Between Quetzales and Coffee Part 1

With Cobán as a starting point, we then crossed the country along the coffee belt from Huehuetenango in the west all the way to Esquipulas in the southeast. On the road, we were awed by the countless volcanoes, tasted a variety of local dishes, and most importantly, we met with experienced people, all with a different story to tell.  

In this first part, a recap of our visits in Cobán, Huehuetenango and Atitlán. Next week, we'll recap Finca El Morito in Mataquescuintla and  Ecofincas in  Escuipulas in Guatemala's Nuevo Oriente region. 

First stop: Finca Aurora - Coban, Alta Verapaz department 

Last year we were fortunate enough to already bring the Finca Aurora coffees to Europe. Now we got to see where the magic happens! 

Finca Aurora is first in its class in terms of technologically advanced coffee production and processing. Arturo oversees the entire process from seedling to dried and milled coffee. He puts great focus on soil analysis and achieving the perfect balance in the soil for the plants to thrive in the humid microclimate. With inspiration from the wine industry, the wet mill is made of stainless steel. This greatly facilitates cleaning and avoids contamination during fermentation and washing. 

Every step of the production process is analyzed and constantly monitored, from the balance in the soil to the temperature and Brix degrees during fermentation and the temperature during the drying process. Nothing escapes Arturo's attention! 

Second stop: Finca Los Laureles - La Democracia, Huehuetenango 

Finca Los Laureles' coffee featured on our list two years ago. Last year we did not manage to buy their coffee, so we decided to visit and see how the Sosa family was doing. 

83-year old Mario Sosa is the owner of the farm and still visits the farm every week with his wife Raquel. The breathtaking, 360-degree panoramic view over the mountains from the house's terrace easily makes you understand why! His son Mario Antonio now runs the daily business of the farm. Finca Los Laureles produces washed estate coffees with typical Huehuetenango cup notes: one-third chocolate, two-thirds bright and juicy fruitiness. 

Farms in the Huehuetenango region seemed to be most affected by the increasingly common labor shortage. Ongoing migration paired with low coffee prices makes it hard to attract enough pickers to complete the harvesting season. Roughly 60% of a farm's production cost consists of paying salaries to workers. 

Third stop: Finca La Providencia & Finca Calahute - San Pedro Necta, Huehuetenango 

In the afternoon, we continued to San Pedro Necta for a visit of Finca La Providencia and Finca Calahute, owned by Victor Hugo and Alfonso Anzueto. 

Hugo is the second generation to run La Providencia. His 5-hectare farm sits at 1,300 to 1,600 meters above sea level. The control over cherry quality at intake is remarkable here. The most uniform redness colors the cherry hopper. The single picker who did miss out on a couple of immature cherries in his bag was sent back to sort his delivery before being accepted. 

During our visit, the sun was burning mercilessly. On hot days like these, the drying patio is not the preferred option to dry coffee, since the beans would dry out too fast and uncontrolled. The mechanical drier provides much better control over the drying in these conditions. 

On our way down the mountain, we made our final stop for the day at Alfonso's Finca Calahute to see a different and larger-scale style of processing, as well as more experimental processing methods. 

Fourth stop: COMAL cooperative - San Pedro Necta, Huehuetenango 

Our Guatemalan trip would not be complete without seeing the traditional smallholder coffee production of Huehuetenango's highlands. We visited Don Pedro, one of COMAL's 230 coffee producing members. On the small farm, the entire process is carried out manually, only with a small motor powering the depulper. Fermentation takes place in wooden troughs, and washing is done by hand in a basket in the sink right next to the trough. 

The COMAL cooperative has been our trusted source for organic and Fairtrade coffee from Huehuetenango for three years in a row. The small cooperative is part of FECCEG, a federation of 12 cooperatives in the western highlands of Guatemala. These 12 cooperatives have diversified their income through beekeeping and production of honey. Two cooperatives are not involved in coffee at all.  

Fifth stop: Finca La Providencia - Santiago Atitlán, Sololá  

Note: Guatemala has many farms named La Providencia. Same for any Spanish-speaking coffee country. Best check the location if you found a La Providencia coffee you love! 

First: A jaw-dropping entry to the Atitlán lake region. Three volcanoes, a huge lake and a bright morning sun in a cloudless sky, seen from the surrounding mountains. The Atitlán lake used to be a volcano, nature is pretty amazing here. 

Second: exchanging the bus for a boat to cross the lake to Santiago and meet with Juan Francisco Pira. He runs an exporting company, a wet mill and two farms in the Atitlan region. One of these, La Providencia, sits just off the lakeside. The flat farm at 1,580 meters above sea level encourages a leisurely stroll while admiring the strong coffee plants and the sights on the volcanoes. 

Juan processes cherry from smallholders in the region next to his own microlots. He experiments a lot with varieties to find which is best-suited for the microclimate around Atitlan. Currently, he cultivates on his farm Ouro Verde, Ruiru 11, Obata, Villa Sarchi, Bourbon, Typica, Catuai and Caturra.