Colombia - Huila - Finca Las Delicias

Finca Las Delicias is a small family-run coffee farm located in the highlands of northern Huila, in the municipality of Santa María. Reaching the farm is not straightforward: visitors often ride up the steep mountain roads on local dairy trucks, climbing through mist and forest until the landscape opens onto a patchwork of coffee trees, shade trees and pasture. The farm sits on cool, elevated slopes where coffee cherries ripen slowly under natural cloud cover and mixed canopy.

The farm is managed by producer Yesid Castañeda and his family, who have devoted themselves to traditional varieties such as Caturra while steadily introducing more precise processing techniques. Situated at high altitude within the Andean range, Las Delicias benefits from marked diurnal temperature swings and long maturation cycles – conditions that are ideal for developing dense, sugar-rich cherries and for experimenting with extended fermentations.

Harvesting at Las Delicias is carried out by hand, with pickers selecting only fully ripe, evenly coloured cherries. Before processing, the fruit passes through flotation tanks to remove floaters and visible defects, and is then separated into different fermentation batches. The farm and its export partners place strong emphasis on continuous training and environmental stewardship: native and fruit trees are preserved as shade, natural water sources are protected, and reforestation projects are implemented to restore forest cover and maintain the health of the surrounding ecosystem.