Hervey and Rocio Cuellar have been coffee producers their entire lives, initially growing Catimor for the commodity market. However, at 34, Hervey wanted to move beyond just being a commodity producer, so he sought out the renowned Gesha varietal in hopes of entering the specialty market and forming a direct connection with his customers.
Four years ago, Hervey convinced his brother to start growing Gesha as well. They spent
months searching for seeds, eventually gaining permission to personally select the bestt
fruits from a Gesha plot in Pitalito.
The first few harvests didn’t meet expectations in terms of flavor complexity, but Hervey
didn’t give up. He continued to search for solutions and began experimenting with post-
harvest processing. After numerous trials (somewhere around 30 different fermentation
times and methods), he finally perfected the clean, floral Gesha profile through a 50-hour
anaerobic fermentation of the cherries, followed by a 60-hour anaerobic fermentation of
the depulped beans. Finally the cofffee is fully washed. He also constructed raised beds
with shading on top of their house to dry the coffee slowly- about three weeks on average.
His commitment to finding the perfect profile is a reminder of the unseen hard work
behind specialty coffees.
We also want to acknowledge Rocio, his wife, in this achievement because
women often work behind the scenes in the coffee businesses of smallholders.
Rocio takes care of all the farm workers, cooks tirelessly every day for 5 to 15
people, and ensures everyone has what they need before heading out to work
on the farm or in the mill..
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