Emilio Antonio Medina

Emilio grows coffee with his wife Olga Solano at Finca La Colina. He started growing coffee more than 25 years ago after noticing that coffee grown at lower altitudes in the area where he was working at the time, and it was good quality coffee. 

He quickly realized his farm was at a higher elevation and could produce even better quality, which motivated him. Until 7 years ago, he brought a pulper to have more control over the coffee processing step, since he mainly sold coffee in cherry. So, Emilio began to learn more about processing protocols and improve processing techniques to reach specialty coffee standards. At the farm, he processes daily lots using traditional infrastructure, performing dry fermentation (without water) for an average of 36 days, and then drying the coffee on concrete terraces or patios for an average of 8 to 10 days. Currently, 60% of the varieties are Caturra, 20% Bourbon, 10% Gesha, and 10% Pacamara. For the next harvest, he plans to increase the production of Gesha and Pacamara and improve processing infrastructure and pulper capacity as production continues to increase. 

He currently works with his wife, who helps with legal matters and payroll, while his children focus on other personal projects. In addition to growing coffee, Emilio also grows forest trees and leases the remaining land to other farmers who need it to grow staple crops. For Emilio, his farm is special because it is his father’s legacy, and he prides himself on producing excellent quality coffee. He says, “I hope that customers will like my coffee. Next year I will increase production, and my farm is open to welcome you and show you our plantations.”