"Upon grinding, the aroma presents blackberry jam, blueberry, and grape. On the palate, blackberry jam, blueberry, and purple grape lead, followed by mixed berries and a soft peach yogurt note. The cup is full, solid, and fruit-forward."

Aponte Blackberry is produced by members of the Aponte community in Nariño, Colombia, through a network of smallholder farms rather than a single estate. The community belongs to the Inga Indigenous territory, where coffee has become an important agricultural focus after a difficult history shaped by isolation, conflict, and the replacement of illicit crops. Producers in Aponte have developed a distinct identity around honey processing, supported by community-level quality practices and export partnerships. Their work is based on selective harvesting, careful drying, and the preservation of fruit character through lower-water processing. This Blackberry Honey lot reflects both collective production and a more contemporary approach to fermentation, where traditional farm methods are paired with controlled fruit-must rehydration.

Aponte is located high in the mountains of Nariño, in southern Colombia near the Ecuadorian border. The coffee is grown at approximately 2,150 metres above sea level, with surrounding production areas often reaching between 2,000 and 2,500 metres. This elevation creates cooler maturation conditions, helping cherries develop slowly with concentrated sweetness and structured acidity. The area is also influenced by volcanic soils and nutrient-rich ash associated with Galeras Volcano. These conditions give the coffee a strong highland foundation, supporting clarity, density, and a distinct expression of place.

This lot is composed of Caturra and Castillo, two varieties widely cultivated in Colombia for their adaptability and cup potential. Caturra is a compact mutation of Bourbon and is valued for its sweetness, balance, and clear acidity when grown at high elevation. Castillo was developed in Colombia for improved disease resistance while maintaining quality suitable for specialty production. In Aponte, both varieties are shaped by altitude, volcanic soil, and honey processing, allowing them to carry sweetness and fruit character with stability. Their combination gives this lot a practical agronomic base and enough structure to support the Blackberry Honey method.

For this process, ripe cherries are harvested by hand and sorted before being depulped for honey processing. The coffee is dried with mucilage remaining on the parchment, allowing the natural sugars of the cherry to influence texture and sweetness during drying. For the Blackberry Honey variation, fresh blackberry juice is fermented for 72 hours under controlled conditions to produce a fruit must. After the initial honey stage, the coffee is rehydrated with this fermented blackberry must, allowing additional aromatic compounds to integrate into the parchment before drying continues. The coffee is then dried on raised beds and parabolic dryers, supporting airflow, even moisture reduction, and better control across the lot.

Aponte Blackberry is shaped by the meeting of high-altitude Nariño coffee, community-led honey processing, and a defined fruit-must fermentation technique. The blackberry component is not treated as a substitute for terroir, but as a controlled layer added to the honey process through rehydration. This approach builds fruit intensity while still relying on the structure of Caturra, Castillo, and Aponte’s mountain conditions. Raised-bed and parabolic drying help preserve consistency while reducing the need for heavy water use. The result is a coffee that represents Aponte’s collective identity through a more experimental and carefully managed honey profile.

Variety : Caturra, Castillo
Altitude : 2,150 MASL
Process : Blackberry Honey
Origin : Aponte, Nariño, Colombia