Shady & Elias Bayter - Christmas Candy

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MEET THE PRODUCERS | For brothers Shady and Elias Bayter, farming and family have always gone hand in hand. They grew up watching and learning from their parents, who originally grew avocados. In 2012, however, the brothers turned their eyes to coffee and never looked back. Fast forward to today: Shady and Elias manage a beautiful farm called El Vergel, which sits on the slope of an inactive volcano in the Tolima department of Colombia. From there, they cultivate and process several varieties of specialty coffee, many of which have been featured on our menu over the years. 

This time around, we had the distinct pleasure of blending two really unique lots (one of which was processed specifically for us!). The result is a blend  that's so unapologetically festive, we couldn't resist the opportunity to add it to our holiday line-up.

TRUST THE PROCESS | Fermentation plays a big role in every lot coming out of El Vergel, and the two processing projects represented in this blend are no exception. This coffee is an equal-parts blend of two uniquely processed lots: Juicy Cherry Castillo, and CH5 Pink Bourbon.

Juicy Cherry: After being picked at peak ripeness, the coffee cherries underwent three rounds of fermentation: first, a pre-fermentation in plastic bags for 24 hours, followed by an additional 24 hours of aerobic fermentation in cherry. Finally, the cherries were de-pulped and left to ferment in anaerobic environment for five days, alongside dehydrated, ground cherries. Drying took place over the course of ten days using mechanical dryers.

CH5: We don't have all of the nitty gritty specifics on this method, but the TLDR is: as always, the coffee cherries are picked at peak ripeness. Then, they undergo extended fermentation alongside a proprietary, house-specific yeast before finally being de-pulped, washed, and dried to optimal moisture content.

TAKE A SIP | Far more than the sum of their parts, together these two coffees give us a tasting experience that is spiced, sweet, boozy, and complex. From our childhood, it recalls to mind memories of sharing (and stealing) Queen Anne chocolate-covered cherries with and from our dads throughout the holiday season. As an adult, it feels reminiscent of boozy indulgences, like those tiny, liqueur-filled chocolates that a friend brought back from Europe one year. The intense sweetness combined with the booziness from all of that fermentation also gives us something delightfully like amaretto - or even port or sherry, if that's more your style.

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Origin | Tolima, Colombia

Producers | Shady & Elias Bayter

Farm | El Vergel

Process | Washed | Co-ferment

Variety | Castillo | Pink Bourbon

Elevation | 1350-1450 masl