Luis Edgar Camacho, Colombia

RD 7/26

A Pink Bourbon by Luis Edgar Camacho, with a unique fermentation protocol emphasizing sweet and ripe tropical fruit.

The triple fermentation results in a clean yet full expression of Pink Bourbon, with the emphasis on the ripe tropical fruit character of the varietal, here reminiscent of mango and papaya.

LUIS EDGAR CAMACHO & LAREB

Luis Edgar Camacho was introduced to LaREB by our long term partner Lizardo Herrera. Luis also grows coffee near Palestina, in the Huila region. He has been working in coffee for many years, and has been part of the strong drive for quality and experimentation in Huila over the past 10 years. Luis grows Geisha, Pink Bourbon, Caturra and Bourbon, and has experimented with processing over the past few years. LaREB have been very impressed by his professionalism, the portfolio of samples he delivered were carefully organised, with lots of detailed processing information available. The collaboration has also been fruitful, Luis and LaREB have begun to hone in on the profiles that work best, working towards a selection for the coming harvest.

THREE STAGES OF FERMENTATION

The lot we selected for this year is a Pink Bourbon, processed using an innovative washed process. The ripe cherries are first fermented in open tanks for 24 hours, before being rinsed and fermented again in sealed tanks for 48 hours. The cherries are then de-pulped before a final fermentation in sealed tanks for 96 hours. Water is added to this final fermentation, slowing the temperature rise for a slow and controlled fermentation. After these three stages of fermentation, the parchment coffee is washed thoroughly and dried in solar driers over 20 to 25 days. This results in a clean yet full expression of Pink Bourbon, with the emphasis on the ripe tropical fruit character of the varietal, here reminiscent of mango and papaya.

HUILA

Luis grows coffee near the town of Palestina in southern Huila, one of the most renowned growing regions in Colombia. Huila’s volcanic soils, undisturbed by the intensive agriculture seen further north, are full of nutrition, and alongside high altitude, lead to excellent conditions for producing high quality coffees. We also see a great number of driven and agile small farmers here, many of whom have family history in coffee, but haven’t necessarily been working on the same large industrialised farms for generations, like we see in more established coffee regions. This leads to a willingness to experiment, to innovate, and create lots that fulfil ever changing needs in the speciality coffee market. One example of this is Pink Bourbon, said to be a natural mutation discovered in Huila, an exotic varietal that exhibits crisp and clean aromatic character, often with floral and tropical elements.

Technical Data