VERY SPECIAL
You may remember La Colina’s previous VS features—a balanced mixed variety lot in March 2024, a lovely washed Sidra shared in March 2023 and a silky washed Typica in May of the same year.
The lot we’re sharing this time is again a mix of both varieties that are still worthy of a spot in our VS department, but this time, not on the subscription!
First is the varietal, Sidra. As we mentioned back then, it’s rare, not even listed on the World Coffee Research archive. Some whisper that it “originated from a Nestlé coffee breeding facility in the region, which developed hybrids using Ethiopian and Bourbon varieties.” Something more solid is its reputation for cupping potential, as more and more World Coffee Championship competitors choose it alongside Gesha.
Second is the higher-than-average price. Compared to similar quality lots from other origins, this one sits on the top end. This is due to a complex combination of political, economic and social factors (that we’ll try to summarise below).
Because of this, and because its cupping presence and flavour profile are as refined as they get, this lot by Guillermo Walter from Finca La Colina gets our dear Very Special stamp.
ECUADOR: IT’S COMPLICATED
As Caravela Coffee tells us, the high price of Ecuadorian green coffees comes down to (1) low national supply/high global demand, (2) low productivity and yields compared to other producing countries and (3) very high costs of production (~2 times more expensive compared to its neighbours, caused by Ecuador’s dollarized economy). Add to this the toll of emigration, pushing the average age of farmers to “60 years old”. It really is complicated.
If we dig deeper, we find a curious aspect that may contribute to this global imbalance: Ecuador’s status as one of the largest exporters of instant coffee. Yes, quite weird.
While the country produces a small portion of the global green coffee output, it’s one of the largest exporters of instant coffee (mainly to Germany and Russia, where this country has a wide presence and established reputation). To do that, they import high volumes of green coffee from other countries like Vietnam, which they mix, process and finally sell as a finished soluble (Ecuadorian) product.
For national coffee producers, it’s easy to enter this established market; it offers low risk and decent rewards. On the contrary, producing specialty coffee brings a lot of unknowns, fierce global competition and selling prices that are hard to match. No wonder there are few who dare.
On the bright side, looking at the future, there is a blooming generation of growers who believe there’s a fair life and business to be made by producing high-quality arabica beans. One of them is Wilter Guillermo—respect.
WILTER GUILLERMO’S GIG
Like everyone here, Guillermo’s days start with a cup of coffee; he loves drinking it. Unlike everyone here, Guillermo decided to transform this passion into his profession, and even though he had no experience, he started his own coffee farm—Finca La Colina.
In 2014, he planted the first coffee trees. Even though he didn’t know much, the first harvest went relatively well; he made mistakes, and he learnt from them, but he also had many wins. It was all personal growth and self-learning, a dream come true.
In 2016, he produced a decent output: 540 kilograms of high-quality dry parchment that entered the specialty coffee market and, later that year, achieved 5th place in the Taza Dorada competition. Not bad for a beginner.
TYPICA VARIETAL
Typica is rare to see these days. It’s not because it’s a new variety—its origins can be traced back to sometime in the 15th or 16th century when it was taken to Yemen, then India, Java, Netherlands, Paris… and finally, Central America.
Until the 1940s, most coffee plantations in South and Central America were planted with Typica, but due to its low yield and high susceptibility to major coffee diseases, it has gradually been replaced with other varieties. Today, it’s still mainly planted in the Dominican Republic, Jamaica (where it is called Jamaica Blue Mountain)and Peru because it still offers a good or high-quality cup.
Learn more about the long travels of Typica at the World Coffee Research page, from which we’ve sourced this information.
SIDRA VARIETAL
Sidra (also known as Sydra or Bourbon Sidra) is a relatively new hybrid varietal descending of Red Bourbon and Typica. It has acquired the sweetness and the body of the first and the bright taste and acidity of the second.
According to Daily Grind, it is believed that Sidra comes from the Pichincha province in Ecuador, where it may have been created as a research project by a Nestlé local breeding facility that developed hybrids using Ethiopian and Bourbon varieties.
THIS LOT’S PROCESS
The cherries have grown at a relatively low altitude (~1370 masl) under partial shade provided by Guamo and Plantain trees. After being picked completely ripe, they’ve been fully washed and fermented for 14 hours, then dried on raised beds in a covered patio.
