EJE CAFETERO DE COLOMBIA | COLOMBIA #3

I'm going now to a coffee farm to do a coffee tour. It's more or less like what you saw the other day, but the other day it was just a coffee shop where they served you coffee and explained a little. But today it is more elaborated, explaining from the origin of the grain and such. So I'm going to that farm, which in my case there are many farms in the area. I'm going to one called Finca del Ocaso, it's where I booked to do a tour, because it's very close, it's in Salento, it's very close to the hotel where I'm staying. But of course, to get there it's a goat's path, without asphalt or anything. It's only a couple of kilometers, but hey, it will be about 20 minutes to get there with this type of roads. Music Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia and Indonesia represent almost 75% of the annual production of coffee. The remaining 25% will be produced by 50 more countries. So there it goes, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Ethiopia, which is the most important. Do you know why? Because the coffee comes from there. That's why in Colombia machines have never been used to collect coffee. The National Federation tries to import them, but it really doesn't work because ... And the problem is that when we have the harvest season, we have the rainy season. And inside the germinator there is no soil, there is river sand. The seeds are planted in river sand because it is super soft and thick. So here the seed germinates faster. Where does the seed come from? From the seeder. From the seeds. The same grain that is used to produce coffee is going to be used as a seed. So it's very simple, a 3-centimeter hole is made, that is called phosphorus. After 10 days, the phosphorus will begin to open, as you can see here, this is opening and it becomes this plant, which is called the chapola. I don't know if you have heard the word chapolera. Now some compost, some organic compost and some soil. The chapola is planted, 6 months pass and the chapola becomes this. In the coffee hill. That is, since the seeds were planted, until we have the bush, 2 years and 4 months have passed. The main vines are Arabica, which comes from Ethiopia, Robusta, which comes from the Congo, and Iberica, which comes from Iberia. All the coffee that is known comes from Africa. Well, now it's time to harvest coffee here. They have given us the basket and we have to pick up a few grains that are not green, that is, red, like this one. Slowly, slowly, so as not to throw the grain, and we put it here, in the hand. Thank you very much. And we put the husk inside the basket. To see the shadow. Because if you give the grain more time, the grain takes more time to mature, and therefore the quality improves. Maraca has a plus that no flower in paradise has. Maraca produces ginger in its roots. A type of ginger, nothing spicy, super aromatic, perfect for making teas. In fact, if you put your finger inside the flower and smell it, it smells like ginger. What does the federation protocol say? Weigh, remove husk, put in water, leave the grain in water for 20 hours, dry and commercialize. It is a protocol that only cares about quantity. You have to produce in mass, produce now. In this farm, before removing the husk, the cherry is fermented here for 20 hours. Why? Remember that this grain that you tasted tasted sweet, right? Yes. But that grain is not the real coffee grain. The real coffee grain is inside that grain. So what is the protocol of this farm? That the real grain absorbs the mucilage, and therefore is sweeter, more fruity. 20 hours fermenting, nothing is added to them, no water, no yeast, nothing weird. After 20 hours, the cherry falls, and in the background we have the machines. The machines are bigger and automatic. Look at the corner, there we have the oven. Behind the oven, there is a giant motor, the motor tests the air, the oven tests the heat. So inside it will always be hot air. It is only used when there is a lot of coffee. When there is not much, we use better the marquesinas, African camas, or Invernados. So guys, here is the dry grain. As you can see, the grain looks like a peanut. Remember that this is not the real coffee grain. Next step, remove the second husk, and there we have the real coffee grain. This is called almond, or green grain. And this is what we are going to toast. Well guys, here we have the commercialization part. What happens is that the worker, after bringing the coffee, brings ... This is what we are going to toast there, and this is what is going to be exported. It is always exported in green, in raw. Why? Because the roasting depends on each country. In fact, it does not even depend on each country, it depends on each community. If you are in Spain, and you are in Castilla, and you move to Catalonia, the coffee changes. If you are in Dortmund, and you are in Munich, the coffee changes. The coffee is going to be 40 grams. The coffee that we are going to taste is the Salento coffee, the coffee that we just harvested in the first batch. And you guys are going to see how that coffee is going to change. Every time you go to a bar, notice this, when you order a filter, that the coffee is clean. When you shake and squeeze the filter, it is only acid. You have to be patient, that the same coffee goes through. The coffee is filled ... I just finished the tour in this coffee farm. It is very worth it. I took the premium, which is about 15 euros, more or less. It's three hours, and it's amazing. Not only for all the explanations and the whole process of creating coffee, which is super interesting, because you give it as very basic, but it really has a lot of nuances, depending on how it is done, and slight variables that, changing, affect a lot the quality of the coffee, the taste of the coffee. And in the end it ends with a cata, which, well, I don't show you much because I'm short of hands, but what you do is that you start by training the smell and the taste with fruits, with different aromas. And there is one thing that I had read, and that they had told me, and they said it at the beginning of the tour, is that once you do the tour, you no longer see the coffee in the same way and the coffee you drink. And it is totally true. I mean, because, come on, I realized, as I explained, how to serve it, in what conditions and everything. I mean, the coffee we drink is a ----. Apart from the fact that the one that is sold at 95-96% is coffee of quite poor quality. So, of course, now they have put us a comparison of a normal supermarket and one of high quality, of those they make here, and the change is different. I mean, the one we drink in the end is super, super bitter, super flat, and the one they make here, well, or if it is made correctly, you can appreciate a lot of flavors, you don't miss other additives at any time, like adding milk or sugar. The coffee itself already has acidic touches, sweet touches, and then you notice certain fruits. I mean, it's super tasty. I mean, the coffee has a super tasty flavor. It is totally different from what we have been able to taste normally. So, nothing, that said, highly recommended. I have said it, I have done it in the afternoon. They give you a diploma at the end. Super nice people, they explain it to you super well. In any question you have, they answer you. And apart from that, they give you the quota in which you try a couple of coffees. And then you can stay here to eat or buy coffee yourself, or whatever you want. So, nothing, I hope you liked it. Especially since I haven't spoken much, I imagine it is even more pleasant. I have just arrived in Filambia, which is a very small town, which is here in the coffee farm, and it is surely the town that best summarizes what this area of Colombia is, because it has all its colonial houses of colors, and in general it is a very, very beautiful town that is very worth visiting. It is very small, so it is not going to take a long time. What depends on when you come, you can find parking because it is up, but still it is very worth it. I'm going to show you a few streets. I highly recommend you to come. I think this whole town is super nice. I am now in the central square. Here is the little square. And then here behind me, all around, all the shops, restaurants, souvenir shops, clothing, handicrafts, etc. And all with their own personal style, with their own colors. So it makes us a super colorful town, and it is very nice to walk around here. I say goodbye to Finland and the coffee farm, so I'm going to pick up the cable and I'm going to Pereira airport again, to take a plane that takes me to Medellín, which is my next destination. It is not direct, I have to make a small stop in Bogotá, so I'll get there at night, so I don't think I'll show you much because there are no more flights. So I hope you liked this coffee farm, I thought it was a super cool place to spend a few days. I've been here for three days, but hey, if you're in a hurry, you can spend two days. I think it would be the minimum to be here since you come. If you have any questions, tell me and I'll try to solve them. See you later.