In Ibague, the capital of the department of Tolima, we take the road towards the mountain where, depending on the climate, you can watch the snowcapped mountain of Tolima. The road leads us to the area of a municipality called China Alta, and here, is where we meet Julio Cesar Soscue, his wife Rocio Sanchez and his daughter Camila and son Daniel.
Their farm, La Providencia, is 5 hectares in size with 4 hectares in coffee. It is also full of other minor crops such as yuca, plantain, corn, bananas, oranges and a small garden with carrot, onion, and coriander. The passion and knowledge of Julio for coffee has been passed to him through generations of family members. He started around 2005 producing coffee but at first in the traditional way and selling it in the local commerce.
It was around 2012 when he started producing high quality coffee and since the beginning with the accompaniment of Pergamino’s Allied Producer Program. This has been paramount for him to learn more about process and farm management. Specialty coffee has brought him better earnings with which he has been able to provide to his family and seeing his kids grow. Nowadays, Julio is focused on renewing some of the parcels where the coffees are getting old and improving the infrastructure of his drying area.
The process of this coffee starts with a selective picking of the ripe coffee cherries which are left to ferment in for 24 hours before being pulped. Afterwards, the beans are fermented in dry from 30 to 35 hours, although this can vary depending on the variety and what he wants to accomplish. Then, the beans are washed and taken to the parabolic covered patios where a thin layer is formed and dried for 15 to 25 days depending on the climatic conditions.
