Santa Maria Ozolotepec community lot

Our latest Mexican release is this washed coffee from a small group of producers in the Santa Maria Ozolotepec region of Sierra Sur in Oaxaca sourced by Que Onda Coffee.

Oaxaca is Mexico’s fourth-largest coffee-producing state, contributing around 10% of national output. What makes it truly distinctive is its preservation of traditional varieties such as Typica and Bourbon, carefully maintained by small-scale Indigenous producers. Farms are typically 0.5 to 2 hectares, cultivated under agroforestry systems that protect native ecosystems, enrich soils with organic matter, and moderate the local microclimate through dense canopy cover.

Que Onda partners with Galguera Gómez, a three-generation coffee company (producer, miller, and exporter) with over 50 years of experience in the Sierra Sur region. This is the birthplace of the Pluma varietal - a Typica offshoot protected by a Designation of Origin, known for its elegant cup profile and exclusively grown under shaded, polyculture systems that support local biodiversity.

Galguera Gómez combines cultural preservation with rigorous quality improvement. Their work includes:

Market stability – purchasing coffee every year with quality premiums and offering pre-harvest finance when required.

Technical support – developing nanotechnology-based organic fertilisers to boost productivity and cup quality, with early trials measuring improvements in sugar content and yields.

Reforestation programmes – planting endemic trees to protect ecosystems, recognising that coffee sustainability relies on environmental resilience.

This lot comes from producers in Santa María Ozolotepec, with whom Galguera Gómez has maintained direct relationships for over 20 years. This is Que Onda’s third consecutive harvest supporting this community. Both lots were processed at the Galguera Gómez wet mill in Oaxaca City under the supervision of Jesús Galguera Gómez.

The bag designs are some of the best we've seen to date and feature an image of a Tiliche. 

Tiliches represent the working class and their Indigenous roots, with costumes crafted from old and discarded objects. This use of worn materials reflects both resistance and resilience - a form of social critique that turns hardship into festivity. Through humour, music, and dance, the Tiliches embody a creative defiance and deep connection to local identity.