Passing through the market at place Maubert on a recent Thursday morning, I came upon a stand called OH LA, where freshly made coffee was being served. I had the pleasure of meeting the proprietor, Nataly Losada, who was serving coffee beverages—hot and cold.
The coffee that Losada serves is produced from beans grown on her father’s domain in El Arrayan, Colombia.
The variety produced on the plantation is called Catuai. After harvesting, it is prepared in three different ways:
- Natural – Workers dry whole cherries in the sun before removing the outer dried fruit.
- Semi-washed – Workers remove the outer skin and pulp but leave some sticky fruit layer (mucilage) on the bean while it dries.
- Washed – Workers use machines to remove the skin and pulp right away, let the beans ferment in water, and then wash and dry them.
When the beans are received in Paris, Nataly takes them to a collective to roast them according to the way she wants the flavor and aroma to develop.
I requested a cup of the espresso of the day, a brew that was prepared from beans that had undergone the “semi-lavé” process at the plantation. I found it to be quite bitter.
I asked Nataly if she had a bean that tasted less bitter. She indicated that the beans that had undergone the “natural” process were less so.
I purchased a 250-gram bag of the recommended coffee beans and took it home to prepare espressos using my 9Barista stove-top espresso machine.
This time, instead of bitterness, an agreeable flavor of sour cherry came through, cup after cup.
The following information appears on the bag of beans that I purchased:
Variety: Catuai
Altitude: 1,800 meters
Drying method: Natural
Tasting notes: Red fruits, panela (cooked sugarcane juice), peach
Region of origin: El Roble, Oporapa Huila
Date of roasting: September 1, 2026
Specialty coffee notation: SCA +85
Roasted in Paris
OH LA
Place Maubert in the 6th arrondissement
Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
