Los Vascos

The south of Tolima is a place rich in water sources, good soil and mountainous, with heavy vegeta-tion. It is in this area where you’ll arrive to the small-town of Bilbao, nestled in between the moun-tains, and part of the bigger municipality of Planadas. Los Vascos started in 2015 with the opening of the warehouse in Bilbao. The name of the brand derives from the same name of the town, as it is also a major city in the Spanish Basque country. But most importantly, the name is a direct allusion to the Basque people known for their resilience and agricultural practices. The Basques are known for their hard work and now a day also for their innovation in cuisine, in a rugged place such as the Basque Country against the sea and full of green mountains. This spirit is imbued in the coffee growers of this area which constantly produce amazing coffees and have started to experiment and innovate at their farms. They have challenged the status quo and pushed forward, following that entrepreneurial and resilient spirit of the Basques.

Bilbao was founded around 1929 by four settlers who were looking for better lands and opportuni-ties. They saw the potential of this land for agriculture which through time became an amazing spot due to its climatic and soil conditions for coffee. The soils here have a great layer of organic material, good water drainage and with adequate acidity. Besides coffee you’ll find other crops in the area such as corn and beans, in addition to the smaller crops they have at the farms for their own consumption such as plantain, yuca, arracacha and some vegetables.