Some coffee varieties come with a very tidy history. You know where they were bred, which varieties were crossed, who selected them and when they were released.
Papayo isn't one of those.
It's a rare Colombian coffee variety, most closely associated with Huila, with distinctive elongated cherries and a reputation for tropical, floral cups. Its genetic background is still being worked out, and that uncertainty has only added to the interest around it.
Then, in 2025, Papayo appeared on one of the biggest coffee stages in the world. Australian barista Jack Simpson used a Papayo from Finca Zarza in his World Barista Championship routine in Jakarta and went on to win the title.
Why is it called Papayo?
The name is fairly literal.
Papayo cherries are noticeably different from the round fruit you see on varieties such as Caturra and Castillo. They are elongated and pointed at the end, with a shape that reminded producers of papaya.
The cherries also tend to grow in tight clusters along the branch. Inside, the seeds are large and dense, giving the green coffee a similarly distinctive appearance.
That makes Papayo relatively easy to pick out in a field once you've seen it. It doesn't look quite like the varieties that surround it.
Where did Papayo come from?
This is the difficult bit.
Papayo is strongly associated with Huila in Colombia, particularly around Acevedo, but nobody has produced a definitive account of where the variety originally came from.
There are several theories. One is that Papayo is a natural mutation of a variety such as Caturra or Bourbon. Another is that it descends from Ethiopian coffee material introduced to Colombia at some point in the past.
One story that has circulated among producers points to a former coffee research station near Acevedo. The theory is that the station grew varieties from different parts of the world, was eventually abandoned, and left behind plants that subsequently spread through surrounding farms.
It's an appealing explanation, particularly because Huila is home to several other unusual coffee populations with similarly uncertain histories. But there isn't enough surviving documentation to treat it as established fact.
Genetic testing hasn't solved the question either. Papayo samples have been reported as closely related to Ethiopian landrace material, but World Coffee Research has cautioned against treating informal claims about Papayo's identity as proven without broader, systematic testing. Even the relationship between Papayo and the similarly unusual Colombian variety Ombligon remains unresolved.
For now, the safest description is simply that Papayo is a distinctive Colombian Arabica variety with an uncertain genetic history.
Where is Papayo grown?
Huila remains the centre of Papayo production.
Acevedo is particularly associated with the variety. Producers such as Miller Bustos at Finca El Mirador have dedicated small areas of their farms to Papayo, and Sucafina continues to source Papayo from smallholders around the town.
There is also Papayo production further south in Huila. Finca Zarza near Pitalito is one of the better-known examples, thanks in part to its appearance in Jack Simpson's 2025 World Barista Championship routine.
The variety is also being grown outside Huila. Wilton Benítez has produced Papayo at Granja Paraíso 92 in Cauca, while smaller plantings have been reported in Tolima and Quindío.
Reported growing elevations generally fall between around 1,400 and 2,000 metres. Sucafina's Papayo lots from Acevedo include coffees grown around 1,500–1,650 metres, while other Colombian examples are grown considerably higher.
Growing Papayo
There isn't a large body of formal agronomic research on Papayo, so it's worth separating what producers report from what has been scientifically established.
Growers and exporters describe the variety as productive, despite its reputation as a rare specialty coffee. Its large cherries and dense seeds are distinctive, and selective harvesting is relatively straightforward because the fruit is easy to identify among other varieties.
The limited planted area is a bigger reason for its scarcity than evidence of particularly poor yields. Most producers growing Papayo have only small blocks dedicated to the variety, and demand for the coffee is still developing.
That distinction matters. A coffee can be rare because very few people grow it, rather than because it is inherently difficult to produce.
What does Papayo taste like?
This is where Papayo has earned most of its attention.
The coffees we've seen from the variety can be intensely sweet, with a silky or juicy texture and plenty of fruit. Mango, pineapple, papaya, peach and cherry have all appeared in producer and buyer descriptions. Black tea and spice can sit underneath the fruit, while some washed coffees show more chocolate, caramel and dulce de leche.
Floral notes are common too. Jasmine and hibiscus have both turned up in Colombian lots, although the exact profile depends heavily on the farm and the way the coffee is processed.
That variation is worth embracing. There's no single Papayo flavour profile that every coffee is going to reproduce.
Processing Papayo
Papayo seems to work well across a surprisingly broad range of processing methods.
Washed coffees can be clean and sweet, with fruit and floral notes clearly defined. Sucafina's washed Papayos have also shown much deeper flavours, including fudgy chocolate, caramel and dulce de leche.
Natural processing tends to add more body and fruit, while honey and experimental fermentations can push the coffee in a more aromatic direction.
Anaerobic fermentation has become particularly common among producers working with high-end Papayo. Carbonic maceration is another technique that has been used successfully on the variety.
For producers, that flexibility makes Papayo an interesting variety to experiment with. Rather than having one obvious processing route, there appears to be plenty of room to steer the coffee in different directions.
Roasting a large bean
Papayo's seeds are large and dense, which is something roasters need to account for.
Large, dense beans generally take longer for heat to reach the centre. That means a roast developed too aggressively can create a mismatch between the outside of the bean and the middle.
For us, that means approaching Papayo more like other large-seeded coffees such as Pacamara or Gesha than a standard Caturra or Castillo. The exact profile depends on the coffee and the roaster, but giving the bean enough time to develop without flattening its acidity and aromatics is the important bit.
There isn't a single Papayo roast profile that will work for every lot. Processing, moisture and density all change how the coffee behaves in the roaster.
Papayo on the competition stage
Papayo had already appeared in Colombian competitions before it reached the World Barista Championship, but 2025 was the moment it became much harder for the wider specialty industry to ignore.
Australian barista Jack Simpson used a Papayo from Finca Zarza in Huila during his winning 2025 World Barista Championship routine.
The coffee was particularly prominent in his milk beverage. According to published details of the routine, the Papayo was grown at around 1,600 metres and processed using 60 hours of oxidation followed by 160 hours of anaerobic fermentation, then dried on raised beds for 16 days.
Simpson paired it with cryo-concentrated milk, producing a rich drink built around cherry, caramel and malted chocolate flavours.
He also used the Papayo again in his signature beverage, this time alongside a Geisha from Finca Deborah in Panama. The two coffees formed part of a routine centred on fermentation, value from coffee by-products and the relationships between barista and producer.
The win gave Papayo a much bigger audience, but it didn't create the variety's reputation from nothing. Producers in Huila had already been growing and separating it for years. The competition simply put a much brighter light on something that was already happening at origin.
Why is Papayo still rare?
The biggest reason is simply scale.
Papayo is still planted on relatively small areas of Colombian farms. A few producers have made it a meaningful part of their crop, but it hasn't reached the kind of acreage occupied by Caturra, Castillo or other established varieties.
That may change. A high-profile competition result makes it easier for producers to justify planting a new variety, particularly when buyers are actively looking for it.
But expanding a variety takes time. A coffee tree needs several years before a new planting becomes properly productive, and producers have to be comfortable committing land to something with a relatively short commercial track record.
A variety still being figured out
Papayo is interesting partly because we're still learning what it actually is.
The coffee itself isn't mysterious once it's in the cup. The varieties, farms and processes can produce some remarkably sweet and aromatic coffees.
It's the history behind the trees that's difficult. There are plausible explanations for where Papayo came from, but none has yet been properly demonstrated. Genetic testing may eventually settle that question. For now, the uncertainty is part of the variety's story.
And the more Papayo is grown, tested and compared, the more we'll learn about it.
Our first Papayo
We've been keeping an eye on Papayo because the coffees are interesting before you even get to the story.
Our approach was the same as it is with any new coffee: taste first, ask questions afterwards. The fruit and floral character caught our attention on the cupping table, and the questions about the variety came later.
That's probably the right order for Papayo. There are plenty of theories about where it came from. What matters first is what ends up in the cup.
Quick varietal facts
Varietal: Papayo
Species: Coffea arabica
Pronunciation: pa-pie-oh
Origin: Colombia, particularly Huila
Genetic background: Unconfirmed; samples have been reported as closely related to Ethiopian landrace material, but the variety's complete genetic identity has not been established
Cherry appearance: Elongated, oval and pointed, often growing in clusters
Bean characteristics: Large and dense
Productive regions: Huila, with smaller plantings reported in Cauca, Tolima and Quindío
Typical altitude: Around 1,400–2,000m
Yield: Reported by producers as high, although formal agronomic data is limited
Processing: Washed, natural, honey and experimental fermentation methods
Typical cup profile: High sweetness with tropical and stone fruit, citrus, florals, black tea, spice, caramel and chocolate depending on farm and processing
Notable competition appearance: Jack Simpson's 2025 World Barista Championship routine, using Papayo from Finca Zarza in Huila
Further reading
- Perfect Daily Grind: The Papayo Variety - Why You Might See This Coffee at Competitions
- Sucafina: Luis Anibal Papayo
- Sucafina: El Mirador Papayo Natural
- World Coffee Research: Coffee Varieties Catalogue
Interested in other unusual Colombian varieties? Read our guides to Pink Bourbon, Ombligon, and Sidra.