a colombian coffee family since 1935
The Presidential Standard of Coffee
Montealegre carries a heritage that spans more than 190 years. Across six generations, the Ospina name is written in Colombia’s history as much for its presidencies as for its coffee, making our legacy one of leadership, craft, and institution.
To grasp the depth of this story, we turn to documented milestones: from Mariano Ospina Rodríguez’s Cultivo del Café (1880), the first agronomic manual of its kind in the Americas, to Mariano Ospina Pérez’s presidency, which fortified Colombia’s coffee institutions and secured their place on the world stage.
History records statesmen, agronomists, and pioneers as the architects of Colombian coffee.
Founder’s Legacy
Mariano Ospina Rodríguez began planting coffee in 1835 in Antioquia (Fredonia), approaching it as applied science through experimental plantings, soil and altitude study, and refined picking and processing.
In 1880 he published Cultivo del Café, the manual that made method teachable and quality repeatable.
He opened European channels in London, Liverpool, Le Havre, Hamburg and Bremen, setting expectations for clarity and presentation.
Farmer, educator, exporter and statesman, he moved coffee from crop to disciplined product with steady European demand, the heritage behind Montealegre’s name, relationships and access.
Coffee Treasury
Pedro Nel Ospina Vásquez started as a coffee grower in Fredonia, pushing modern cultivation with his brother Tulio.
As President of Colombia (1922–1926), he acted for coffee’s long term health: he brought the Kemmerer Mission, founded the Banco de la República, the Comptroller’s Office and the Banking Superintendence, strengthened agricultural credit via the Agricultural Mortgage Bank, and improved roads, rail and ports.
The outcome was stability, credit and predictable trade conditions that let Colombian coffee scale with confidence and discipline.
National Coffee System
Mariano Ospina Pérez, turned the vision into policy and institutions.
As an early General Manager of the National Federation of Coffee Growers, he professionalized the sector and led the creation of Cenicafé (scientific agronomy) and the National Coffee Fund (price stability and quality finance).
As President of Colombia (1946–1950), he made coffee a public priority and institutional backbone.
Craft at the Highest Standard
Today, Montealegre Coffee embodies that same discipline. We work with Colombia’s rarest terroirs and cultivars including Gesha, Sidra, Pink Bourbon, each scoring 86 to 90 under SCA protocols. Our standards are uncompromising: fewer than 5% of the lots we taste bear the Montealegre name.
Every detail matters: cherries picked at peak ripeness, floated to remove imperfections, dried with precision, sorted by density and sweetness, and roasted with restraint to preserve their character. In the cup, expect an aroma that opens immediately, flavors that stay precise as the temperature drops, and a long, clean finish.
Our goal is clear: the finest coffee experience you will ever taste.