Meet Oscar Omar Alonzo:

After Dynamite aided in the foundation of the microlot program at COMSA, Oscar Omar Alonzo was one of our founding partners in 2012. Making him one of our longest-standing direct trade partnerships. He began growing coffee at age 17 on 2 acres of land given to him by his grandmother. After a difficult start, Oscar converted to 100% Organic production and rededicated his first farm as “Finca Cual Bicicleta” because “when you ride a bike, you have to maintain equilibrium, you have to be careful, never look back, and you don’t pollute”. This philosophy has carried throughout every lot he’s produced ever since.

Over the years, Oscar has used the premium from his organic coffee to do something most small producers can’t: buy more land. In 2018, he purchased a second farm at 1,700 masl in Chinacla- higher altitude, finer bean development, and a name unlike anything in coffee. He called it Finca Vi Un Pato Montado En Una Bicicleta Que Iba A La Finca- “I Saw A Duck Riding A Bicycle That Went To The Farm”. A pretty funny name for a farm, but it represents Oscar at his core. Dynamite tries to see Oscar at least once a year, and in turn, Oscar has visited us in Black Mountain countless times. One year, Oscar, Andy, and Jack (Andy’s son) sat around the kitchen table for breakfast. With various inside jokes formed, Oscar peered at some artwork done by Jack on the wall. It was of course, a duck riding his bike to the farm. The rest is history, but the artwork and farm name stand strong.

Vi Un Pato is now Oscar’s experimental farm. He uses it to test new techniques, new varietals, and push the boundaries of what’s possible at altitude. Including the new fields of Gesha and a Gayo Satu seedling Andy brought back from Sumatra. Today, Oscar is a man of his community. While still producing amazing coffee, he’s also the mayor of his town. Recently, he’s built both a wet mill to process his own and other people’s coffee and a water tower to supply water to his community. Oscar’s enthusiasm and work ethic are the same as it was in 2012. His coffee’s only ever getting better.