Story
The Nogales Group is a project born from family roots, guided by the spirit of community and shared purpose. What began as a traditional coffee farm has evolved into a collective vision that embraces both people and planet with care, empathy, and responsibility. From the very start, their mission has been to honor the legacy of coffee production while daring to reimagine what a coffee farm can be.
Their history is one of both tradition and innovation. In 2005, the farm earned international recognition by winning the Cup of Excellence, a milestone that affirmed the quality of their work and inspired them to keep pushing forward. Over the past two decades, they have expanded this foundation, deepening knowledge of fermentation, introducing pioneering projects such as a 100% farm-made decaf and crafting unique products like a coffee cherry tisane. Each initiative reflects their commitment to creativity, sustainability, and leadership in the industry.
Region
Located in southwestern Colombia, the Huila region is one of the country's most renowned areas for specialty coffee production. Thanks to its high altitudes, volcanic soils, and favorable climate, it produces coffees widely recognized for their great sweetness, bright acidity, and notes of fruit and citrus.
At the heart of this region, the town of Bruselas is particularly well-known for its family-owned farms and its commitment to producing high-quality coffees, benefiting from high elevations and an exceptionally favorable climate for coffee cultivation.
Variety
Caturra is a natural mutation of the Bourbon variety, first identified in Brazil, and is known for its compact growth habit. Its shorter stature makes harvesting easier, particularly on steep terrain, and allows for higher planting density, resulting in improved yields compared to Bourbon.
In the cup, Caturra is valued for its bright acidity, clean structure, and expressive floral and fruity notes. While it shows slightly better resistance to disease than its Bourbon parent, it remains sensitive to issues such as coffee leaf rust and therefore requires careful farm management, balanced nutrition, and attentive pruning to maintain plant health, productivity, and consistent quality.
Process
The process begins with careful harvesting, where only ripe coffee cherries are handpicked. The freshly harvested fruit is then submerged in water, allowing defective or underripe cherries to float and be removed, ensuring a clean and uniform selection.
Next, the cherries undergo a 24-hour fermentation, followed by thorough washing to halt the process and remove any remaining mucilage. The coffee is then sun-dried on traditional raised beds before being hulled to remove the parchment layer, retaining only the Excelso-grade beans.
Once dried and hulled, the beans are immersed in hot water for several hours, a step repeated twice. During this phase, heat facilitates the extraction of caffeine from the beans. A natural solvent, or must, derived from coffee pulp or husk, is then added, and the beans are left to soak for 24 hours to further assist caffeine removal.
Afterward, the coffee is carefully washed to eliminate any remaining residues and finally dried for approximately five days to reach stability and proper moisture levels.
