Part of an initiative to support Colombian coffee producers through a difficult period. Carlos Escobar will donate part of the proceeds to support the redevelopment of his home region in Colombia.
SIDRA HYDROHONEY – JHOAN VERGARA
Sidra HydroHoney comes from Finca Las Flores in Acevedo, Huila, Colombia, where producer Jhoan Vergara grows the Sidra variety. It may be the most meaningful coffee in Differente’s history. Carlos Escobar and Jhoan developed the HydroHoney process together at Las Flores for Carlos’s entry in the 2024 Colombian Brewers Cup. Carlos won that competition with this coffee, which earned him the chance to represent Colombia at the 2025 World Brewers Cup.
Lot details
- Farm: Las Flores
- Region: Acevedo, Huila, Colombia
- Producer: Jhoan Vergara
- Variety: Sidra
- Process: HydroHoney
- Roaster: Differente Coffee
Process. HydroHoney blends fresh Sidra cherries with Sidra cherries that have already been fermented. The ratio changes depending on the result the team wants. In a 50/50 version, for example, half the lot is freshly harvested cherries and half is previously fermented cherries. The two are depulped together, which removes the outer skin but keeps the sticky fruit layer, called mucilage, on the seed. The coffee is then dried honey-style in dehumidifiers, which keeps the drying controlled. The name reflects these steps: fresh and fermented cherries combined, then honey processing and controlled drying. The goal is to join the character that fermentation develops with the qualities of fresh fruit, and so create a new expression of a single variety.
A coffee made together. Differente and Jhoan built this protocol as partners. That makes it more than a lot selected from a producer: it is a coffee they created together, and it remains exclusive to Differente in Colombia.
In the cup. Differente deliberately doesn’t provide specific tasting notes for its coffees.
Carlos strongly believes coffee is a subjective experience. Everyone perceives flavors differently depending on their memories, culture, experiences, and personal preferences.
Differente doesn’t want to tell people what they should taste before taking their first sip. Instead, Carlos wants them to explore and discover their own interpretation of each coffee.
That’s why Differente focuses on describing the experience, intensity, character, and feeling behind each coffee rather than providing a list of flavors.
Their selection focuses on coffees that are far from ordinary. Carlos works with some of Colombia’s most innovative producers to showcase expressions of Colombian coffee that go well beyond what people traditionally expect.
About the Roaster – Carlos Escobar, Differente Coffee
Carlos Escobar is the son of a Colombian coffee farmer. He returned to coffee after 12 years in Australia, where he won the 2020 Australian Brewers Cup. He placed third at the 2025 World Brewers Cup in Jakarta, representing Colombia with Differente Coffee. On October 18, 2026, he won the Colombian Brewers Cup (Campeonato Colombiano de Cafés Filtrados) in Bogotá. This is his second Colombian national title, and it qualifies him to represent Colombia at the World Brewers Cup again. He founded Differente in Colombia to roast the country’s top lots where they are grown, instead of exporting them as green coffee.
Each coffee Carlos selects is roasted in Colombia, close to the farm that produced it.
