Ají Fellows Farms Project Washed | Colombia

Colombia — Inmaculada Coffee Farms, Fellows Farms Project, Ají (Washed)

Tastes Like — 🌼 Orange Blossom • 🍊 Grapefruit • 🍓 Candied Strawberry

DETAILS

• Producer: Fellows Farms project, Inmaculada Coffee Farms (partner farms in Huila and Cauca)
• Processing: Finca La Inmaculada, Pichindé, Valle del Cauca
• Varietal: Ají
• Process: Washed
• Altitude: 1,700–2,000 masl
• Harvest: 2026
• Roast Profile: Filter
• Roaster: Nomad Coffee (Barcelona)

INTRO
A floral, sweet, and fruity Ají. The body is syrupy, reminiscent of peaches in syrup, and a medium, pineapple-like acidity keeps the cup fresh and balanced. In the cup: orange blossom, grapefruit, and candied strawberry, with raw honey, candied pineapple, and milk chocolate.

THE PRODUCER
Inmaculada Coffee Farms was founded in 2010 by the Holguín Ramos family in Pichindé, in the Andes mountains above Cali (Valle del Cauca), next to the Farallones de Cali Natural Park. The family, with prior agro-industry experience, chose coffee to contribute to their community and look after the environment. They grow up to 2,000 masl in an agroforestry system where coffee lives alongside shade trees, with no synthetic fertilisers or agrochemicals, and specialise in uncommon varieties such as Geisha, Sudan Rume, Laurina, and Eugenioides.

Since 2022, Inmaculada has run Fellows Farms, a project in which it works with neighbouring partner farms in Huila and Cauca. It buys the coffee from these small producers at a premium price and gives educational support in good agronomic and harvesting practices. The project also works with AMCAPEC, an association of women coffee growers in the municipalities of El Tambo, Piendamó, and Caldono (Cauca), helping small producers sell their coffee transparently and with greater benefit. All of this project's coffee is processed at Finca La Inmaculada, ensuring consistency and full traceability for each lot.

Ají is still rare in Colombia and has a curious origin. It emerged at La Guaca farm in Huila, where José Hernán Salazar and his family noticed that some trees grown from Caturra seeds showed distinct, superior traits and decided to propagate them. After convincing at the cupping table in 2015, José focused on this variety, and in 2020 his lot stood out at the Colombia Cup of Excellence. Although often called "Bourbon Ají," genetic analysis indicates it isn't a Bourbon but an Ethiopian-origin variety. Its name, "ají" (Spanish for chili), refers to the elongated shape and red colour of its cherry when ripe.

THE PROCESS
The Washed process for this lot involves:

🍒 Reception — cherries from the different neighbouring farms received at La Inmaculada
💧 Flotation — separating leaves, stones, and low-density cherries
🔍 Electronic sorting — choosing cherries at optimal ripeness
✋ Manual sorting — a further hand selection
🌱 Pulping and washing — the best cherries pulped and washed
☀️ Controlled drying — dried under controlled conditions

THE CUP
Floral, sweet, and fruity: orange blossom, grapefruit, and candied strawberry lead, with raw honey, candied pineapple, and milk chocolate, a syrupy peaches-in-syrup body, and a medium pineapple-like acidity that keeps it fresh and balanced.

Flavour Notes
🌼 Orange Blossom 🍊 Grapefruit 🍓 Candied Strawberry