This is an exciting moment for me, as releasing this super delicious coffee solidifies the decision to carry on with the Roastersaurus brand, which had initially been created to raise funds to compete in the World Roasting Championship. I am super happy to be locking this decision in with a washed Pink Bourbon from Don Gabriel Castaño Buendía, where we can continue with our adventures together, exploring flavour, story, and science.

This coffee is truly special as it has been produced by Don Gabriel, who is commonly referred to as the godfather of Pink Bourbon in the southern Huila region. Having been an early adopter of the variety at a time when it was not well known yet, he has been a key person in developing its quality, as well as sharing his learnings with other producers who became inspired to produce their own.

Pink Bourbon, the now little darling of the competition world, is quite a unique variety. For a long time the industry thought that this was a spontaneous cross between Red and Yellow Bourbon, but recently we learned it is actually an Ethiopian Landrace variety. This would definitely explain the Ethiopian and Kenyan-like flavour qualities it has, despite being grown in Colombia!

When I tasted this coffee, I asked myself what dinosaur it would be and immediately saw the image of a Velociptor racing around collecting coffee cherries! Something about the coffee’s zippy & bright yet sweet & complex nature made it clear to me. I contacted the wonderful Santiago of @kill_beef and he got to work on the idea, beautifully capturing the vibe perfectly yet again and producing our newest edition to the collection:

Also- I know you might have thought it was extinct…not the Raptor…not Roastersaurus… rather the washed process, but I am happy to confirm that washed coffee does still exist. This Pink Bourbon has been washed, and that choice beautifully showcases how complex, refreshing and actually juicy the Pink Bourbon variety can be. 

To showcase the juicy character, while bringing forward a sweetness to support the brightness in the cup, I went for quite a long soak followed by a swift kick of gas to get the roast sailing to a high rate of rise. The coffee is roasted on a relatively lower drum speed as well, contributing to the complexity in the cup. I have essentially approached this coffee in the same way I approach Kenyan coffees, due to its character.

This cup is complex! It’s profile beautifully represents the feeling of being on an adventure, lending well to the overall vibe of a Roastersaurus event or content, and is layered with wonderful range of notes. The journey begins with jammy and sweet notes like raspberry and strawberry, and continues on into bright and floral notes like hibiscus and lime, creating an incredibly juicy pink lemonade-like sparkling cup. Along this little pilgrimage, I also found more exotic notes like lychee, kiwi, and dragon fruit, and I’m sure there are more layers to uncover as it rests further. 

Grab your bag here and watch this space as I’ll be looking to write more about Don Gabriel, as well as look deeper into the Pink Bourbon variety!