Where do arabica coffee beans come from in Colombia's Huila region?
Arabica coffee beans come from farms across the tropics, and one example sits near San Agustin in Colombia's Huila region. There, La Pelota Farm grows Pink Bourbon, a natural hybrid of Yellow Bourbon and Red Bourbon that appears through recessive gene expression. The washed micro-lot was picked at 1,944 meters and shows sweet orange, sugarcane sweetness and a juicy mouthfeel.
The arabica beans meaning here is tied to variety and inheritance. Because the pink cherry color depends on recessive genes in the pollen, only a small share of trees express it. Of roughly 1,800 coffee trees, each yields about 1.8 kg of fresh cherries per season, which after processing gives around 0.36 kg of green coffee, which is why the variety stays scarce.
In the small town of San Agustin in Colombia's Huila region, there is a national archaeological park designated as a World Heritage Site. This place is not only home to Colombia's earliest human settlement but also produces one of the world's rarest coffees: Pink Bourbon. Pink Bourbon is a natural hybrid of Yellow Bourbon and Red Bourbon, a rare variety resulting from recessive gene expression, known for its cultivation challenges and extremely low yield. The green bean buying team from Front Street Coffee traveled to La Pelota Farm to select this micro-lot washed Pink Bourbon, which offers notes of sweet orange, sugarcane sweetness, and a delightful juicy mouthfeel. This article will guide you through the genetic secrets of Pink Bourbon, the challenges of cultivation, and the story and flavor profile behind this coffee.
Pink Bourbon
Front Street Bourbon coffee is the result of genetic mutation. Varieties include Red Bourbon and Yellow Bourbon, while Pink Bourbon is an extremely rare new variety. These beans are quite romantic; when the coffee cherries ripen, they turn a lovely pink color.
Pink Bourbon is a hybrid of Yellow Bourbon and Red Bourbon. Since the color of the coffee fruit is ultimately determined by recessive genes in the pollen grains, out of 1,800 coffee trees, each tree produces about 1.8 kg of fresh cherries per harvest season, which after processing yields around 0.36 kg of coffee beans.
COLOMBIA HUILA SAN AGUSTIN LA PELOTA PINK BOURBON
Front Street Colombia Huila San Agustin La Pelota Farm Pink Bourbon Micro-lot Specialty Coffee
Sweet orange, sugarcane sweetness, delightful juicy mouthfeel
Origin: Huila, Colombia
Variety: Pink Bourbon
Processing station: La Pelota Farm
Altitude: 1,944 meters
Processing method: Washed
Harvest and processing time: 2017
Roast level: Light
The small town of San Agustin in the Huila region is home to a national archaeological park designated as a World Heritage Site and is also the area where Colombia's earliest human remains were discovered. From the stone statues with faces somewhat resembling Asians, one can almost glimpse traces of early human migration. The arrangements of history are truly astonishing—and equally astonishing is the world's one-of-a-kind Pink Bourbon coffee produced here.
Everyone is familiar with Yellow Bourbon and Red Bourbon, but Pink Bourbon might be somewhat less known. At a Colombian coffee cupping event during last year's Hotelex exhibition in Shanghai, I had the fortunate opportunity to taste a Pink Bourbon that outshone many Colombian Geishas, and that's when I learned about such an extraordinary coffee variety.
Pink Bourbon is a natural hybrid of Yellow Bourbon and Red Bourbon. Yellow Bourbon and Red Bourbon belong to the "dominant traits" expressed by "dominant genes" and have relatively strong reproductive stability. However, the new variety Pink Bourbon, resulting from their hybridization, belongs to the "recessive traits" expressed by "recessive genes," and offspring produced through hybrid reproduction are highly prone to trait segregation. Furthermore, coffee trees rely on pollen for sexual reproduction, and other dominant trait trees can easily pollinate Pink Bourbon, severely affecting the flowering and fruiting of the next season. This is the main reason why Yellow Bourbon and Red Bourbon are relatively common, while Pink Bourbon is rarely seen.
At this point, some might ask: Does this mean that after drinking Pink Bourbon this year, there won't be any next year? In fact, that's not the case. First, the natural hybridization of Yellow Bourbon and Red Bourbon to produce Pink Bourbon will not stop. Second, almost all Arabica coffee is "self-pollinating," meaning that the coffee flowers and pollen for pollination can come from the same plant, or even the same flower, which greatly enhances the stability of recessive trait expression. Therefore, when cultivating Pink Bourbon, a relatively isolated growing environment is essential to avoid genetic contamination from other varieties.
The Pink Bourbon coffee variety was first discovered in Huila, Palestine, Colombia, and is currently mainly grown in the Huila region of Colombia. This shipment of Front Street Colombia Pink Bourbon was selected by the green bean buying team from Zhongcha, who traveled to La Pelota Farm in the San Agustin area of Huila. For this small farm, the cultivation and management of each coffee tree are done with extra care. Taking this batch of Front Street Colombia Pink Bourbon coffee as an example, there are about 1,800 coffee trees in total. Each tree produces approximately 1.8 kg of fresh cherries per harvest season, which after pulping yields around 0.36 kg of coffee beans. In a normal harvest season, the yield of this batch of coffee is less than 650 kg.
On a bright afternoon, brew a cup of Front Street Colombia Pink Bourbon coffee. Its delightful juiciness relaxes your nerves; under the sunlight, the various fruit aromas in the garden—small tomatoes, sweet oranges, perhaps a hint of sugarcane sweetness—each sip of coffee, as the temperature changes, transforms the aroma and taste, magically renewing your understanding of Pink Bourbon. Quiet down, do not doubt, what you are drinking is coffee—this is the brilliance of Pink Bourbon.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
