William Buitrago and his wife Aminta Mahocha Franco have farmed the steep valley of Rio La China in the Tolima region for over 30 years. Their farm, La Esperanza (meaning “the hope”) sits at 1,960 meters above sea level. It’s located in the traditional territory of the Pijao people, an indigenous group whose cultural heritage still shapes towns in the area.
William is also a dedicated beekeeper, keeping over 30 hives at La Esperanza. He sees the two as inseparable; the coffee blossoms give the honey its distinctive floral notes, while the bees pollinate the coffee flowers. On a farm visit, he showed us multiple hives of Melipona bees he had relocated while pruning his coffee trees, keeping these wild native bees as pets.
When we told William how much we enjoyed his coffee, he said, “It’s one thing to get premiums for quality, but another to get recognition from a part of the world so far away.”
