Finca La Reserva Geisha Honey

At 2000 meters above sea level in the department of Antioquia, Colombia sits Finca La Reserva run by grower Juan Felipe. In 2018, Felipe began implementing best practices in harvesting and innovation in processing and has since transformed La Reserva into a specialty coffee powerhouse. His 96 hour Anaerobic Honey Geisha is a testament to what can happen when a coveted coffee variety meets meticulous attention to detail in experimental (and highly successful) coffee processing. This coffee is so deliciously floral with tasting notes of pink lemonade, red jolly rancher, almond blossom, lavender, and rose.

What makes La Reserva even more special, however, is that it is not only about innovation in processing and award-winning cup profiles. Juan Felipe has focused equal energy into conservation efforts on his farm, balancing high quality coffee production with caring for the farm’s 200 hectares of protected forests. La Reserva’s forest is home to thousands of native species and is a sanctuary for the endangered Andean (Spectacled) bears. The Andean bear is the only bear native to South America and is considered a clever animal that builds platforms and nests in trees for eating and sleeping. This charismatic animal is considered highly endangered due to habitat fragmentation causing loss of important feeding grounds. Felipe’s dedication to both high quality coffee and also conservation, including helping the rare Andean bear, make this a very special cup indeed.

About the 96 Hour Anaerobic Honey Process. At Finca La Reserva, red ripe Geisha coffee cherries were harvested and then floated to sort out less dense beans. Coffee cherries were then depulped while leaving some of the mucilage intact. The coffee was then fermented anaerobically (devoid of oxygen) in hermetically sealed tanks for 96 hours. The coffee was then sun-dried on raised beds. The honey process is in between a natural process (where the coffee is dried in full fruit) and washed process (where the fruit is fully washed off the coffee before it is dried) which creates a unique melding of each process. When done right (as in this case), the coffee retains a higher intensity of fruit notes-similar to a natural-while also displaying a somewhat cleaner profile similar to a high quality washed process coffee.