Onyx - Colombia Jairo Arcila Lychee

A third-generation coffee grower from Quindío, Colombia, Jairo Arcila has dedicated his life to coffee and community. Married to Luz Helena Salazar, Jairo is the proud father of Carlos and Felipe Arcila, co-founders of Cofinet. His journey in coffee began over four decades ago as Mill Manager for Colombia’s second-largest exporter—a role he held until retiring in 2019. In 1987, Jairo took a leap of faith and purchased his first farm, Finca La Esmeralda. It was here that he planted his first Caturra lot, balancing his passion for farming with a full-time career. Over the years, Jairo’s hard work and careful planning enabled him to expand his operations, acquiring five additional farms: Villarazo, Mazatlán, Santa Mónica, Maracay, and Buenos Aires.

Jairo’s farms don’t just produce extraordinary coffee—they also provide jobs during harvest, making a meaningful impact on the local community. With the expert guidance of his sons, Jairo has embraced innovations in picking, sorting, and processing, as well as ventured into cultivating exotic coffee varieties like Pink Bourbon, Java, Papayo, and Gesha. These advancements have allowed him to craft exceptional coffees known for their distinct and remarkable flavor profiles. Beyond coffee, Jairo cultivates a variety of crops, including mandarins, oranges, plantains, and bananas—adding diversity and resilience to his farms. A family man at heart, Jairo cherishes time spent with loved ones and believes every great day starts with a hearty breakfast.

Co-Fermentation:
“Infused. Co-fermented. Inoculated." These words are often used to describe the process of co-fermentation. This is not a new practice (producers in some regions have been adding Cinnamon to fermentation tanks for years.) However, this new trend of applying different additives to fermentation or drying has taken off in the past few years. This polarizing practice involves adding anything from essential oils to fruit to spices to green coffee in order to create a dominant flavor profile that carries to the brewed cup. The cases have been argued whether the market drives these or the production of them creates demand; either way, this is one side of coffee production and processing that is being explored. As a roaster, the cornerstone of this processing method is transparency and a do-no-harm approach with infusions, ensuring the end consumer is aware of the alteration of the green coffee structure and, therefore, the brewed coffee.

The actual processing applied to this coffee is straightforward: there is an initial pre-fermentation of the cherry, followed by a depulp and a raised-bed drying. During the anaerobic fermentation phase, lychees added to the coffee cherries. The fruit esters penetrate the permeable structure of the green coffee, providing a lasting and pungent flavor through the drying process, roasting, and brewing. This process has caused quite a stir within certain circles of the specialty community, some going as far as deeming it outside of the realm of specialty. Still, it’s always been essential for us to reflect and share the many facets of coffee, especially when they’re as delicious as this offering.