NAME: Edier & Fabian Vargas

NOTES: Apricot, White grape, Honey

COUNTRY: Colombia

REGION:  Hulia, Oporapa

PRODUCER: Edier & Fabian Vargas

VARIETY: Pink Bourbon

ALTITUDE: 1950 MASL

PROCESS: Washed

In the misty hills of Oporapa, Huila, brothers Edier and Fabian Vargas have carved out a small, resilient coffee farm at the edge of what's possible. At 2,000 MASL, their two-hectare plot sits on land once thought too cold for coffee. Today, it's producing some of the region’s most expressive Pink Bourbon - the result of grit, care, and the quiet power of community.

The coffee undergoes a double-stage aerobic fermentation: 50 hours in cherry and 50 hours depulped, before being washed and dried.

Processing is a test of endurance. Without their own wet mill or drying beds, Edier and Fabian rely on the generosity of neighbors and family, hauling parchment by motorcycle, shifting it between borrowed drying spaces, and navigating around others' harvests. It’s a fragile system, and yet they persist.

But when nature allows, the results are stunning: a cup full of apricot sweetness, white grape brightness, and silky honeyed depth - layered fruit, crisp florals, and a delicate structure that are hallmarks of expertly grown Pink Bourbon. Recognizing its value, the brothers are now replacing their original Catimor trees with Pink Bourbon propagated from their own seed stock. They’ve also begun trials with Laurina, Gesha, and Chiroso, looking toward an even more exciting future.

Behind every cherry is a minga, a traditional Colombian model of collective work. The Vargas brothers rotate shifts on each other’s farms. Their sister-in-law Luisa fuels the team with daily meals as they raise the next generation of coffee farmers together. This spirit of mutual support stretches far beyond their farm, connecting producers, pickers, mill workers, cuppers, and roasters, all part of one shared effort.

This is coffee not just grown, but lifted, by many hands. And it shows in every cup.