The municipality of Inzá is located in the corner of the Department of Cauca, bordering with Tolima and
Huila and looking out to the west over the Pacific Ocean. Situated on the “Macizo Colombiano” (the
Colombian Plateau), which surrounds the high peaks of Tolima and Huila, the region is an important source
of water and wildlife, in addition to being prime coffee growing land.
This specific lot has been selected only from growers hailing from the neighbouring sub-municipalities of
Pedregal (70%) and San Antonio (30%). During the harvest season, our partner in the region, Pergamino,
has committed to monthly visits to the group in order to cup and advise on quality. All coffee produced by
the group that cups at 85+ points will be purchased, and higher scoring lots may be held aside as microlots
to be marketed under the farmer/family’s own name. These stringent standards result in very limited
quantities of this exceptional blend of 70%+ Caturra and approximately 30% Variedad Colombia being
made available for export.
The region’s violent past, with a heavy presence of FARC guerrillas, had historically prevented the FNC
(Colombia’s excellent national coffee board) and specialty-focused exporters from establishing a
presence in the region. As violence has diminished, it has enabled the growers in the region to seek
increased access to markets for quality, not only taking advantage of the region’s wonderful coffeegrowing conditions but also the economic resource that nearby tourist destinations bring (for instance, the World Heritage Site “Parque Nacional Arqueológico de Tierradentro”).
We found out about this coffee through our good friends at the Santa Barbara Estate, who serve it in their
flagship specialty café, Pergamino, in Medellin. Specifically in Cauca, they have launched a new pilot
project with the Pillimue family in San Antonio. In order to offer up market access more widely in the region
and to put more control in the hands of local people, the family (who has long supplied coffee to
Pergamino from their various family member farms) has opened a small warehouse and cupping lab with
funding from Pergamino.
They act as logistics and sourcing partners and are able to provide quality assessment services for nearly
150 families in the area, which is far more impactful than any other regional association in the area,
reaching not just San Antonio, but now also the towns of Belen, La Palmera, Aguablanca, Pedregal,
Palmichal, San Jose and Santa Teresa. Most importantly, the Pillimue/Pergamino partnership enables more
families than ever before to access higher prices by placing coffee on the specialty market.
