Bolivia is South America's only landlocked coffee producing country and is the smallest exporter of coffee on the continent.
The quality of this particular microlot, however, is hardly lacking in diversity or flavors.
Bolivia’s terroir and geography are gifted for Arabica production, especially throughout its majestic Los Yungas region, whose mountain ranges connect the low and dry Andean Altiplano with the humid Amazonian area.
(Yungas means in Aymara for "warm lands").
The most productive municipality in Los Yungas is by far Caranavi, where 80% of Bolivia's specialty coffee has continued to thrive over the decades. Copacabana is one of the colonies in Caranavi and in there live 35 families. For the majority of their members, coffee is their main income.
During the day, the families pick the cherries. Around 5 PM they meet to control & select the best cherries, then they drive straight to the Wet Mill " Buena Vista" in Caranavi town which is 40 min to 1,5 hours away. At the mill, there is strict control of the cherries. If they pass the quality check, producers will drive back home with the payment.
During harvest time in Bolivia, we have lots of rain, which makes it super difficult to only depend on raised beds under the sun for drying. At Buena Vista mill, Agricafe uses different drying methods in order to control and consistency as this is super important for the longevity of the coffee.