Colombia — Liliana Ramírez Chiroso

Tastes Like — 🍋 Key Lime • 🍊 Pink Grapefruit • 🌿 Juniper

DETAILS

• Producer: Liliana Ramírez
• Farm: Finca El Yolombo
• Region: Anzá, Antioquia, Colombia
• Varietal: Chiroso
• Process: Washed (3 Cochadas method)
• Altitude: 1850 masl
• Size: 227g / 8oz

INTRO — Small-Scale Production with Thoughtful Precision

Chiroso is one of Colombia's most prized varieties—a natural mutation discovered in the Urrao region that produces exceptional cup quality when grown at high altitude and handled with care. Liliana Ramírez farms just 1,000 coffee trees at Finca El Yolombo, making her a truly small-scale producer. What she lacks in volume, she more than makes up for in precision and attention to detail.

This lot showcases Chiroso's characteristic citrus brightness and floral complexity whilst highlighting a traditional processing method called "3 Cochadas" that's common amongst very small farms in Antioquia. The result is a coffee that's expressive and clean, with well-defined fruit character that balances sweet and tart in perfect harmony.

THE PRODUCER — Liliana Ramírez & Finca El Yolombo

At 1,850 metres above sea level in Anzá, Antioquia, Liliana Ramírez tends to approximately 1,000 Chiroso trees on her small farm, Finca El Yolombo. The scale of her operation places her amongst Colombia's smallest specialty coffee producers, yet her coffee consistently demonstrates the quality that comes from careful, hands-on farming.

Working at this scale allows Liliana to maintain exceptional quality control throughout the production process. She knows each tree, can monitor ripening closely, and harvest with precision that would be impossible on larger estates. This intimate relationship with her farm translates directly into cup quality—every cherry is selected at peak ripeness, and nothing escapes her attention.

Her partnership with Desarolladores, the exporter who discovered her farm and supports her with best practices, has been crucial in bringing her exceptional Chiroso to the international market. This collaboration ensures that small-scale producers like Liliana can compete alongside larger estates whilst maintaining the traditional methods that make their coffee special.

THE PROCESS — Traditional 3 Cochadas Method

Liliana processes her coffee using "3 Cochadas," a traditional washed method common amongst very small farms in Antioquia. The technique is both practical—allowing micro-producers to build up enough volume for a single lot—and flavour-enhancing, creating complexity through staggered fermentation.

• 🍒 Day 1: First Harvest — Ripe cherries are picked, floated to remove defects, and depulped
• 🍒 Day 2: Second Harvest — Another round of cherries is picked, floated, and depulped, joining the first day's coffee
• 🍒 Day 3: Third Harvest — The final harvest is picked, floated, and depulped
• 💧 Day 4: Combined Washing — All three days of coffee are washed together
• ☀️ Drying — Coffee is dried slowly and consistently on raised beds

This method creates a single lot that combines 3-day, 2-day, and 1-day fermentations. The result is added depth and complexity whilst maintaining the balance and precision that defines high-quality washed coffee. Careful cherry selection through floating and consistent drying contribute to the clean, vibrant expression that highlights both the Chiroso variety and the terroir of El Yolombo.

THE CUP — Citrus Brightness with Herbal Intrigue

This is Chiroso expressing its full potential—bright, expressive, and clean, with fruit character that feels both sweet and tart. The cup showcases high-altitude Colombian coffee at its finest, with citrus notes taking centre stage and subtle herbal complexity adding intrigue.

Flavour Notes

• 🍋 Key Lime — bright, zesty, sweet-tart citrus that opens the cup
• 🍊 Pink Grapefruit — layered citrus that adds structure and depth
• 🌿 Juniper — subtle resinous, herbal quality that adds unique complexity

What sets this coffee apart is the interplay between bright citrus and herbal notes. The key lime opens the cup with its characteristic sweet-tartness, whilst pink grapefruit adds structure and depth. But it's the subtle juniper-like quality—slightly resinous and herbal—that makes this Chiroso genuinely interesting, adding a unique twist that keeps the cup lively and engaging from first sip to last. The body is smooth and velvety, providing a luxurious mouthfeel that balances the brightness beautifully.

We recommend brewing with beans that are at least two weeks off roast. All beans are roasted to peak flavour at around 8-12 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). 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.