Bolivia Navarro Family - Caturra, Washed (72 Hour Ferment)

Tastes Like: Pink Lemonade, Grilled Pineapple, Dark Choc

Producer: The Navarro Family
Department: La Paz
Province: Caranavi
Town: Taipiplaya
Variety: Caturra
Altitude: 1646 MASL
Process: Washed 72 Hour Ferment

This special microlot was produced by the Navarro family in Taipiplaya, a remote township on the outskirts of the Caranavi province. Caranavi is the epicentre for specialty production in Bolivia, with incredibly high elevations, rich soil, and wide daily temperature ranges providing the perfect conditions to produce exceptional coffee.

While the Navarros are originally from the department of Potosí, in central Bolivia, the family left the region looking for better income opportunities by working in agriculture. While two of the siblings moved to the department of Sucre, and another to Cochabamba, the rest of them moved to Taipiplaya (which is in the department of La Paz) in 2006.

Led by son Víctor, five members of the family have established themselves with neighbouring plots of land in the community of Barrio Nuevo. Parents Don Mariano and Doña Victoria live with Víctor and his family, while his sisters Julia (the eldest) and Cármen live next door, and together they farm four hectares of land. All five Navarros are Adventist Christians (Víctor is the pastor at their local church) and follow a vegetarian diet — which they generously shared with us on our most recent visit, when they invited us over for lunch.

Known as Finca Navarro, the family’s farm is found at 1,600-1,700m above sea level and is made up of Caturra and Catuaí trees. Interestingly, because it sits at sixteen degrees latitude (for reference, most farms in Caranavi sit at fifteen degrees), cherry maturation here is quite slow, leading to more complex sugars and a greater intensity of flavour in the final cup. Up to fifteen seasonal workers help the Navarros during the harvest, though as Víctor exclaimed, “Next year, we’ll need to hire more. It’s going to be a big one!”

When the Navarros first moved to the region, they found some success in growing coca at the nearby community of Vía Imperial. While this was taxing on the soil, it was a profitable venture because it could be harvested three, and sometimes four, times a year. Eventually, the government began to limit coca production in Taipiplaya, making the crop inviable for the Navarros. With the little knowledge of agriculture they had, the family decided to farm coffee instead, following the traditional techniques that were common practice in the region. Unfortunately, this led to a really difficult decade for the family. As Víctor described it on our most recent visit, “I felt like I was in a hole that I couldn’t get out of…”

Finances were challenging, and the Navarros felt they’d have to uproot their lives and relocate again, this time to the department of Cochabamba. What stopped them was their lack of funds to afford the move, and a conversation Víctor had with Pedro Rodríguez about the Sol de la Mañana program. After learning about the initiative, the family decided to give it a chance, even though it entailed a four year committmnent. “If it didn’t work, we were going to have to walk away and leave Taipiplaya,” Víctor recounted.