Colombia - Wilton Benitez - Ombligon - 1000hr Natural

 Wilton Benitez is the owner and manager of Granja Paraiso 92 - a farm that has pushed innovation and advanced processing for several years, and is a key innovator in the coffee industry. 

Wilton has over 18 different varieties growing at his farm in Cauca, near Piendamo. These include, but are not limited to - Red Bourbon, Pink Bourbon, Sidra, Geisha, and for this release today - Ombligon. 

As you can see in the images, Wilton's farm is very technologically advanced - he relies on an vigorous processing schedule for his coffees. First comes Sanitisation and preparation for advanced fermentation - namely Ozone, and UV processing, along with Thermal Shock to prepare the cherries. This effectively kills all bacteria and yeast on the cherries, leaving them ready for fermentation. 

Wilton works with his full-time microbiologist to decide which yeasts and bacteria to use for which varieties, and for how long to get the desired effect. This Ombligon went through a simple natural fermentation with some added Yeast and Bacteria to control the fermentation in special Bioreactors - the trick is that it was fermented for 1000hrs (just over 40 days). Such a long fermentation bring out a lot of heavy, funky notes, but in this case, because of the technologies in the bio reactors, it remains well structured, and clean. After fermentation the coffee is sent to dry in special built driers. These driers bring the humidity down in a controlled manner so as to get an even, and efficient complete drying with a stable water activity in just 36 hours! 

This lot has a fair amount of process on there, which shows up as those rich, sweet red fruits, all the way from hot to cold. It's not a subtle cup, with a very expressive profile, and lots of sweetness and body.