Guatemala El Fogon

Guatemala El Fogon

This is a very interesting coffee with balanced flavours of chocolate, with a sweet fruit aroma. Listed as a SHB (strictly hard bean) grade, this coffee is grown at 1350m the ideal height for gourmet coffee. The altitude and mild temperatures give the coffee time to develop and mature slowly. The beans are sorted in Europe to remove any undesirable defects before being re-sacked.

Guatemala Coffee

Guatemala is a central American country which is bordered by Mexico. Due to its proximation to the equator, Guatemala enjoys wet and dry seasons. With a steady temperature of 22°C and 4 inches of rainfall every month it is ideal for growing coffee. Guatemala is known for unique, premium beans, and have been exporting green beans since the 19th century. Guatemala has a high reputation for traceability, farmers and plantation owners have their own wet mills and harvest stations which allows a thorough trail of production to be known. Typical characteristics of Guatemalan coffee include winey acidity, heavier bodies and chocolate notes.

Guatemala coffee growing regions

It is estimated that the country produces over 3 million bags of beans every year. It produces varieties such as Bourbon, Caturra, Catuai, Typica, Maragogype, Pache & Pacamara, and has several producing regions. These are:

1. Antigua – Known for its rich volcanic soil, low humidity, sunshine and cool breezes is what makes these beans so brilliant.
2. Acatenango Valley – The beans benefit from lots of shade on steep slopes. The soil is rich and full of nutrients due to the eruptions from nearby volcanos.
3. Atitlán – Mostly grown against the slopes of volcanoes. The beans gain their unique characteristics from cold winds.
4. Cobán – This region gets nice ripe cherries from plenty of rainfall. Labour is intense here because of the staggered flowering.
5. Fraijanes Plateau – High altitudes, heavy rainfall and varied humidity is what gives these beans their unique flavours.
6. Huehuetenango – One of the three non-volcanic regions. It’s high elevations, dry climate and inability to get frost makes fantastic speciality beans.
7. Nueva Oriente – Dominated by small, local producers. Beans from this region can be varied because of this.
8. San Marcos – Gets the earliest flowering due to heavy rainfall.