Amarelo Mantiqueira

Our latest Guatemalan goodness is a welcome return from Francisco Morales and his farm La Esperanza, the first farm we visited on our trip back in 2024 with importer Primavera. La Esperanza is perched at 1700m high up in the famous Huehuetenango (abbrev. huehue) region and the views from the drying patios of the surrounding mountains were quite something. Francisco and his wife have been the proud owners of La Esperanza farm in Cipresales for over 40 years over which time they have achieved a great deal. As like many other producers, the initial years of starting their farm activities were very challenging ones. But thanks to the hard work, dedication and commitment of the family, the farm has grown into a business that provides income for the household and generates a source of employment for many others in the surrounding area. The name of the farm, which in English translates into “The Hope”, explains well how important coffee production is for them. Francisco is the type of person that never feels done learning new things. His eagerness to hear experiences from others, and try out new things at the farm, wet mill or drying area. His curiosity and interest for improving coffee quality resulted in winning several prizes the Huehuetenango Highland competitions. Francisco’s son Desvin is in charge of the processing of his lots. Lots are depulped the same day as harvest and dry fermented around 24 hours (but this can vary based on the ambient temperature each day). The coffee is then dried on the cement patio. Roast profile: We've roasted this coffee in our 'omni' profile. A little more development of body and sweetness than a pure filter profile which means this coffee suits brewing with any method ie. filter or espresso.

Our fourth year with this beautiful coffee from Jonny Martinez and his import business MiCafe and it never fails to please. We've bought some exceptional coffees over the last few years from MiCafe including this special Pink Bourbon and jumped at the chance to buy it again. Jonny owns El Jaragual which is managed by his cousin Jorge Mira. El Jaragual, spans 150 hectares located in Amalfi, Antioquia, Colombia, positioned perfectly in the northern area of the central Colombian Andes. A significant portion of El Jaragual is dedicated to forestry, leveraging Jorge's background as a forestry engineer. The farm features a blend of pine tree plantations aimed at sustainable timber production, alongside conserved areas of native forest. Currently, they cultivate seven coffee varieties at El Jaragual, shaded by plantain trees and other native agroforestry species, ranging from traditional varieties like Castillo/Colombia to exotic types such as this Pink Bourbon, Geisha, Typica Mejorado and Sidra. The coffee processing methods employed at El Jaragual are refined, involving extended fermentation phases with yeast inoculation and temperature adjustments, such as warm water rinses and cool water quenches, to enhance and stabilise the aromatic qualities developed during fermentation. This represents a thoughtful balance between traditional and modern processing techniques, in line with the techniques we've seen over the last few years from the likes of Wilton Benitez and Diego Bermudez amongst others. The method is multi-step starting with a period of oxidisation in the cherry in drums for 24hrs. Then de-pulping and a further 24hr dry oxidation followed by a brief hot 45C washing (thermal shock). Then the 36hr wet fermentation with a specific yeast culture. Washing at 5C to ‘seal’ the fermentation, and finally 76hr controlled drying.

Something new and very special from the famous Guji region and a return from Sookoo Coffee founded by Ture Waji aka 'The King of Guji' and imported exclusively by our friends at Osito coffee. This selection was placed in Grain Pro bags in a reduced oxygen environment (anoxic) for 86 hrs giving this classic Guji a little sparkly twist. Sookoo Coffee is located in Odo Shakiso within the Oromia Region and Guji Zone. Each lot is named for the kebele from which the cherry comes e.g. Birbissa, Bookkisa, and this Shoondhisa. This relatively young but already well known coffee area is recognised for its unique and distinctive cup profiles. In this beautiful landscape of forest jungle at an elevation of 2100-2350m, you can hear the workers singing cultural Guji songs while moving coffee around. Most of the cherry being delivered are one of two varieties; Gibirinna 74110 and Serto 74112. Both of these are from the Metu Bishari selections made in the forest of the same name in the Illubabor Zone by the Jimma Agricultural Research Center (JARC) in 1974. They were selected for their resistance to Coffee Berry Disease. Now they are some of the most propagated varieties in Ethiopia. After the anaerobic peroid in Grain Pro, the cherries are all dried at the Suke station on raised beds at an elevation of 2170m for around 15-20 days in very thin layers. They are moved and rotated frequently to ensure even and precise drying. The net results of all the effort are some of the most vibrant and pristinely clean natural Ethiopian coffees we have seen. Unlike many naturals, they present with high florality and acidity with very little booziness. They are often described as "Ethiopia first, natural processing second."

Our first Mexican beauty from the Sierra Sur region where we visited back in March this year is from Carlos Hernandez and a naturally processed Pluma Hidalgo variety. Naturals (dried in the skin) are risky in Mexico because of the humidity, but when they're good, they're very good. Carlos is a member of Union San Pedro located in Barrio San Antonio in San Pedro El Alto. 2025 was his first year producing naturals alongside his regular washed coffees (that contribute to the Union San Pedro Blend). The first year was certainly a trial or proof of concept phase and as the coffees cupped very well Carlos began to expand his naturals and also experimenting with honeys this year. For this natural process, cherry is rested for three nights in the skin and then dried on patios, Petates (mats) and even at times inside the house depending on the weather, for an average drying time of 20 days. Raw Material and Red Beetle Coffee Lab have focused their work in the Oaxaca and Chiapas regions and been working with smallholder producers contributing to regional 'blends' as well as separating some special coffees for micro-lots including this natural from Carlos Hernandez. It was a privilege to cup these fresh crop coffees at the Red Beetle HQ and a few the the many lots we tasted have made their way to the UK spread amongst the roasters that attended the trip. We were lucky in securing this lot from Carlos and it's our first release from that trip. Production yields have become dangerously low and over the last ten years coffee leaf rust disease and the lack of financial or agricultural means to tackle it has reduced production by up to 90% in some regions. The average yield in Oaxaca is now just 100kg of parchment per hectare. For context, in Colombia, the average yield is 2,400kg per hectare. The vast majority of Mexico’s 500,000 coffee producers are smallholder farmers and have one hectare or less of land under coffee. This makes the average annual production for many producers just 100kg, making coffee farming more and more unsustainable. This is fuelling widespread migration to urban centres in Mexico and the United States. In short, coffee production is disappearing.