El Tablón Anaerobic Natural - Colombia

Finca El Tablón, a 5-hectare coffee farm owned by Edmundo Rojas, lies at 1900 masl
in the small town of El Tablón de Gomez in the southern Colombian department of
Nariño.With mineral-rich volcanic soils and a beneficial microclimate, Edmundo grows a
diverse range of varietals including Caturra, Colombia, Bourbon and Castillo, reaching
Colombian Cup of Excellence finals with his quality-driven coffees.
Employing sustainable farming practices, focused on environmental stewardship
whilst maintaining high-quality standards, Edmundo ensures his cherries are harvested at peak ripeness by his employees before processing takes place in his
state-of-the-art facility that can process washed, natural and honeys to incredible
standards.

Fully ripe coffee cherries are carefully harvested from the trees before cleaning and floating in water to remove the less dense cherries. Secondary manual screening is then performed to remove those cherries that do not fall within the desired optimal colour range. Once the cherries have finished screening, they are transferred to clean polyethylene sack-lined barrels, the air removed, before being left to ferment for 96 hours inside. On completion of the fermentation process, the cherries are moved to the patios for sun-drying where they are spread in a single layer that is stirred hourly to remove water and excess moisture quickly and effectively. After 72 hours, the cherries are stacked into thicker layers that are stirred every 3 hours to slow down the drying process. As the drying process nears the end, the cherries are sweet into even thicker layers that are dried for 3 hours in the morning and 3 in the afternoon, alternating with breaks of 15 hours. This helps the cherries rest and homogenise, leading to a sweeter and cleaner cup.