Huehuetenango

Huehuetenango is the highest growing region in Guatemala and is one of only three non-volcanic soil regions in the country. Its clay soils and heavy rainfall make it an ideal environment for high-quality coffee production.

Caturra & Bourbon

Bourbon takes its name from Bourbon Island (now La Réunion), where it was introduced by French missionaries who had taken a few coffee seeds from Yemen in the 1700s. Along with Typica, Bourbon accounts for the basis of most of the world's coffee production today which is made up of Bourbon and Typica descendant varieties. Bourbon is known for its high-quality potential, susceptibility to disease and relatively low yields.

A natural mutation of Bourbon, originally discovered in Brazil in the early 20th century; Caturra derives its name from the Guarani word for “small,” a reference to its diminutive stature that results from a single-gene mutation causing dwarfism. It was this small size- allowing for more trees to be planted closer together- that led to mass selections of Caturra being made by the Instituto Agronomico (IAC) of Sao Paulo State in Campinas in the 1930’s. Caturra then made its way to Guatemala during the 1940’s and then was widely adopted in the 1970’s by the rest of Central America, where it is now one of the most economically important varieties. At high altitudes Caturra has strong quality and yield potential but unfortunately, is quite susceptible to disease.

Washed

Gregorio and pickers on his farm pick throughout the day, de-pulp the coffee in the afternoon, and leave it in an open tank to ferment, usually for about 24 hours. Gregorio says that he knows when it’s time to wash the coffee by putting a stick in the tank to evaluate how much mucilage has been removed from the coffee. He washes the coffee, and then dries it on a patio for about 6-7 days.