Co-Ferment Coffee, Fruit Fermentations and Why Jairo Arcila Is Changing the Conversation
- harryjd
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
There’s a certain kind of person out there (and I say this with love) who’s not looking for another “notes of chocolate, hazelnut, and polite citrus.” They want fun coffees. Loud coffees. Coffees that make you stop mid-sip and go: hang on… what is this?
If that’s you, you’ve probably already fallen down the rabbit hole of co-ferment coffee. And if you haven’t yet, I’ll be your tour guide.
Because at Cracked Coffee, our co-ferments have become a bit of a thing. We've been roasting and selling a lot of different ones recently. And the more we’ve sold, the more I’ve realised something important:
Co-ferments can be a brilliant gateway into specialty coffee — if the producer is at the centre of the story.
So this post is for anyone searching things like coferment coffee, fruit fermentation coffee or infused coffee — and wondering whether it’s all hype… or whether there’s something genuinely exciting going on.
Spoiler: there is. And one of the names leading the charge is Jairo Arcila.
First: what is co-ferment coffee?
In simple terms, co-fermented coffee is coffee that’s been fermented alongside another ingredient (often fruit, flowers, or botanicals) during processing — so those aromatics influence the final cup.
This matters: it’s not syrup added at the bar, and it’s not “flavoured coffee” in the old-school sense. The flavour influence happens at origin, during fermentation, while the coffee is still a fruit.
There are loads of ways producers can do this (and every lot is different). You’ll hear words like anaerobic fermentation, maceration, inoculation, and so on — but the important part is this:
Co-ferments are a processing choice. A producer-led style. A way of shaping flavour — just like washed, natural, honey, or anaerobic lots.
And when it’s done well, it can be absolutely mind-bending.
“Infused coffee” vs “co-ferment coffee”: the word that starts arguments
You’ll see the term infused coffee used online a lot, and honestly, I get why: it’s the word people search for.
But it also comes with baggage.
Some “infused” coffees are vague about what’s happened, or who did it, or what was added, or when. And that’s where the conversation gets spicy.
My take is simple: transparency fixes most of the problem.
If a producer is clear about the process, the fermentation environment, and what was introduced during fermentation — we can talk about it like adults. It becomes less about “is this cheating?” and more about:
What flavours are possible?
How does it change the experience for the drinker?
And how do we make sure the producer gets the credit (and value) for the work?
Which brings me to Jairo.
Why we’re obsessed with Jairo Arcila co-ferments
Jairo Arcila is a Colombian producer associated with a seriously dialled-in experimental program. And what I love about his co-ferments is that they don’t feel like a gimmick — they feel like a deliberate, repeatable approach to flavour design, while still being rooted in coffee processing.
Two examples from our current lineup show the kind of transparency we’re here for:
This lot goes through a dry anaerobic fermentation for 72 hours with the pulp on, and coconut is added during that fermentation stage. After that, it’s pulped and dried on raised beds below 35°C until it reaches ideal moisture.
That’s not marketing fluff. That’s an actual process description you can understand.
And in the cup? The notes are coconut cream, vanilla, cacao nibs, brown sugar - think Bounty!
This is the sort of coffee that makes a coconut mocha feel like it was always meant to exist.
This one is a honey-processed Pink Bourbon with a 72-hour dry anaerobic fermentation, and during fermentation smashed roses are added to build that “rose tea” character.
After fermentation the cherries are pulped (leaving that sticky honey mucilage), then carefully dried and monitored to hit an ideal moisture range of around 11%.
Cupping notes are: rose petals, caramel, mandarin, with a score of 88.5.
Again: clear, specific, producer-forward.
The bit people miss: co-ferments can reduce the need for syrups
Here’s a hill I’ll happily die on (politely, with a long black in hand):
Co-ferments can create better flavour drinks than syrups.
Not always, and not for everyone, but when it works, it’s magic — because the flavour is woven into the coffee’s aromatic structure rather than sitting on top as pure sweetness.
That’s why we love serving them in the shop as playful menu specials:
Coconut mocha using the Honey + Coconut lot (it’s basically cheating, but in a producer-approved way)
Blackberry flat white that tastes like dessert but still tastes like coffee
Peach filter that makes people look up from the cup and go “how is that even real?”
And if co-ferments bring someone into specialty coffee who would never usually drink it? Perfect. Because once you realise coffee can taste like this, you start asking bigger questions — origin, variety, process, producer. That’s the doorway.
Our current co-ferment lineup
Most of our co-ferments are Jairo Arcila coffees, because we’re big on producer trust and clarity.
Right now you’ll often see some combination of:
Rose (Jairo Arcila) - coming soon
Watermelon (coming in warmer months)
Availability rotates, because these are microlots and production is limited!
👉 The easiest move is to head straight here: Shop our coffee
So… is co-ferment coffee “real” specialty coffee?
If the producer is doing the work, owns the process, and tells the truth about what happened — yes.
And I’d go further: it’s a fascinating extension of what specialty coffee has always been about.
Specialty coffee is essentially an obsession with variables:
variety
altitude
picking
fermentation environment
drying control
milling
roasting
brewing
Co-ferments are just another variable — one that’s creating a whole new flavour vocabulary. It’s not replacing washed Kenya or a clean Ethiopian natural. It’s expanding the world.
And if we keep it producer-led and transparent, it becomes a genuinely exciting part of the specialty landscape — not a shady side quest.
FAQ for the curious people
What is co-ferment coffee?
Co-ferment coffee is coffee that is fermented alongside another ingredient — often fruit or botanicals — during processing to influence the final flavour.
Is co-fermented coffee the same as infused coffee?
People often use the terms interchangeably. “Infused coffee” is a common search term, but “co-ferment” usually implies the flavour influence happened during fermentation at origin (not syrup added later).
Does co-ferment coffee contain added flavouring?
In producer-led co-ferments, an ingredient (like fruit or flowers) may be added during fermentation. For example, one Jairo Arcila lot we carry adds coconut during a 72-hour dry anaerobic fermentation. Another adds smashed roses during fermentation to create a rose tea profile.
Who is Jairo Arcila?
Jairo Arcila is a third-generation coffee producer from Quindío, Colombia. His two sons Felipe and Carlos co-own Cofinet - a coffee export company. They focus on sustainable, high-quality, and innovative, alternative fermentation processes for exotic coffee varieties. We focus on their coffees because the processing is described clearly and the producer remains the centre of the story, they're always finding exciting new producers throughout the countries they source from
What does co-ferment coffee taste like?
It varies wildly. Depending on the lot, it can lean into flavours like coconut cream, rose tea, peach, blackberry, banana, cherry, strawberry — while still tasting like coffee.
Come try A Co-ferment at CRACKED COFFEE HOUSE in Mold - or get them delivered!
If you’re the kind of person who gets excited by coffees that taste like coconut cream or rose tea, I promise you: you’re among friends here.
Or come into the coffee shop in Mold, North Wales - and we’ll brew them in different ways so you can actually experience what co-fermentation does across espresso, milk drinks, and filter.
Because honestly, these coffees are better when you can talk about them while you drink them, so.. let’s get cracking.
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