Javier Madrid and family, Finca El Bosque

I didn't want my wife, Lorena, to find out, because she didn't believe in coffee as a viable crop and had told me not to do it.

Of course, she found out too soon, and it was only by using all my powers of persuasion that I managed to convince her to continue. Gradually, she became as enthusiastic as I was. We bought more land, and today we have a beautiful farm spanning over 100 hectares in a decades-old pine forest. Originally, I'm a lawyer, and I still have an office in two small towns near the farm. But now, our two children are young adults and are torn between becoming lawyers themselves or coffee farmers.

Helping people fight injustice is a great job, but coffee is our passion, and in my opinion, we also fight injustice through our farm. The farm has become an important part of our own livelihood and is the main source of income for dozens of people, such as pickers from the surrounding villages, who would otherwise be unemployed for most of the year.

At Christmas, and then again on National Children's Day in September, we distribute special foods, small gifts, or school supplies to support our employees and their families. When I think back to how it all started, with a few dozen plants I hid from my wife like a naughty child hides a stolen cookie from their mother, I feel incredibly proud of everything we've accomplished in the last two decades. And the best way to share this pride with you is by inviting you to try some of our exquisite coffees.