Guatemala La Bella

A SPECIAL PROCESS AND VARIETY YIELD A SWEET AND INTENSE CUP

TASTING NOTES: Black Cherry, Toffee, Red Wine

Region: El Progreso

Altitude:1450-1650 meters

Variety: Villa Sarchi

INGREDIENTS: 100% Arabica Coffee Beans

ROASTER'S NOTES:

Finca La Bella is located in the southern part of Guatemala near a town called El Progreso, not too far from the border with El Salvador. It is a newer growing region to the Guatemalan coffee scene, and has had very promising results. The farm is owned by Teo Engelardt, and totals 110 hectares. Similar to other more well-known producing areas like Huehuetenago and Antigua, the farm is located high in the mountains at over 1500 meters. Another unique attribute is their use of the Villa Sarchi variety, which is more commonly found in Costa Rica. Villa Sarchi is a natural mutation of Bourbon that has a smaller bean size and great yields at higher altitudes. 

This offering from La Bella is a traditionally washed coffee, however Teo adds in a pre-soak period to start fermentation in cherry form. The coffee is then de-pulped and fermented in tanks after this initial soak period. A similar process has been widely used in Kenya for quite some time and is often referred to as a “Kenya soak.”  The coffee is then slowly dried on elevated beds over a period of 10-14 days.

ROAST PROFILE:

CUP CHARACTERISTICS:

This coffee is sweet and intense with flavors of black cherry and toffee. It has a red wine-like acidity and a crisp sweet finish. Both the process and variety yield great results in this classic Guatemalan offering.

RECOMMENDED BREW METHODS:

• 17g of water / 1g of coffee (adj. to desired brew strength)