This is the fourth "edition" from small-farm selections in the Tolima department of Colombia. Tolima is one of my favorite coffee origins in Colombia, and the Tolima microlot offerings we evaluate through our Colombia farm gate program are some of my highest rated. Most of the lots are from Herrera and Rioblanco areas, a remote zone that is fairly difficult to access compared to other coffee areas. Part of the issue is that Tolima was one of the last active FARC areas where the conflict between the government, paramilitary and FARC continued. Sadly is is always the farmers who are held to the land who suffer. Still, we work the through local Cooperative called Asoceas to access their fantastic coffees, and have designated this blend as "Dos Payasos de Tolima" as a riff on the first lot we called Los Pijaos de Tolima. As you might guess, payaso means clown. Not to say there is any nonsense to this lot; it's fantastic! The aromatics here are very complex and sweet. These are coffees that are really nice in the cup, but don't make the high standard for our Tolima farm-specific micro-lots. They are assembled into Dos Payasos, aiming for brightness, balanced by complex deeper-toned flavors.

The dry fragrance has hibiscus floral hints, almond milk, some red apple and flame grape. Adding the hot water, the fruit has a slight winey aspect, warming spice, fig, grape and raisin. There is a nice caramelized sugar whiff on the break, a bit like panela sugar. The lighter roasts have golden raisin fruit sweetness and apple-like brightness. The finish has a pleasant tart, drying quality, a bit like apple skins. There's dashes of spiciness too; cinnamon stick, clove. Caramel and spice linger as the cup cools, as well as orange spice tea. The body isn't heavy, but syrupy in mouthfeel to balance out the brighter aspects of the cup. The lightest City roast was my favorite, with that golden raisin sweetness provoking a mouth-watering response. Darker roasts cool well though, and the sweetness and fruit peek out from behind bittering roast flavors as the Full City roast cup cools.

Felix Guzman is a coffee producer near the town of Herrera, Tolima. We work here with the ASOCEAS cooperative to identify small lots of coffee with special qualities, and reward the farmer with higher prices for their coffee based on cupping scores. The first (and most important) screening of the incoming microlots happens right in Herrera, where the local cupper Newerly Gutierrez uses a Behmor roaster (with amazing skill, I might add) to evaluate the coffees. Each coffee lot, no matter how small, is kept separate and scored on its merit. I visited Herrera and it's a beautiful town set high up in a fairly remote area of Tolima. I could not visit until last year; concerns about instability persist in these more remote parts of Tolima, where the FARC Guerilla and their enemies in private armies, the Paramilitarios, kept the farming families in a state of constant fear. Everything seems peaceful and prosperous now, but reminders of the war are not so distant in the form of gutted houses and empty slab foundations in the towns along the valley headed to Herrera town. Anyway, the farmers in ASOCEAS have been working hard on their coffee quality and it shows in the cup. This lot from Sr. Felix is really nice!

The dry fragrance of the lighter City roast has banana, malt, and a grainy sweetness, where darker roasts have a much more caramelized sugar scent, a developed sweetness. The wet aroma has this same malty-banana fruit scent, a slight herbal tea note, and this very beautiful tropical fruit on the break; guava/passionfruit. The cup is right in line with the aromatics; sweet brown sugar (like raw panela sugar) notes, with banana and tropical fruits in the lighter roasts. I was delighted how sweet this cup remained throughout the roast spectrum. Perhaps only the lightest City roast I did was a bit chaff-like in the finish, with a bit of nut skins. Let it develop a little more after first crack. Everything from City+ to Full City+ was wonderful.

In our farm-direct Colombia program, when a coffee is between 86 and 88, it goes into our blend (Dos Payasos de Tolima), and above 88 it becomes a farm-specific microlot. Carlos Imbachi's Buenavista farm is one that has distinguished itself with an 88+ score too many times to count. Carlos Imbachi's coffee won First Place at the SCAA Coffee of the Year in both 2009 and 2010. To give you some perspective, the famous Panama Esmeralda Especial Gesha came in 2nd to Carlos Imbachi! It speaks volumes about the quality potential of Colombia coffees, once you stop blending the great ones with the lesser ones. I have visited the farm several times, located in the San Augustin area of Huila at 1753 meters altitude.

The dry fragrance of this coffee is cake-like, with a strong sweetness, honey, plum, tropical fruits, and raisin. The light roast fragrance is intoxicating and sweet. Add hot water and the darkly-fruited roast notes emerge, accented by cinnamon-clove spice. In the cup this coffee is juicy and bright, the lighter roasts having more intense fruited brightness; peach, tamarind, and winey plum notes in the finish. It is so sweet, so well-graced with clean fruit flavors and floral suggestions. Looking at the roasts I did, the light City roast looked impossibly under-done, but cupped wonderfully, my top pick for sure. For City roast, listen to first crack and stop the roast when it has concluded; it will look variegated in color and creased but cup beautifully. Carlos Imbachi is exceptional through the entire roast spectrum from City to FC+, but the light roasts are where all it's special character is in full bloom. If you end up with a darker roasts, expect "chocolate-covered raisin" character, nice but not so exotic as the light roast flavor profile. Yet as the dark roast cools, this coffee distinguishes itself from the ordinary, with tea rose notes, stone fruit and plum peaking out from behind the bittersweet chocolates.

Einar Ortiz is a coffee producer near the town of Herrera, Tolima. We work here with the ASOCEAS cooperative to identify small lots of coffee with special qualities, and reward the farmer with higher prices based on cupping scores. The first (and most important) screening of the incoming microlots happens right in Herrera, where the local cupper and coffee farmer Newerly Gutierrez uses a Behmor roaster (with amazing skill, I might add) to evaluate the coffees. Each coffee lot, no matter how small, is kept separate and scored on its merit. I visited Herrera for the first time and it's a beautiful town set high up in a fairly remote area of Tolima. I could not visit before because, sadly, concerns about instability persist in these more remote parts of Tolima, where the FARC Guerilla and their enemies in private armies, the Paramilitarios, kept the farming families in a state of constant turmoil. Everything seems peaceful and prosperous during my visit, but reminders of the war are not so distant; I saw a village of bombed-out houses where paramilitary lived, locals still unsure about rebuilding. It was the coffee farmers trapped in the middle of these disputes. The fact we have stability, there is a cupping lab in the town, and we can get on with discovering and rewarding the great quality of the coffees in this area is a testament that times are changing for the better.

The dry fragrance is very sweet, caramel and honey, with a suggestion of citrus in the lighter roasts. In the wet aromatics, again it is a sweet honey quality that dominates, with a floral hint and a unique sweet butter quality as well. The cup has a crisp, clear brightness, citrusy and vibrant. Aromatic lemon blossom comes through, with Golden Delicious apple, and a light honey sweetness. The cup is incredibly consistent throughout the roast range, from City+ to Full City. The brightness holds up well into the Full City+ roast, where a gingerbread roast taste emerges. The body is light. While this isn't a powerhouse coffee, it excels in having a wonderfully translucent cup character. And it has unique characteristics compared with the other Tolima micro lots, showing how much the soil, climate, cutlivar, and methods of a particular farmer and farm express themselves in the cup.