Colombia Linarco Rodriguez

Producer Linarco Rodriguez Ospina
Farm Finca Betania; El Silencio
Municipality Palestina
Department Huila

Sun Exposure Mixed Shade
Farm Size 32 hectares with 5 hectares dedicated to native forest
Altitude 1700-2000masl
Latitude 1.72295
Longitude -76.154115

Variety Geisha
Process Natural
Fermentation 90hr anaerobic
Drying 30 days on patios

Flavor Apricot, Mango, Raspberry, Kiwi, Black Cherry, Floral
Descriptors Sticky Sweetness, Lingering, Bubbly

About this Coffee Driving out of the small village of Palestina, deep in the southern part of Huila, one follows a rough dirt road for a couple miles before reaching the farm of Linarco Rodriquez Ospina, a third generation coffee producer who we have come to form a strong friendship with over the years. After visiting and staying on the farm with Linarco and family, we have been honored to buy some of his most prized coffees, including his geisha which won this year’s Best of Huila competition. This is one of two heavy hitting Geisha coffees from Linarco on the menu right now - the other is a hi-fi Anaerobic Washed Geisha.

The upper section of Linarco’s farm is where most of the Geisha is grown, stretching up the mountainside all the way to 2000masl, with orange, lemon, avocado, and other fruit trees intermixed among the coffee bushes. Linarco is keenly aware of the health of his farm and the surrounding area – since his entire family lives directly on the farm and eat what they can grow on the farm, no pesticides or other chemicals are used. Linarco has 4 different sections of Geisha growing, with the El Silencio section having recently reached peak maturity in terms of age of plants, production quality, and complexity of cup profile.

Ripe cherries are floated for sorting and to clean them before being sealed in barrels, where Lino targets a 90hr fermentation, while monitoring pH and temperature. Afterwards, the cherries are removed from the tanks and taken to the front of his house where they are placed on covered patios for 30 days.  Finally, after drying the cherries are hulled and placed into bags to allow for the moisture to homogenize before being readied for export.

We’ve been familiar with Lino’s coffee since 2013/14 and have been fans of his high clarity, fruit forward and wickedly clean coffees for the past decade. Which meant directly sourcing coffee from him when Idle Hands begun was a no brainer; and most recently, Peter spent a good time there with Lino in the second half of 2023 and delivered his mom her winning Cup of Excellence certificate on behalf of ACE. The time he spent there solidified our partnership with him after years of messaging back and forth. Peter and Lino continue to share weekly updates of family, bad domestic beers and the latest hits from Huila. Lino’s coffees continue to be some of the most exciting coffees on the Idle Hands menu every year.