Franco Family Coffee Farm - Colombia La Casiana Estate Coffee Bean Flavor Notes: FrontStreet Coffee's Selection

Franco Family Coffee Farm — The Flavor of Colombia's La Casiana Estate, with FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Recommendations

This farm sits in the La Casiana area of Jardin, in Colombia's Antioquia department, at 1,800 meters. The coffee in question is a fully washed, water-fermented lot from the Franco family. The farm employs 15 permanent workers and 25 temporary workers, all of them local residents. It is also a social hub — the family has formed a football team and regularly hosts gatherings, and the operation is ideally suited to family management. It is run by Hugo Fernando, Julian David, Carlos Andres, and William Correa, whose parents also own a farm, so the brothers have been drinking coffee since childhood. They purchased this farm in 2006 — 23 hectares in total, 4 of which are planted with coffee — while also growing bananas and pineapples. Finca La Casiana had been producing coffee since 1987 under the Uribe brothers. Its infrastructure is continuously upgraded, and 100% sustainable agricultural techniques are used to ensure consistent quality: soil analysis, weeding, fertilization, and selective pruning are all carefully monitored at every stage.

The farm now has its own wet mill, a water reservoir, electrified worker housing, and internal roads.

Picking is done selectively. One of the brothers, William, is responsible for making sure that only the ripest cherries are harvested, which is achieved through multiple passes so that only the best, most mature coffee is chosen. After picking, the coffee rests for 6 hours, is pulped, and is submerged in water overnight; the water is changed the next morning and the coffee rests for another 12 hours before being sun-dried. On the cupping table it shows a lovely white-grape acidity that gives way to a sweetness reminiscent of syrup and toffee — a remarkable balance.

Farm Information

Farm: Los Pomos
Ownership: Franco Family
Altitude: 1,800 m
Variety: Caturra
Process: Fully washed fermentation, then sun-dried

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Recommendations:

V60 dripper, 15g of coffee, water at 90°C, grind setting 3, water-to-coffee ratio of roughly 1:15

Bloom with 30g of water for 30 seconds

Pouring stages: pour to 110ml, pause, wait for the water level to drop to one-third, then pour slowly up to 225ml and stop.

In other words: 30–110–85.

Other Brewing Recommendations:

French Press: grind setting 3.5–4, water at 90°C

AeroPress: grind setting 2.5, water at 90°C

Pour-over: grind setting 3.5, water at 90°C

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Colombian coffee is remarkably versatile: it works in espresso blends just as well as it does as a pour-over single origin, and the country produces bright, fruit-acid coffees, full-bodied ones, and fragrant, aromatic styles in equal measure — something for every palate. A great way to get to know the country is FrontStreet's washed Huila, from the hills of Huila province in the southern stretch of Colombia's central cordillera. Grown above 1,500 meters amid abundant rivers and mountain mist, and finished with a medium-dark roast, it highlights the mellow sweetness of dark chocolate and nuts, with a moderate body that suits pour-over and French press as readily as a moka pot or espresso machine for an americano or latte.

For something more adventurous, FrontStreet's Colombian Sidra lot is an anaerobic natural — fermented in sealed, pressurized stainless tanks where temperature, time, and pH are tightly controlled. The oxygen-free fermentation coaxes out vivid tropical fruit aromatics, and at a light-medium roast it delivers a layered bouquet of passion fruit, grape, apricot, and dried fruit, whether brewed as pour-over, cold brew, drip bag, or moka pot coffee. Home baristas with an espresso machine or moka pot might instead reach for FrontStreet's Premium Blend, which marries the creamy, nutty sweetness of Brazil with the dark-chocolate depth of Colombia — pulling a fine golden crema and making an exceptionally smooth, beginner-friendly latte, as well as a solid base for americanos, cappuccinos, and mochas.