Winter Banger

Sebastian Ramirez, a fourth-generation coffee producer, and has grown coffee for almost two decades. Sebastian’s family has been producing coffee for over 100 years. When the time came for him to continue his family legacy, he knew this was his opportunity to change the family’s business model
radically.

El Placer Farms sold coffee to the local cooperatives before Sebastian's time. The prices paid for coffee were always dictated by the coffee market. Sebastian's thoughts were on this: “Too much work for little reward.” Before he started leading El Placer Farms, he enrolled in a three-year coffee education at Sena, one of Colombia’s public educational services that is well known for delivering high-quality education. Sebastian first focused on learning to taste coffee,
“I knew this was the way to go. Many coffee producers don’t know how their coffee tastes and end up selling it at low prices for this reason. If you know how your coffee tastes, you will likely connect with people looking for specific flavours. On top of that, you can have more control over your pricing. It is a win-win.

During those three years, Sebastian also learned about farming and processing techniques, coffee roasting, and how to brew coffee using different methods. His work also takes a community approach. El Placer Farms provides free consultancy to coffee producers from whom Sebastian buys coffee cherries to encourage them to produce the best coffee they can. El Placer Farms has been recognised in several international championships; in 2023, our Wush Wush won the WCIGS championship, and in 2024, our Gesha White Honey won the Irish Barista Championship and also placed 6th in the WBC, just to name a few of El Placer’s achievements.