Stumptown has partnered with the Cantillo Family since 2007, when the late Isaías Cantillo Ossa won first place in Colombia’s Cup of Excellence competition. Today, the farm is managed by the fourth generation of coffee producers in the Cantillo family.

In 1987, Isaías Cantillo purchased his coffee farm, La Esperanza, high up in the mountains of Southern Huila. Twenty years later, his coffee was awarded top prize in the prestigious Cup of Excellence competition. In the following years, Isaías purchased additional land around his farm for each of his children, and Stumptown began buying from them as well – combining lots from the various Cantillos’ farms under one name. Sadly, in June 2023, Isaías Cantillo passed away from medical complications. His legacy lives on through his wife and children, who remain dedicated to the craft of producing exceptionally high quality coffee.

One of Isaías’ many legacies is his innovative spirit and passion for coffee processing. At La Esperanza, processing is a methodical task, honed over decades and informed by constant quality control. After harvest, coffee cherries are manually depulped, fermented, and washed. The Cantillos take extra care with their coffee at one of the most vulnerable moments: the drying stage. Coffee parchment is pre-dried at low temperatures for two to three days to first wick water away, and then fully dried on covered patios for several weeks. Additional raised beds have been installed to improve drying infrastructure in recent years.

The Cantillo Family also taste their own coffee in a home quality control lab, evaluating samples of every single lot produced on the farm. With such a close connection to the quality of their coffee, it is no surprise to us that this offering tastes better, year after year.

Several years ago, we asked Isaías what part of coffee he enjoyed the most. He told us, "The truth is, I don't have a favorite aspect of coffee, because I love it all. For example, to see the plants looking healthy is a beautiful thing. Then when the fruit ripens, and from there the different processing steps that follow—fermentation and washing—it is all beautiful. The entire process is something I enjoy very much.”