Colombia Caturra Honey

REGION: NariñoFARM / CO-OP: Aponte CommunityELEVATION: 2150 metersPROCESS: Honey TASTING NOTES: Raisinets, Caramel, Red Apple  The Inga community of Aponte is comprised of descendants of the ancient, pre-hispanic Incas. During the period of conquest, they remained isolated high in the mountains that became their natural refuge. This community did not resume significant contact with the rest of Colombia until the second half of the nineteenth century. Unfortunately, in the 1990’s, contact was mostly criminal, and the Inga’s refuge became a place of cruelty. For years the tribe was forcibly involved in poppy and heroin production under the influence of guerrilla groups, drug traffickers, and paramilitaries. The once-peaceful mountains teemed with illegal plantations and violence, in which the Ingas were trapped until as recently as fifteen years ago. In the last decade the mountains have become a safe zone for the Inga tribe, and illegal crops were eradicated to give way to a new culture