Heresy - Colombia Area 18 Experimental Washed Filter 252 g

Whole-bean specialty coffee from Colombia, roasted by Heresy roasting brand. Light roast, perfect for filter coffee machines, drippers, Chemex, AeroPress, French Press, and other pour-over brewing methods. The brew resembles the flavour of flowers, herbs, forest fruits, citrus and tropical fruit.

Origin: Colombia

Region: Cauca

Farm: Santa Barbara

Processing: Experimental Washed

Altitude: 1850 m a.s.l.

Cupping score: 88 / 100

ABOUT THE FARM AND THE COFFEE PRODUCER

We are dealing here with a boutique, experimental farm that we visited in August 2025. It belongs to Banexport — a company involved in virtually every stage of the local coffee supply chain: production, export, collaboration with smaller producers from the Cauca region, as well as innovation and modern technologies in coffee cultivation and processing.

A full range of the most highly valued Arabica botanical varieties is cultivated here (geisha, pink bourbon, java, wush-wush, and laurina) across 14 hectares, the majority of which consists of a protected natural reserve with designated ecological trails. Numerous endemic plant and animal species form an exceptionally diverse ecosystem.

Workers at Santa Barbara can count on stable, year-round employment, not just seasonal work. Everything operates formally, with social benefits, insurance, and wages that are significantly higher and more equitable compared to the conditions that still commonly prevail in many Arabica-producing countries.

Interestingly, the farm does not have its own processing station. The entire process — from fermentation to drying — takes place in… the very heart of the city of Popayán, the capital of the Cauca region. And there’s one more thing. We have never recommended checking the “ABOUT PROCESSING” section this strongly before.

ABOUT COFFEE PROCESSING ON THE FARM

Let’s begin with the botanical variety.

A few years ago, several producers in Huila (a department in Colombia) discovered that some coffee trees on their farms were producing unusual cherries — the fruit displayed distinct, light, thin stripes along its entire surface, and the beans themselves were slightly elongated in shape. They separated this intriguing phenotype from traditional red bourbon to determine whether the differences would also be noticeable in the cup. They were.

Bourbon Rayado, as they named the varietal (literally “striped bourbon”), is characterized by potentially higher complexity and a distinctive floral-herbal layer.

Due to the recent discovery, no genetic studies on Rayado are yet available. Some believe it is most likely a natural mutation of classic Bourbon; others suggest it could be a mutated Pink Bourbon, which itself traces genetically in a direct line to local Ethiopian varieties.

Now, the process.

The Bourbon Rayado (Striped Bourbon) variety is hand-picked and immediately transported in a refrigerated vehicle (yes, really) to the Area 18 station in downtown Popayán. A one-kilogram sample is taken for preliminary analysis. Based on data such as sugar concentration and density, the final processing method is determined.

The cherries are cleaned and sorted, then undergo depulping (separation of the seed from the fruit) and are transferred to a bioreactor that allows full control over the fermentation process and manipulation of variables such as temperature, pH, pressure, and oxygen saturation. The latter stimulates the naturally occurring yeast strains present in the fruit. During 48 hours of fermentation, these yeasts convert sugars into aromatic precursors responsible for the characteristic floral and fruit notes inherent in Bourbon Rayado.

After fermentation, the coffee is washed three times. Drying is mechanical, performed in an advanced laboratory-grade machine that removes moisture from the beans in a controlled, even, and repeatable process to a precisely programmed value. The entire drying stage takes only three days.

ROASTER’S OPINION

This is coffee in a tuxedo — and not just any tuxedo, but one tailored by a pre-war master craftsman.

It feels as though 120% of both the bean’s potential and the washed method itself has been extracted here. Crystal-clear fruit layers and a definition of transparency that borders on architectural precision.