Honey Haze Espresso

Tarqui is one of those places that stays with you. It’s a small pocket on the western side of Huila, nestled between Pitalito and La Plata, perched high above the Magdalena River that winds its way through so much of Colombia’s coffee country. Ferney Cruz’s farm, Finca El Prado, sits near the crest of the surrounding mountains, overlooking the town of Tarqui below.

This lot is the variety known as “variedad Colombia” — simply called “Colombia” in coffee shorthand. I’ll risk a short detour into history here because the backstory matters. Colombia was developed by Cenicafé in the late 1960s when leaf rust was threatening the country’s production. By crossing Caturra with Timor Hybrid, researchers created a plant designed for resilience: disease resistance, solid yields, and a structure well suited to Colombia’s terrain. By the early 1980s it was widely adopted and quickly became one of the dominant plantings nationwide. Its compact stature allows for dense planting and strong productivity, and it performs reliably across elevations. While it was introduced for practical reasons, thoughtful farming and careful processing have shown that Colombia can also produce nuanced, expressive coffees rooted in place.

I’ve always felt that, on balance, the variety helped stabilize Colombian coffee. But the way it was scaled and farmed came with consequences. Full-sun planting and ultra-high density systems shifted the agricultural model toward heavier use of fertilizers, fungicides, and other agrochemicals. Around 2012–2014, I began noticing a meaningful correction among quality-focused producers: more shade, lower planting density, and a return to healthier soils and more balanced ecosystems.

At Ferney’s farm, sitting at 1,900 meters, his Colombia trees grow beneath tall canopy shade. The cooler temperatures at this altitude slow maturation, which in turn builds greater complexity in the cup.

Ferney harvests only when the cherries reach a deep burgundy colour. He ferments them in closed tanks for 12 hours before de-pulping, then continues fermentation in mucilage for roughly 50 hours. After a careful wash, the parchment is dried slowly on traditional raised beds under shade.