''Café, con aroma de mujer'' ("''Coffee, with the scent of a woman''") is a 1994

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...

produced by then programming company

RCN Televisión RCN Televisión, branded as Canal RCN (''Radio Cadena Nacional'') is a Colombian free-to-air television network. It is a Colombian open television channel, belonging to the Ardila Lülle Organization. It was founded as a television content produ ...

on state-owned

Canal A Canal A (previously known as ''Cadena Dos'') was a Colombian open television network launched on January 16, 1971, under the name ''Tele9 Corazón''. History TV9 Telebogotá (Teletigre), the first private television station in Colombia, began ...

. It was created and written by

Fernando Gaitán Fernando Gaitán Salom (9 November 1960 – 29 January 2019) was a Colombian TV series and telenovela screenwriter as well as a producer. Career Fernando Gaitán was known for weaving different histories into diverse social contexts. He gai ...

. It was broadcast in several countries throughout

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

Overview

Teresa Suárez (

Margarita Rosa de Francisco Margarita Rosa de Francisco Baquero also known as Margarita Rosa and La Mencha (born August 8, 1965) is a Colombian telenovela movie actress, singer, and TV presenter. Biography 1980s Margarita Rosa de Francisco was born in Cali, Valle Del C ...

), nicknamed "Gaviota" (Spanish for "

Gull Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders. Until the 21st century, m ...

"), and her mother Carmenza Suárez, work as harvesters and throughout the year they travel to different farmlands across

searching for work. Each October, just prior to the harvest period in the coffee axis, they travel to the

hacienda An ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or ''finca''), similar to a Roman ''latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards), ...

Casablanca in Filandia whose owner, powerful coffee businessman Octavio Vallejo, secures employment for them. One October, Vallejo dies and his family, spread over the world, heads back to Casablanca to attend the funeral. Once back in the hacienda after several years in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, his grandson Sebastián Vallejo (

Guy Ecker Guy Frederick Ecker (born February 9, 1959) is an American actor. Ecker became a household name in Latin America for his portrayal of Sebastián Vallejo in the Colombian telenovela '' Café, con aroma de mujer''. A second Colombian production, ' ...

) meets Gaviota and only with her he is eventually able to overcome his fear of women. After a few encounters, Sebastián and Gaviota begin a short, but passionate affair that becomes for both of them their first true romantic experience. They keep their romance a secret, specially from his aristocratic family, but eventually he must leave back for London after his grandfather's funeral to finish his college studies. The pair agree to reunite in Casablanca exactly the same date the following year, once he graduates, to finally marry. Shortly after Sebastián's departure, Gaviota finds out she is pregnant. Finding no means to get in contact with him, distrusting his family and with no one else to turn to, she decides to travel to Europe herself to search for him, having been deceived by a network of

human trafficking Human trafficking is the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker or others. This may encompass providing a spouse in the context of forced marriage, or the extrac ...

who prey on her naivete by offering her a job as a model but actually hoping to exploit her as a

prostitute Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. Sebastián returns to Casablanca the following year to keep his promise and, after searching for her in town, he finds out she went to Europe to work as a prostitute. Disheartened, and influenced by his avaricious cousin Iván Vallejo (

Cristóbal Errázuriz Cristóbal or Cristobal, the Spanish version of Christopher, is a masculine given name and a surname which may refer to: Given name *Cristóbal Balenciaga (1895–1972), Spanish fashion designer * Cristóbal Cobo (born 1976), Chilean academic * C ...

), he weds his friend Lucía Sandoval (

Alejandra Borrero María Alejandra Borrero Saa (born April 25, 1962) is a Colombian actress of film, stage and television. Personal life Born of a traditional family from Popayán, Borrero establishes a liberal life, where she manifests to be very different fro ...

) who accepts a lifetime in a completely

sexless marriage A sexless marriage is a marital union in which little or no sexual activity occurs between the two spouses. The US National Health and Social Life Survey in 1992 found that 2% of married respondents aged 18 to 59 reported no sexual intimacy in th ...

just to be by his side. Gaviota, having assumed a new identity in Europe as Carolina Olivares, finally returns to Colombia but only manages to arrive at Casablanca the morning after Sebastián and Lucía's wedding ceremony has taken place there. Dismayed by the sudden turn of events, Gaviota looks for her mother and secretly leaves Casablanca for good in order to stay away from Sebastián and to find a better life in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...

. Having much difficulty in the huge and unfamiliar city she eventually returns to the world of coffee, this time being employed by Cafexport, the coffee-exporting company owned by the Vallejo family, under her alternate identity as Carolina Olivares. After realising Gaviota's return to Casablanca and her almost immediate departure, and also regretting his hasty and love-lacking marriage, Sebastián decides to employ all his means to find her. Lucía eventually finds out about his previous story with Gaviota and vows to keep her marriage and fight by thwarting his plans, while Iván and his wife Lucrecia (

Sylvia de Dios Sylvia may refer to: People *Sylvia (given name) *Sylvia (singer), American country music and country pop singer and songwriter *Sylvia Robinson, American singer, record producer, and record label executive *Sylvia Vrethammar, Swedish singer credi ...

) secretly plot to keep Sebastián and Gaviota apart in order to keep late Octavio Vallejo's wealth for themselves.

Impact

This telenovela marked a difference in

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...

telenovelas and the way they were created. The story involved both typical and modern parts of Colombia, taking place in the heart of Colombian coffee plantations, showing a panoramic and authentic view of the culture of Colombian coffee growers and the traditional heartland of Colombia's coffee-growing

highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Albania * Dukagjin Highlands Armenia * Armenian Highlands Australia *Sou ...

, while also taking place in the

capital city A capital city or capital is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, Department (country subdivision), department, or other subnational entity, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city ...

and providing an insight into the coffee business in an important coffee export companyAnna Marie de la Fuente
Beating the telenovela bushes for another 'Betty' - 'Cafe' may be headed for the U.S.
''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'', 19 November 2006 and the

National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia The National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia, ( es, link=no, Federación Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia), abbreviated as Colombian Coffee Growers Federation or Fedecafé, is a non-profit business organization, popularly known for its ...

. In a short time, ''Café, con aroma de mujer'' became popular among audiences of all ages and genders, to the point that it became popularly told how the whole country would "come to a standstill" when the show came on the air on weeknights at 20:00. Its competition on

Canal Uno Canal 1 ( en, Channel 1; pronounced "Canal Uno") is a Colombian state-owned television channel. It is owned by the Government of Colombia and managed by Plural Comunicaciones, S.A.S, a private company. From 1957 to 2017, the channel was administe ...

was '' Las aguas mansas'' produced by

RTI Colombia RTI Colombia, also known as Radio Televisión Interamericana (Inter-American Radio and Television), is a Colombian television production company and former ''programadora''. It aired 14.5 hours per week of programming in 1993. In the 1990s, as a ...

, which would be remade in 2003 as the successful ''

Pasión de gavilanes ''Pasión de Gavilanes'' (international title: ''Hidden Passion'') is a Colombian telenovela written by Julio Jiménez. It is produced by RTI Colombia in conjunction with the Telemundo network and with the participation of Caracol TV company. Th ...

''. The lead star

, already popular for her roles in ''Gallito Ramirez'' (1986) and ''Los Pecados de Inés de Hinojosa'' (1988) and for being a former Miss Colombia (second place in Miss World 1985), gave life to "Gaviota", one of the most popular characters in Colombian television and De Francisco's most important work.

Cast

Main cast

... Teresa "Gaviota" Suárez / Carolina Olivares Maldonado *

... Sebastián Vallejo *

... Lucía Sandoval de Vallejo *

... Iván Vallejo *

... Lucrecia Rivas de Vallejo * Constanza Duque ... Carmenza Suárez

Supporting cast

* Sílvio Ángel ... Buitrago *

Juan Carlos Arango ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, t ...

... Aurelio * Santiago Bejarano ... Miguel Alfonso Tejeiros de Caballero * Óscar Borda ... Harold McLein * Alejandro Buenaventura ... Roberto Avellaneda * Manuel Busquets ... Jorge Latorre * Gustavo Corredor ... Rafael Vallejo * Juan Ángel ... Mauricio Salinas * Luz Dary Beltrán ... Josefina * Gloria Amparo Carmona ... Daniela * Gerardo de Francisco ... Francisco Vallejo *

Kenny Delgado Kenny is a surname, a given name, and a diminutive of several different given names. In Ireland, the surname is an Anglicisation of the Irish ''Ó Cionnaith'', also spelt ''Ó Cionnaoith'' and ''Ó Cionaodha'', meaning "descendant of Cionnaith". ...

... Víctor Ángel * Myriam De Lourdes ... Ángela Sáenz de Vallejo * Tania Fálquez ... Martha Benavides *

Danna García Danna María García Osuna (born February 4, 1978) is a Colombian actress and model best known for playing main roles in telenovelas in Colombia, Mexico and the US. Personal life She has one child, born in July 2017, from her relationship w ...

... Marcela Vallejo Cortez *

Harry Geithner Harry Geithner Cuesta ( Bogotá DC, Cundinamarca; March 9, 1967), known as Harry Geithner, is a Colombian actor, film director and producer known for being CEO of Geithnerland productions Inc., a production company, talent agency and content cre ...

... Dr. Carmona * Claudia Liliana Gonzalez ... Daniela Reyes * Jacqueline Henríquez ... Graciela * Lina María Navia ... Paula Vallejo Cortez * Haydee Ramírez ... Marcia Fontalvo *

Iván Rodríguez Iván Rodríguez Torres (born November 27, 1971), nicknamed "Pudge" and "I-Rod", is a Puerto Rican former Major League Baseball catcher. He played for the Texas Rangers (in two separate stints, comprising the majority of his career), Florida ...

... Reinaldo Pérez * Andrei Satora ... Arthur *

Rey Vásquez Rey may refer to: *Rey (given name), a given name *Rey (surname), a surname *Rey (Star Wars), Rey (''Star Wars''), a character in the ''Star Wars'' films *Rey, Iran, a city in Iran *Ray County, Iran, Ray County, in Tehran Province of Iran *Rey (fil ...

... El Galtero * Guillermo Vives ... Bernardo Vallejo Sáenz *

Dora Cadavid Dora Cadavid (23 November 1937 – 31 January 2022) was a Colombian actress, singer and announcer. Cadavid participated in over 45 television and theatre productions, making her debut at the age of ten in the play ''Doña Inés vuelve al convent ...

... Cecilia de Vallejo * Bibiana Navas ... Matilde

Soundtrack

#Gaviota #Aroma de mujer - _{''"Scent of a woman"''} #Entre dos fuegos - _{''"Between two fires"''} #Volveran las Obscuras Golondrinas - _{''"The dark swallows will return"''} #Mal Amor - _{''"Bad love"''} #Sangra un corazón - _{''"A heart bleeds"''} #A mi pesar - _{''"To my regret"''} #As de Corazones - _{''"Ace of hearts"''} #Como si nada - _{''"Like if nothing"''} #Como un cristal - _{''"Like a glass"''} #Vuelve - _{''"Come back"''} #Café café - _{''"Coffee - coffee"''} # Ni soy río, ni soy flor - _{''"Neither am river, nor a flower"''} # Chapolera # Inquietud - _{''"Concern"''} All tracks are sung by

with the exception of «Sangra un Corazón», sung by

Argentinian Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or ( feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, ...

singer Luis Andrés Penagos. The telenovela's opening credits feature «Gaviota», but its Argentinian broadcast used instead «Sin tí» by Donato y Estefano.

Remakes

''Cafe con Aroma de Mujer'' was remade in Mexico twice. In 2001,

TV Azteca TV Azteca, S.A.B. de C.V. is a Mexican multimedia conglomerate owned by Grupo Salinas. It is the second-largest mass media company in Mexico after Televisa. It primarily competes with Televisa as well as some local operators. It owns two national ...

first produced '' Cuando seas mía'' starring

Silvia Navarro Silvia Angélica Navarro Barva (born September 14, 1978) is a Mexican actress. She debuted as actress in 1997, in the lead role in the telenovela '' Perla''. Since then, she continued to work for Mexican TV network TV Azteca, and later for Te ...

and

Sergio Basañez Sergio may refer to: * Sergio (given name), for people with the given name Sergio * Sergio (carbonado), the largest rough diamond ever found * ''Sergio'' (album), a 1994 album by Sergio Blass * ''Sergio'' (2009 film), a documentary film * ''Se ...

as 'Paloma' and 'Diego'. In 2007,

Televisa Grupo Televisa is a Mexican multimedia mass media company. A major Latin American mass media corporation, it often presents itself as the largest producer of Spanish-language content. In April 2021, Televisa and Univision Communications announce ...

produced ''

Destilando Amor ''Destilando Amor'' (English: ''Distilling Love'') is a Mexican telenovela produced by Nicandro Díaz González for Televisa in 2007. It is a remake of the 1994 Colombian telenovela '' Café, con aroma de mujer''. On Monday, January 22, 2007, C ...

'' with

Angélica Rivera Angélica Rivera Hurtado (; born 2 August 1969) is a Mexican singer, model and telenovela actress who, as the wife of Former President Enrique Peña Nieto, was the First Lady of Mexico from 2012 to 2018. Rivera's work as an actress has inclu ...

and

Eduardo Yáñez Eduardo Yáñez Luévano (; born September 25, 1960) is a Mexican actor. Biography Yáñez was born in Mexico City, Mexico. He lived with his mother. He never met his father. Career Producer Ernesto Alonso saw his potential and gave him his fi ...

, changing coffee for

tequila Tequila (; ) is a liquor, distilled beverage made from the Agave tequilana, blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila, Jalisco, Tequila northwest of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Guadalajara, and in the Jaliscan Highlands ...

. In 2021, a different, modern version of '' Cafe con Aroma de Mujer'' has been remade by

, starring Laura Londoño and William Levy.''Laura Londoño será la nueva Gaviota en Café con Aroma de Mujer''
/ref> All the soundtracks in the 2021 remake are performed by Laura Londoño herself.

International release

DVD release

There are no plans to release the telenovela on DVD. However, there are

bootleg Bootleg or bootlegging most often refers to: * Bootleg recording, an audio or video recording released unofficially * Rum-running, the illegal business of transporting and trading in alcoholic beverages, hence: ** Moonshine, or illicitly made ...

copies of the show on DVD.

Sources

''Cronología del cine latinoamericano: 1990-2004''
Original Spanish article.

References

External links

*
Argentinian fansite
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cafe, Con Aroma De Mujer 1994 telenovelas Colombian telenovelas RCN Televisión telenovelas Spanish-language telenovelas 1994 Colombian television series debuts 1995 Colombian television series endings Television shows set in Bogotá