Rosa Cortez - Gesha Lot 3333

La Palma Y El Tucán is a longtime friend of the Black & White family, and if you've been around here awhile, you've likely seen their name printed on several of our labels over the years. La Palma is run by husband-wife power duo Felipe and Elisa Sardi, and their vision for "better coffee, better practices, and a better world" began to come into focus when they purchased 18 hectares of land in the Cundinamarca region of Colombia over thirteen years ago. That vision has always rested on two pillars: community, and quality.
This commitment to community and their obsession with processing perfection are two of the reasons La Palma features so prominently on our menu. But, they also keep coming around because you guys love their coffees - and we love sharing them with you! Last fall, we had the immense pleasure of sending four of our very own roasters to the gorgeous place that is La Palma Y El Tucán. There, they were able to experience the magic of La Palma firsthand, gain a better understanding of the process by which these coffees make their way from the soil to our coffee cups.

Rosa Cortez is a woman who has dedicated her life to coffee. Her story begins on a small farm, a family inheritance full of tradition and love for the land. Over time, Rosa and her siblings started working on the farm, turning it into a family business. What makes Rosa’s coffee special is the unique combination of the farm’s climatic conditions and the careful process they undertake. From planting to harvesting and processing, each stage is carried out by the family without hiring external staff. Rosa takes pride in keeping the family tradition alive and offering exceptional coffee that reflects the hard work and love they have put into each bean.

This natural processed coffee undergoes fermentation in an anaerobic medium for 90 hours in bags and dried for 14 days in a coffee drying shed at La Palma.

Roaster Matt loved this coffee on the cupping table at La Palma thanks to its huge, juicy body and structured, tropical acidity. When he tasted it again here in Raleigh, Matt got even more excited - the coffee used that resting period to gain even more structure and complexity! This cup makes quite the journey from the first sip to the last, beginning with an aroma like cherry pie in the oven and ending - at the very last sip - with a flavor reminiscent of white-chocolate covered raisins. Throughout the tasting experience, you'll encounter all the things we love about a good Gesha: white florals, plenty of stone fruits, and an expertly balanced, structured acidity.