What makes Colombia Nariño coffee taste so distinctive?
Nariño sits in southwestern Colombia beside Ecuador, where steep slopes and volcanic soil shape a coffee with full body and crisp acidity. The lot from Fabián Zarama near La Florida is a Caturra that cups with butterscotch, cola, cherry, and a clean, bright finish. It suits a light roast and works for both pour-over and espresso.
Altitude in Nariño can reach 2,000 meters, and temperatures hold between 16 and 25 degrees Celsius year-round. Volcanic ash from Mount Galeras, one of the most active volcanoes in the world, keeps the soil fertile. Zarama follows standardized farm practices with regular fertilizing and careful tending, which helps explain the lot's consistency and recognizable flavor.
Nariño is a high-altitude growing region in southwestern Colombia, bordering Ecuador. Its steep slopes and volcanic soil give the coffee a unique flavor, and it has attracted considerable attention in the specialty coffee world in recent years. This article focuses on the Caturra lot from Fabian Zarama's farm in this region, outlining its cultivation and processing methods, blind tasting performance, and flavor characteristics. This coffee has a full body, presenting butterscotch, cola, cherry, and a crisp acidity. It is suitable for a light roast and works well for both pour-over and espresso. Friends who enjoy Colombian coffee may wish to follow Front Street's recommendation and explore the terroir charm of Nariño and what makes this new lot so special.
For enthusiasts familiar with Colombian coffee, the name Nariño should not be unfamiliar. Roasters such as Bonanza, The Barn, Bailies, and Per Nordby have all released beans from this region. Nariño is located in the southwestern corner of Colombia, adjacent to Ecuador, with towering terrain and steep slopes. Whether it is field cultivation, fruit harvesting, or transporting coffee to the outside world, all face considerable difficulty. Yet it is precisely this land of harsh conditions that has made Nariño one of Colombia's most outstanding coffee regions, producing coffee with a distinctive flavor. Front Street has always had a fondness for Colombian Nariño, and we hope this new lot from Fabian Zarama will also win everyone's approval.
Colombia Nariño Fabian Zarama
Fabian Zarama is a coffee grower in Colombia's Nariño region, and his farm is located near La Florida.
In recent years, Nariño has attracted great attention in the specialty coffee circle. The region's altitude can rise to 2,000 meters, and combined with its unique microclimate, temperatures remain between 16 and 25 degrees Celsius year-round. Mount Galeras within its jurisdiction is among the most active volcanoes in the world, and the fertile soil created by volcanic ash allows Nariño to produce excellent-quality coffee. The coffee produced here is not only consistently high in overall quality but also highly recognizable in flavor.
Zarama has established a set of standardized cultivation practices on the farm, fertilizing regularly and carefully tending the plants, harvesting high-quality coffee cherries year after year. This particular lot is a single variety, Caturra, planted at an altitude of 1,900 meters and washed using clean mountain spring water. After the fruit is depulped, it is first fermented for 18 hours, then undergoes a 15-day drying process.
In the blind tasting, Zarama's coffee performed exceptionally well: a solid, full body, rich and complex fruit notes, along with a cola-like flavor that was deeply impressive.
Colombia Nariño
Fabian Zarama Caturra
Flavor: butterscotch, cola, cherry, crisp acidity, dense body
Suggested roast level: light roast
Whole bean, unground
Brewing recommendation: pour-over / espresso
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
