Climpson & Sons - Fields V15: Finca Santa Fe - Lot 862, Colombia

The first settlers in the Pijao region arrived in the 1890s from Tolima. Many were radical liberal guerrillas, fleeing reprisals from the governing conservative regime and the civil disorder that culminated in the Thousand Day War. These days, it is only a 45-minute drive from Armenia to this spot; however, for the first 36 years of its existence, Pijao had no road access. Instead, there was a mountain path to Calarcá that took two days to transit by mule.

Nubia has been managing Finca Santa Fe for 17 years, which has been in the Lopez family for 32 years. Sante Fe covers a very large area (50 hectares in total), of which 10 hectares is reserved for Castillo Paraguayltio, with 7500 trees. The remaining 40 hectares is for the family housing, a nature reserve, and small-scale agriculture.

Castillo Paraguaicito is a regional variation of the Castillo varietal introduced by Cenacafe in 2005. Its main benefit for farmers is the increased resistance to Roya compared with other popular varietals. Studies show that Castillo Paraguaicito has a 73% resistance to Roya, meaning less fungicide is needed.