Tablón De Gómez
Origin: Nariño, Colombia
What we taste: Blood Orange, Amaretto, Demerara Syrup
Over 3 hours from the nearest paved road sits Tablón De Gómez, a small municipality situated in the central mountains of Nariño. Here, a group of 40 lifelong coffee farmers, in conjunction with Forest Coffee, have truly mastered the art of honey-processed coffee. They even affectionately refer to this region as Honey Mountain. While they follow a fairly simple processing method with a 48-hour fermentation, the magic comes during the drying process dreamt up by this project. With their unique method, coffee beans get direct contact with the mucilage for an average of 18 days before further milling, imparting a lovely sweetness to this coffee. After the cherries are picked, they undergo an initial fermentation before most of the fruit is removed, but the mucilage is left intact (a thick sugary substance that surrounds the seeds). The amount of mucilage left on the seeds can vary, resulting in more or less sugar and enhanced flavors. The beans are dried in the mucilage (specific drying time is dependent on the producer and environment) before they are homogenized and sent off for further milling. Tablón De Gómez is a delightfully rich and complex coffee. We are tasting notes of Blood Orange, Amaretto, and Demerara Syrup. There are so many more nuanced and subtle flavors to experience.
