Cup of Excellence Colombia reports record result

Paul Kevin Doyle of Mikava farm placed first in the Cup of Excellence (COE) Colombia North, with a record-breaking high score of 92.71 for a natural processed Gesha from the Risaralda region. As well as topping last year’s record score of 91.35, Doyle’s Gesha is the first natural to take the top spot for Colombia. “The Mikava farm is thrilled and honoured to win first place in the 2019 Colombia North COE competition,” Doyle says. “With this win we will be able to continue our project, our goals and dream of growing special coffees, and making an impact in the two communities where we have our farms.” Linarco Rodriguez Ospina of Betania farm placed second, with a score of 92.18 for a washed Caturra Tabi. Luis Gerardo Bravo Ordoñez of Caferote farm placed third with a score of 91.65 for a washed Bourbon. Both farms are based in the Huila region, which was also home to farms place fourth through seventh and ninth. Read more: Cup of Excellence to celebrate major milestone Cup of Excellence raises US$4.5 million for producing countries in 2018 Colombia Cup of Excellence breaks COE record Farmers from 12 departments submitted 101 samples, 70 per cent of which were new COE participants.  Twenty-nine coffees from the Risaralda, Huila, Santander, Quindío, Cauca and Tolima regions made it to the COE Auction, which will take place on 16 May, 2019. The COE International jury gave scores 90 and above to nine top lots and 91-plus scores to the top eight lots. “I was blown away by the quality of coffees I tasted throughout the week. Even beyond the nine Presidential Award-winning coffees, there was so much quality on the cupping table and so many unexpected profiles,” says first-time jury member Ryan Fisher of GoodBoyBob Coffee in the United States. “I think before this past week I had a picture of Colombian coffee that was incomplete. Now, I know that there is much more to Colombian coffee and it is clear that it is only getting better. I can’t wait to see what comes next and I look forward to serving on juries in Colombia and elsewhere in the future.” The COE kicked off its 20th anniversary on 29 March in Armenia, Colombia. This competition marks the return to the Colombia North competition for the first time since 2015. The 16th edition of COE Colombia was held with in-country partner Asociacion Colombiana para la Excelencia del Café. The panel represented markets including South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, United States, United Kingdom, Russian, Czech Republic, Denmark, Australia, and Colombia.  Other upcoming 2019 auctions include El Salvador on 13 June, Honduras on 11 July, Costa Rica on 18 July, Guatemala on 25 July, and Mexico on 8 August. For a full list of Colombia North competition winners, click here. For more information, visit www.allianceforcoffeeexcellence.org