What You Would See Walking the Finca With Us
Imagine a walk from the gate to the top of the slope. Here is what you would pass, in the order you would pass it.
A finca is easier to understand on foot than in any description.
Summary
- A walk through the finca passes the entrance, the house, the nursery, the coffee rows, the patio, the bodega, and the shelves.
- Each stop shows a different part of the work.
- Together they reveal the whole chain from soil to piece.
Key takeaways
- Place makes a story tangible.
- The finca is a working farm, not a stage.
- Everything connects, from the nursery to the drying shelves.
Many of you may never visit the finca. So let me take you on a walk instead.
The gate
You enter from the road, through a gate that is usually open. A dirt track leads uphill, lined with shade trees. On a clear morning, the volcano is behind you.
The house and the yard
First you pass the house and its yard, where dogs lie in patches of sun. There is a kitchen garden, a clothesline, a few chairs. It is a lived-in place, not a showpiece.
The nursery
Behind the sheds, you find the nursery. Rows of young coffee seedlings in black bags, shaded by a light cover. This is where the new generation begins. See The Nursery Where the Next Century Starts.
The coffee rows
Higher up, the slope opens to rows of coffee, dark green and glossy. Shade trees stand among them. Depending on the season, the branches carry flowers, green fruit, or red cherry. Pickers move through the rows in harvest time.
The cleared ground
At one edge, the rows stop, and the ground is open. This is where the old trees stood. Here you will find the patio, its concrete pale and clean, and beside it, the walls of the bodega. The place feels new.
The shelves
In a sheltered room nearby, wire shelves hold roots and rough-turned pieces, drying slowly. The smell is sweet and woody. It is perhaps the most important room on the farm, though it looks plain. See The Drying Shelves.
The view
From the top of the slope, you can see the valley below, with the town in the distance, and the volcanoes rising behind it. In the mornings, mist lies in the folds of the land. In the evenings, the light turns golden.
What it adds up to
If you walk the whole route, you will see every stage of the work, from seedling to root to shelf. You will also see how modest the setup is. There is no grand complex, just a working farm with a few new buildings and a lot of care.
I think that is the honest answer to the question people sometimes ask, which is how such unusual objects are made. They are made on an ordinary farm, by ordinary people, from a very uncommon material.
Common questions
Can I visit the finca?
We describe the finca here for those who cannot visit. If you are interested in a visit, contact us and we will tell you what is possible.
Is it a working coffee farm?
Yes. It grows coffee, and it is also the source of the roots we turn.
Keep reading
Every piece is one of one.
Browse the specimen archive and acquire the piece that speaks to you. Each is catalogued once and sold once.