Coffee of the Month - Colombia Planadas
About the Coffee:
May’s Coffee of the Month is Colombia Planadas. It boasts a profile of chocolate, caramel and yellow fruits. This is a great all round coffee and we think it suits any kind of brew method. If you are hoping to sample some classic Colombian coffee flavours, look no further.
Our work with The Green Collection has provided an excellent opportunity for us to support a community development project in Colombia. Planadas, a small town in Tolima, has approximately 86 coffee producing hamlets which in turn represents around 7000 small farms ranging from 0.5 to 6 hectares. These are all very small scale, family run micro-lots who put every effort into producing speciality coffee. Their production, no matter how small, accounts for their livelihood.
The project has been set up to support social development throughout Planadas. With each farm guaranteed a more than fair price for their coffee and a guaranteed point of sale, they are in a better place to continue to produce this amazing coffee. Any profits from the social development project are being put back into the community to improve the quality of life for all of those in Planadas.
This means providing necessities such as clean water, jobs and basic incomes, building development so that locals have safe and comfortable living spaces, as well as helping to provide leisure opportunities such as football pitches and equipment.
There is also huge youth involvement in the coffee production of the region and the project set up funds training and education in speciality coffee so that younger generations can continue the fine work of their ancestors and produce more speciality coffee.
We at Redber are extremely excited about the opportunity to give back to the people that work so hard to produce some of our finest speciality coffee.
Every customer who purchases Colombia Planadas is automatically entered into a prize draw to win a free three month subscription of 250g of a coffee of their choice.
About the Region:
Tolima is a located in the west of Colombia and is one of the most productive coffee regions. It extends from the Andean Central Cordilleras (mountains) down to the Magdalena River valley which provides the perfect altitude and weather conditions for coffee growing and production. Although this makes it remote and very difficult to access.
All the coffee that is produced for The Green Collection is organic and sustainable. Rather than decimate the local environment and wildlife, the farmers incorporate it into their production techniques. Trees are used to provide shade which results in a longer ripening of the coffee cherries. This means more sugars are transferred and gives a sweeter fruitier final product.
Description:
Flavours: Chocolate, Caramel, Yellow Fruit
Aroma: Sweet
Body: Smooth and Silky
Acidity: Low, Fruity
Roast Profiles:
Medium: A higher level of acidity, similar to citrus fruit, which works well with the flavours of exotic and yellow fruit. This profile is great as a filter or pour over.
Medium-Dark: Hints of milk chocolate combined with a fruity acidity and lingering sweet caramel finish – try this as a cafetiere or aeropress.
Dark: A smooth and silky body with subtle yellow fruit and a dark chocolate background – perfect for any espresso based drink.
Location:
Origin: Colombia
Region: Planadas, Tolima
Altitude: 1500-2000 metres above the sea level
Variety: Colombia, F8, Castillo
Processed Method: Washed
