Serving People Serving Coffee Since 2005
Issue link: http://baristamagazine.epubxp.com/i/609699
and WBC, Gianni and Reg had attended the Brazil trip in 2011 and the Kenya trip in 2013, and brought a lot of cheer and esteem to the group. And finally, two lucky journalists rounded out the band— myself, and Emily McIntyre of Sprudge.com. Noah, Jessica, and Lucho had been planning our adventure through Colombia for months, and we had a set schedule that would have us flying from Bogotá to Neiva at the start, arriving in Huila to spend a few days with Alejandro and his producer partners from Los Naranjos and Primavera; taking us on to Popayán, where we would join Jairo Ruiz and Elkin Guzman of Banexport; heading farther to Pitalito, then Cali, then back to Bogotá, where we could attend the annual ExpoEspeciales, the largest specialty-coffee expo and conference in South America, and watch the Colombian Barista Championship. Things, however, never quite go as planned. We ended up staying in San Agustín an extra night, skipping the hotel stop in Popayán alto- gether, and extending our time in Cali. And so what? The flexibility made the trip even more enjoyable and exciting than it was to begin with. Noah, Jessica, and Lucho truly listened to what the barista champions had to say about what they wanted to see and what they hoped to learn. Their attentiveness to these rapidly shifting objectives caused our itinerary to shift slightly, again and again, organically. Late afternoon sun filtered across the dirt path in patterns obscured by the jagged rocks at the mountain's summit, only about 200 feet higher than where we stood. We slid off our horses and stared, almost not believing the beauty of the valley view below us. If that weren't enough marvelousness, who should come sauntering up behind us but Arnulfo Leguizamo, the coffee-producer rock star of Huila if ever there was one. After winning the 2011 Colombian Cup of Excellence, Arnulfo invested heavily into his two farms—El Faldon, where we were standing, being one of them. His efforts have only made his coffee better over the years, as evidenced in part by Pete Licata of the United States winning the 2013 World Barista Championship with Arnulfo's coffee. Café Imports and Arnulfo are in tight. After the producer and Café Imports founder Andrew Miller struck up a fast friendship and busi- ness relationship years ago, Café Imports has been buying every last bit of the coffee Arnulfo produces ever since. Standing under the low roof covering Arnulfo's sparkling fermenta- tion tanks, where he conducts experiments to further the quality and distinctiveness of his coffees, he told us he is approached quite often by other importers and green buyers trying to sneak in under Café Imports' radar and buy Arnulfo's coffees. It just makes him laugh, he said. Nothing will ever change the loyalty he feels for Café Imports. Clearly moved, Noah vowed the feeling was mutual. Arnulfo produces 90+ point microlots, and many others in the Los At le , Café Imports' Noah Namowicz (le ) and World Barista Champion Sasa Sestic led the pack as the barista group rode horses through the farms belonging to the members of the Los Naranjos cooperative. Right: Radames makes new friends at a cacao farm in Huila. 32 barista magazine