elegance.

Flavour Notes

• 🌼 Elderflower — pronounced floral notes emerging as the coffee cools
• 🍋 Matcha Lemonade — the unique combination of sweet matcha and candied lemon peel
• 🍊 Ruby Grapefruit — ruby red grapefruit character in the finish
• 🌸 Lilac & Jasmine — additional loud florals adding aromatic complexity
• 🍵 White Tea — refined, tea-like finish on the last sips

The matcha lemonade descriptor is genuinely accurate—there's sweet, slightly vegetal matcha character alongside bright, candied lemon. It's an unusual combination that works beautifully, creating something familiar yet unique. As the cup cools, the florals become dominant—elderflower, lilac, jasmine all "popping off" as the description notes. These aren't subtle florals; they're loud and pronounced, exactly what exceptional Gesha delivers.

The finish is where everything comes together: ruby red grapefruit provides tart, complex citrus whilst white tea adds refined, elegant closure. It's a finish that invites you to take another sip immediately.

The body is delicate but present, that silky Gesha mouthfeel that's refined without being thin. The acidity is lively and vibrant—structured like lemonade, bright without being sharp. The overall impression is of a meticulously crafted competition coffee that delivers complexity without confusion, brightness without harshness, florals without perfume.

Emiliano Lame's second-place Copa de Oro Gesha demonstrates what small-scale, quality-focused production can achieve. Four hectares of specialty coffee, exceptional terroir, meticulous processing, and genuine expertise combine to produce coffee that competes with Colombia's finest.

What is the roast recency?

We recommend brewing with beans that are at least two weeks off roast. All beans are roasted to peak flavour at around 6-12 weeks. We have the option to either purchase standard beans (at least 2 weeks but no longer than 6 weeks off roast), or rested beans (at least 7 weeks off roast, no longer than 12 - should we have any left in stock!). For peak flavour, if you are looking to use immediately, we recommend purchasing the rested beans. If you are adding to your rotation of beans, we recommend purchasing the standard and allowing the beans to naturally rest and mature whilst you rotate through other beans.