Colombia Felipe Arcila Jardines del Eden SL28 Natural

Felipe Arcila; Jardines del Eden; Armenia, Quindio, Colombia; Arabica SL28; Natural; 2026

Orange Peel | Nectarine | Green Grapes | Panela

In the 1930s, scientists at the Scott Agricultural Laboratories in Kenya set out to improve East African coffee by identifying trees with superior yield and disease resistance. Their research focused on 42 carefully selected specimens.

One tree from Tanganyika (Tanzania today) stood out. It showed exceptional drought tolerance and produced beans with a strikingly complex flavor. The researchers labelled it SL28—“SL” for Scott Laboratories and “28” for its position in the sequence.

Tracing back in time, Tanzania's coffee landscape has been catalysed by German colonisation in the late 19th century. They introduced Arabica varieties and established plantations on the fertile slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru. A rapid expansion in production followed. Even after World War I, British rule continued this momentum. To support small-scale farmers, the British formed cooperatives which gradually become the backbone of Tanzania’s coffee sector. Distributed in the different regions of Tanzania, these cooperatives became the breeding grounds for field-mutated varieties, which subsequently led to SL28's discovery.

After its discovery and promulgation, SL28 quickly earned a reputation for excellence. It delivered high yields and produced beans known for bright acidity, layered complexity, and a distinctive floral character. These traits made it a favorite among specialty roasters and coffee professionals.

Jardines del Edén is Cofinet's flagship farm, where they focus on growing exotic coffee varieties of competition grade and trying out experimental processing methods. We visited the beautiful farm in 2019 during our visit to Cofinet farms including Santa Monica. Coffee harvesting is done by hand, afterwhich they are transported to La Pradera wet mill for processing. This station is also the HQ of Cofinet, established by Jairo Arcila's two sons - Carlos and Felipe Arcila. La Pradera processes coffee from their own farms and selected farms not owed by them for processing or marketing under the Cofinet brand.


Roast Level

We are roasting this coffee light.


Brew Level

We are brewing this coffee with V60 using Abaca filter paper, in 2 parts. The grind is finer, around 500um, brewed using 2 temperatures. Following 1:13 ratio, we are brewing 15g of coffee to 200ml of water, as follows:

0th sec - Pour 100g of 96°C water slowly, in 20sec
45th sec - Add another 100g of 86°C water slowing using the same pouring speed
1 min 45th sec - Water drains through and brewing complete

Savouring our world in a cup!
Enjoy!