Colombia, Ají 2

Setelah eksperimen ekstensif untuk menyempurnakan metode pemrosesan varietas unik ini, José mengirimkannya ke Colombia Cup of Excellence dan meraih peringkat ke-6. Prestasi ini bukanlah hal yang mudah dari lebih dari seribu kiriman. Meskipun kopi José tidak meraih posisi teratas, kopi ini menjadi sorotan dari kompetisi, para penyelenggara tercengang oleh profil rasa kopi ini dan belum pernah menemukan varietas Ají sebelumnya. Penasaran, mereka memutuskan untuk melakukan tes genetik untuk memastikan keunikannya. Hasilnya mengungkapkan bahwa varietas ini adalah generasi pertama keturunan dari hutan kopi liar Etiopia, mirip dengan Gesha. Di hutan lebat ini, ratusan varietas kopi yang belum ditemukan tumbuh subur, tidak tersentuh dan belum dijelajahi.

Ají is a rare coffee variety you won’t often see, so it’s no surprise that it’s got an interesting story. Named Ají by José Herman Salazar, he first stumbled upon it on his farm, La Guaca, in Pitalito, Colombia. José noticed a distinct sweet red pepper scent wafting through the air during the cherry harvest, from a crop of some of his coffee trees that looked a little different. Intrigued, he decided to isolate these trees and process coffee exclusively from them.

After extensive experimentation to perfect the processing method for this unique variety, José submitted it to the Colombia Cup of Excellence and secured 6th place. This achievement is no small feat from over a thousand submissions. While José's coffee didn't clinch the top spot, it became a standout from the competition, the organisers being astounded by the taste profile of this coffee and having never encountered the Ají variety before. Intrigued, they decided to conduct genetic testing to confirm its uniqueness. The results revealed that this variety was a first-generation offspring from the wild coffee forests of Ethiopia, similar to Gesha. In these lush forests, hundreds of undiscovered coffee varieties thrive, untouched and unexplored.