Producer: Diana Velez
Farm: Yambamine
Region: Sozoranga , Loja, Ecuador
Variety: Sidra
Process: Red Washed
Altitude: 1800 masl
Harvested: 2024
 
CUPPING NOTES: Red ripe fruits, cantaloupe, blackberry, vanilla, red apple. Super sweet, juicy with sparkling acidity.
 
Transparency.
What we paid:
-Coffee: 46.71€/Kg
-Handling fee: 45€
-Shipping: 2.25€/Kg
-Packaging: 1€/jar
Quantity bought: 30 Kg
 
This is the third year sourcing coffees from Yambamine, Ecuador, through our friends from Makicuna.
 
The variety Sidra was developed in Ecuadorian soil and is a hybrid between Red Bourbon and Typica. This is one of Ecuador's most popular and demanded varietals. It combines characteristics of both its parents; it has acquired the sweetness and the body of Red Bourbon and the bright taste and acidity of Typica.
 
Yambamine ranked #6 in Cup of Excellence Ecuador 2021, scoring 89.61 points, with the naturally processed version on the same Sidra varietal.
 
Meet the farmer.
Yambamine is owned by Diana Velez, and its sister farm, Chorora, is owned by Olinka Velez.
These farms are located next to each other on a steep hillside surrounded by primary cloud forest and crossed by the old ‘Inca Road’ that once connected Cuzco with Quito. The land has stunning views of the valley of Macara and Peru on the horizon.

Diana describes their venture into coffee as a transformative way of life. Both sisters started planting coffee around the year 2010 after some significant life changes; since then, they’ve been drawn from the city into the land, investing a lot of effort, time and emotion into producing coffee. As Diana and Olinka would describe it, this land is mystical and charged with good energy.
The farm is divided into two main parcels. Chorora means ‘water well’ in Kichwa, and Yambamine means ‘land of gold. In both lots, there are 8 hectares of planted coffee. The varietals produced here are Typica Mejorado, Catuai, Hybrid, and Sidra, and at the moment, they are experimenting with new varietals such as Wush Wush and Morita.

The Sidra variety in both farms comes directly from the ‘mother’ Sidra plant, being only the second generation of this varietal.
Olinka and Diana are also pioneers in experimenting with different processes and are constantly developing new methods and techniques. Managed by Hernan Cabra, an expert in coffee processes, this farm has produced unique profiles and won the ‘Taza Dorada’ competition of 2019 with a record-breaking score in Ecuador. Their coffees speak for themselves.
 
Process.
This is the Yambamine signature process, it is essentially a washed anaerobic with extended fermentation. The cherries are washed but left with some mucilage and then fermented in tanks with CO2 for 264 hours. During the fermentation, the parchment acquires a red colour, hence ‘red washed’