People
A passionate engineer and true scientist, Juan Herrera is the founder of Nuna Café y Espiritu, a Colombian company based in Guatapé, Antioquia. Juan is not the typical coffee producer and his story is not the same as many Colombian farmers. He does not actually grow his own coffee and that is where it gets interesting!
“We believe that lots of things have to change and we dare to do it!” – Juan Herrera
He set his challenge purely on improving post-harvest processing methods. Purchasing freshly picked cherries from several different farmers in the southwest of Antioquia in the town of Ciudad Bolivar and Fredonias. Using the cherries to generate high quality dry parchment.
His passion for industrial engineering has led him to develop special equipment, among which, closed dryers for Naturals. After many tweaks to his fermentation and drying equipment, he has started to scale up on a beautiful terrain in Guatapé, overlooking a spectacular reservoir at 1750 meters altitude.
Product
Through continuous experiments and full control over his process, Juan Herrera has developed a consistent quality for his naturally processed lots, by standardizing and improving control over his process. Such a great challenge, but the current results are hopeful as we find soft tropical notes in his Naturals.
Price
The perseverance and innovations in coffee processing are what attract us. The price we pay for his lots is in relation to both sensorial and physical characteristics of the coffee. This is evaluated by The Coffee Quest Colombia in Medellín. Although he is still in a start-up phase, tuning his processes, our intention is to buy larger lots of his perfectly dried natural coffee.
Planet
In a complex society where everything changes, Nuna Juan Herrera definitely leaves his mark. He is able to combine his coffee knowledge with machine innovation, hoping for a future where the tradition is respected but also improved thanks to modern experimental techniques. Aiming to turn standard quality cherries into a product with added value in quality.
“We develop equipment and technologies, which enhance the dignity of man, respecting the tradition, discovering and preserving the essential” – Juan Herrera
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