Colombia Pink Bourbon Carbonic Maceration
In December 2019 we release the first in our series of three special preperation microlots from Colombia. These amazing coffees were sent to us by iFinca who specialize in connecting roasters, cafes and consumers with coffee producers around the world.
The Colombia Geisha natural was very popular and sold out in just a few weeks. The second in the series is just as good and is a Pink Bourbon Carbonic Maceration natural. The Pink Bourbon varietal is an extremely rare hydrid of red and yellow bourbon. It's a difficult hybrid to grow and to isolate to ensure the trees fruit pink. The recessive gene is easily pushed aside resulting in new trees with red or yellow fruit. It also presents significant challenges for farmers and pickers as it can be very challenging to correctly identify perfectly ripe cherry on the tree. With proper cultivation and training the pink bourbon varietal provides outstanding results.
This small microlots comes from a farm owned by Roger Sanchez, a 4th generation coffee producer. After harvesting the coffee was floated in water to remove defects. After water sorting the coffee was stored for 100 hours in sacks to allow the outer skin of the coffee to start to oxidize. The coffee was then stored in airtight plastic containers with one way valves until the ph dropped to 3.8. This method is know as carbonic maceration and is a technique most commonly used in the wine making industry. Storing the cherry like this creates an oxygen free environment and has an effect on the fermentation of the fruit.
