Coffee plants grow best at a particular altitude and temperature - not too hot, not too cold, with plenty of rain and rich soil. The Colombian Andes provide almost perfect conditions. The region's coffee is known for being smooth and mild, which comes from the altitude: higher up, the coffee cherries ripen slowly, which builds a more complex flavour.
A coffee plant takes about three to four years before it produces its first harvest. The small round fruits - called coffee cherries - start out green and turn bright red when they are ready to pick. Inside each cherry are two small seeds. Those seeds are what we call coffee beans.
In the Coffee Region, much of the picking is still done by hand, because the hillsides are too steep for machines. Farmers walk up and down the rows checking each cherry. Only the ripe red ones are picked - the green ones are left to ripen. A skilled picker can harvest about 100 kg of cherries in a day.
The towns of the Coffee Region are famous for their 'paisa' architecture - wooden houses painted in many colours, with carved wooden balconies decorated with flowers. The town of Salento is especially well known, sitting at the edge of the Cocora Valley. Jeeps painted bright yellow take visitors up and down the mountain roads.