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Sweet Maria's Coffee Cupping Reviews Archive: 2001-2002 Archive G to L
Main Page: 2001-2002 Archive
2001-2001 Archive A to F
  • Bolivia
  • Brazil
  • Burundi
  • Colombia
  • Congo
  • Costa Rica
  • Dominican
  • Ethiopia
  • French Chicory
 2001-2001 Archive G to L
  • Guatemala
  • Hawaii
  • Honduras
  • India
  • Jamaica
  • Java
  • Kenya
 2001-2001 Archive M to Z
    • Mexico
    • Myanmar
    • Nicaragua
    • Panama
    • Papua New Guinea
    • Peru
    • Puerto Rico
    • Saint Helena
    • Salvador (EL)

 

 M to Z
  • Sulawesi
  • Sumatra
  • Tanzania
  • Timor
  • Vietnam
  • Yemen
  • Zambia
  • Zimbabwe
Guatemala
Guatemala Coban "Tanchi"
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Coban Mark: Tanchi
Processing: Wet Process Crop: 2002 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 17 Screen Varietal: Typica, Bourbon
Dry Fragrance (1-5) 3 Notes: Coffees from Coban are increasingly rare in the United States, perhaps because the Coban region is more remote than others, or that European brokers have deep relationships with the farmers in this region, and snare most of the coffee before any newcomers can have at it. But I have been determined to get my hands on a good Coban since I cupped it over 4 years ago at the SCAA Conference in Denver. That cup was mystifying, spicy and smokey -not from the roast but from the origin character of the coffee. Of course, the problem with cup samples at a conference is that the coffees do not exist: they are show samples, not from actual lots of coffee that folks like me can buy. So you can pick the best 50 cherries from your best tree, process it, brew it, have a great cup, and never reproduce it again. But I digress. This Coban is the only sample from this region of "cloud forests" -mountains permanently engulfed in mist - and while I get a hickory-smokiness from the cup as a secondary flavor in the aftertaste, it is primarily a richly fruited cup with a raisiny flavor accented by a bright acidy snap. The fruits fade into bittersweet quickly, with a surrounding spiceyness (allspice) to the cup from start to finish. The finish is more bittersweet than sweet. It is unique among the Guatemalans: deep like an Antigua, fruited like a Huehuetenango, but not exactly like those or any other region.
Wet Aroma (1-5) 3.5
Brightness - Acidity (1-10) 8.3
Flavor - Depth (1-10) 8.5
Body - Movement (1-5) 3
Finish - Aftertaste (1-10) 8
Cupper's Correction (1-5) 1 Roast: A wide latitude of roasts for this coffee: City to Full City ... or even darker and the origin character of the cup still comes through. I prefer it a few snaps into the 2nd crack myself. This coffee is rustic compared to Antiguas and Huehue's, so expect a few light-colored beans in the roast. They are not necessarily bad, so I would recommend culling only mottled-color ones, not all lighter ones.
add 50 50 Compare to: Has qualities of other Guatemalan coffees, but is unique, see above.
Score (Max. 100) 85.3
Guatemala El Injertal Estate WP Decaf
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Huehuetenango Mark: Finca El Injertal
Processing: Wet Process Coffee, Water Process Decaf Crop: 2001/2002 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 16-17 Screen Varietal: Typica
Dry Fragrance (1-5) 3 Notes: The advantage of knowing exactly what coffee goes into your decaf is great, and surprisingly rare because a lot of decafs are sold simply with an origin name, and not even a regional designation to boot. But with this Guatemalan we know the exact region (Huehuetenango) and farm (El Injertal) and crop (mid-2002) ... and in fact I cupped this coffee before decaffeinating and it was great. More remarkable is the cup after decaffeinating. It's still great! I am astounded and a little bewildered by this: I regularly cupped the Central American coffees that had undergone the SWP process in Vancouver, Canada. They had little to no brightness of the original coffee in the cup, and since that's what Centrals are about, no brightness means to origin character. But here we have a cup with remarkable brightness, almost Kenya-like brightness. And it has a backdrop of almond in the roast taste to balance out the cup. It is a lighter-bodied cup with short, pleasant aftertaste. Simply incredible decaf for an indirect-contact, non-chemical decaf method.
Wet Aroma (1-5) 3
Brightness - Acidity (1-10) 9
Flavor - Depth (1-10) 8
Body - Movement (1-5) 2.5
Finish - Aftertaste (1-10) 7.5
Cupper's Correction (1-5) 1 Roast: City+ to Full City. I prefer this coffee in a lighter roast stage to heighten the brightness in the cup, ut too light will result in a sour character.
Add 50 50 Compare to: On par with really nice non-decaf, bright Centrals.
Score (Max. 100) 84
Guatemalan -Arte Maya de Café
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Antigua and Huehuetenango Mark: Hacienda La Minita
Processing: Wet Process Crop: 2002 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 17 Screen Varietal: Typica, Bourbon, Caturra
Dry Fragrance (1-5) 3 Notes: It's not very often that we offer a coffee blended from two regions; but when the blenders are Hacienda La Minita -the renowned Costa Rican farm and importer- I can make an exception. The Arte Maya de Café is from Antigua and Huehuetenango growing regions, and borrows from the former a nice body and depth, from the later a mild fruitiness. It's not a "first sip" cup like a Kenya -meaning that its a bit underwhelming right off the bat. But as it cools and as you get it thoroughly circulated around your palate and up into your nasal cavity, the sweetness, mildness and delicacy of this cup really grows on you (and it has a +1 cuppers correction for that). The acidity is piquant, clean; the body is medium, roast tastes are like slightly candied sugars (not heavily caramelized), and there's a bit of lemon-rind zest in the finish. The aftertaste is suprisingly long. In this window of time before new crop Guatemalas arrive (good ones come in April and later usually), this late '02 crop picking is really a nice companion.
Wet Aroma (1-5) 3
Brightness - Acidity (1-10) 8.4
Flavor - Depth (1-10) 8.6
Body - Movement (1-5) 3.5
Finish - Aftertaste (1-10) 8.4
Cupper's Correction (1-5) 1 Roast: I like the delicacy of this coffee best at City, but if roasted really light it has a bad baked flavor.
add 50 50 Compare to: Classic, refined Guatemala: A delicate, subtle cup with flavors that really emerge as it cools ...
Score (Max. 100) 85.9
Guatemalan Organic Huehuetenango FT -Asobagri Coop
Country: Guatemala Grade: HB Region: Barillas, Huehuetenango Mark: Asobagri Co-op, OCIA Organic/Fair Trade Cert.
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2002 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 17/18 Screen Varietal: Bourbon, Caturra, Catuaí
Dry Fragrance (1-5) 3 Notes: You can see by the numbers that I think this coffee is excellent. If follows through with the recent cupping history of Guatemalan coffees: if you want outstanding, fruity, bright Central American you are probably going to find it in Huehuetenango. It is medium-bodied, with outstanding aromatics, delicate floral notes in the acidity and fruitiness, and a good aftertaste. But please don't let anyone add cream to this coffee or you will just kill it! This coffee comes from the 500 member/farmers of the Asobagri Co-op in Barillas, Huehuetenango. Each farmer belongs to a micro-coop of 10-25 members and they collectively wet-mill their own coffee to exacting standards taught by the co-op via technical volunteers. The organization is very sophisticated and successful to take the place of technified-centralized wet-milling, and result in such an excellent top-quality cup! The coffee is a fruitier Huehuetenango than the others we offer this year -the Huixoc and the El Injerto. I would recommend trying 2 of these coffees against eachother to see the range of coffees from this region, which I consider the rising star among Guatemala coffee producing areas.
Wet Aroma (1-5) 4
Brightness - Acidity (1-10) 8
Flavor - Depth (1-10) 8.4
Body - Movement (1-5) 3
Finish - Aftertaste (1-10) 8
Cupper's Correction (1-5) 1 Roast: City Roast: You lose the delicate bright flavors if you roast this too dark. In the extreme light roast there is a malty/barley roast taste.
add 50 50 Compare to: The bright and delicate acidity and strong aromatics remind me of Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, but this is truly a fruity, bright Central
Score (Max. 100) 85.4
Guatemalan Huixoc Huehuetenango
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Huehuetenango Mark: Huixoc
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2002 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 17/18 Screen Varietal: Bourbon, Caturra, Catuaí
Dry Fragrance (1-5) 4 Notes: There are some incredible Huehuetenango coffees this year, and the Asobagri Fair Trade lot we had earlier this year and the Huixoc represent the bright, sweetly floral end of the spectrum when they are treated to a lighter City roast. As the roast progresses, I am so impressed with the tangy bittersweet of the Huixoc, especially a few snaps into 2nd crack. As with the Asobagri, you can see by the numbers that I think this coffee is excellent. If follows through with the recent cupping history of Guatemalan coffees: if you want outstanding, fruity, bright Central American you are probably going to find it in Huehuetenango. It is medium-bodied, with outstanding aromatics, delicate floral notes in the acidity and fruitiness, and a good aftertaste. It has qualities almost like Yirgacheffe in terms of a honeyed fruitiness, lighter body, and great aroma.
Wet Aroma (1-5) 4
Brightness - Acidity (1-10) 8
Flavor - Depth (1-10) 9
Body - Movement (1-5) 3
Finish - Aftertaste (1-10) 9
Cupper's Correction (1-5) 0 Roast: City Roast: You lose the delicate bright flavors if you roast this too dark.
add 50 50 Compare to: The bright and delicate acidity of a lighter roast reminds of this coffee from last year, but at Full City it is more sharply chocolatey and bittersweet, like certain high-altitude Antiguas.
Score (Max. 100) 87
Guatemalan Huehuetenango - El Injerto Estate
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Huehuetenango Mark: Finca El Injerto
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2002 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 16/17 scr Varietal: Bourbon, Caturra, Catuaí (mostly Bourbon)
        Dry Fragrance: 84 Notes: As mentioned, Huehuetenango (pronounced Waywaytenango) had the best coffees to offer this year. While I cant speak for Coban (because so little of it is offered), the Antiguas were mild and some samples were downright flat. So here we have a Huehue that doesn't cup like one. It really has the chocolate and spicy flavors of a true Antigua ...and a very good one at that. Ironic that a very nice Antigua doesn't come from there ...but then again brokers are talking about mass coffee fraud in the high-priced Antigua region anyway. Last year we stocked the 100% Bourbon coffee from the farm, meaning that all the trees are of the coffea arabica var. bourbon that was a spontaneous mutation of the arabica species first brought to the New World. (Incidentally, it was brought by the French to Reunion Island which was then called Bourbon). The seed is small and rounded, the trees grow in a way that is great for quality but not as sun-tolerant or easy to pick as other modern hybrids. This year you will see about 40% Bourbon. Why? Because the coffee of mixed cultivars cupped better! Just as a vineyard will blend grapes grown from different parts of the farm, a coffee Finca that grows each cultivar separately can then blend the different arabica types in a controlled way to produce the best cup. I know of few farms that grow in this way ...only El Injerto and the respected Panama Lerida Estate come to mind. This is because the third generation owner, Sr. Aguirre, is an agronomist, performs every act of coffee processing from the nursery to the wet milling and dry milling, to the composting and vermiculture right on the farm! The pride is great, and justified: his grandfather started the farm in 1902. The cup is moderately bright with a grape-raisin fruitiness that is not overbearing. The finish is not heavy-handed but the aftertaste definitely returns as you work your way through a cup or two. Its spicy and develops a good milk chocolate roast taste.
Wet Aroma: 84
Brightness- Liveliness: 84
Body- Movement: 82
Flavor- Depth: 86 Roast: City. At this point you have maximized the great flavors and complexity without allowing roasty tastes to dominate them too much...
Finish- Conclusion: 84
Score: 84.0 Compare to: This coffee rates more with the Antiguas, not with the other Huehuetenangos. It shares the spicy / chocolatey character of an Antigua.
Guatemala Finca La Laguna -100% Bourbon
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Fraijanes Mark: Finca La Laguna
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2001/2002 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 17 Screen Varietal: 100% Bourbon
        Dry Fragrance: 84 Notes: The La Laguna is an early shipment of the new 2001/2002 crop (crop years always include the year the coffee was on the tree-2001 and the year it was picked and processed-2002). It arrived at a time of year that is much earlier than we normally buy new crop Centrals: most arriving in early March are lower grown and without pronounced cup character. The fact La Laguna arrived so early at all caught my attention: its known as an outstanding farm, located in the Fraijanes region to the South and East of the capitol, Guatemala City. But the sample arrived and it was clearly a beautifully prepared and milled coffee. Fraijanes are not usually fruity, and true-to-form, the La Laguna is not ... it is a "classic cup" profile and bears greater resemblance to the Guatemala Antigua than the flowery-sweet Huehuetenango coffees. Adding to the traditional bearing of the cup character is the fact that the coffee is grown from 100% old-time Bourbon arabica cultivar. The brightness in the cup is paired with an almost briny piquant quality, and allowing the coffee to rest 12-24 hours after roasting brings great balance to the cup, diminishing this saltiness. Properly rested, I feel a bit at a loss of words to describe the excellent, reverberant balance (that word again!) of the La Laguna. It has a bittersweet roast taste at Full City stage, it is bright but not sour, it makes me want to drink more. It is simply a very attractive cup, a crowd-pleaser for sure ... can we leave it at that?
Wet Aroma: 84
Brightness- Liveliness: 83
Body- Movement: 86
Flavor- Depth: 89 Roast: City (let it rest longer if roasted to City) or Full City: (see review).
Finish- Conclusion: 88
Score: 85.7 Compare to: Comparable to Antigua, the great balanced Guatemala
Guatemalan Antigua SHB -Los Volcanes
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Antigua Mark: Los Volcanes Beneficio
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2002 Appearance: 1 d/300gr, 16-17 scr Varietal: Typica
Dry Fragrance (1-5) 4.0 Notes: Once again it's been hard to find a good Antigua this year. While the most high profile region from Guatemala, the anticipated quality seems a little lower in general. That doesnt mean there isn't great Antigua coffee out there, it just means you have search harder to find it. Ironically, I cupped 3 different Chop Marks (these are the lot markings on the bag that have 2 forward slashes in the format and have been called "chops" in the coffee trade since antiquity) from the Los Volcanes Beneficio and found that this one: 11/13/45 has a bit more on the top end of the cup and has better overall roast results. This Los Volcanes is a mid-crop picking and these are the highest altitude coffees from this origin, and the last coffee cherry to ripen is the highest altitude. So what we get here is a slow-maturing, dense coffee seed. That said, the best Antiguas this year are not the caliber of other years. They have great balance and good complexity but really lack power. The Los Volcanes has really nice acidity and a good chocolate note to back it up; this is the Antigua cup character, different from the fruitier Huehuetenango cup profile. Its strong suit is balance, and it is certainly a crowd pleaser in that respect!
Wet Aroma (1-5) 4.0
Brightness - Acidity (1-10) 7.0
Flavor - Depth (1-10) 8.5
Body - Movement (1-5) 3.5
Finish - Aftertaste (1-10) 8.0 Roast: City. At this point you have maximized the great flavors and complexity without allowing roasty tastes to dominate them too much... This coffee has a nice milk chocolate taste that is part of the carmelization/browning roast reactions (Malliard), so you can get this flavor in the lighter City roast.
Cupper's Correction (1-5) 0.0
add 50 50 Compare to: Other Antiguas, which are in general not fruity like Huehuetenango, and not as sweet as other Guatemalan appellations but have that nice chocolate note and great balance.
Score (Max. 100) 84.0
Guatemala Antigua - La Tacita Estate
Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Antigua Mark: La Tacita Estate
Wet-processed Crop: 2001 Appearance: 0 d/300gr Varietal: Bourbon, Typica
16/17scr


Dry Frag./ Wet Aroma:

 84/84
Notes: Guatemalan coffees are very highly regarded, often rated better than all other Central American coffee. Antigua is the oldest coffee growing region in Guatemala, located around the original capital city by the same name. Antigua is the most recognized name for Guatemalan coffee but in recent years other regions have out-cupped the Antiguas... and the presumption that a coffee is good just because it is an Antigua should be dumped with the dirty dishwater. Yes its good, but not just because it has Antigua in the name (and there is quite possibly a lot of "Antiguas" out there that are not Antigua at all). True Antiguas can be very good. Grown at altitudes between 5200 and 6500 feet, the La Tacita estate produces one of the higher grown coffees on the market. This Guatemala coffee is known for their traditional growing methods using old arabica varieties rather than new hybrids. La Tacita has only Bourbon, and Typica arabica trees. Rich flavors and a big, complex, spicy cup character distinguish La Tacita's excellent cup quality. In the lighter roasts it has wonderful Lavender flavors, darker brings out sharp Dutch Chocolate notes. Many people are suprised to find that Antiguas are not fruity coffees: get a Huehuetenango for that. Rated #1 Guatemalan over other well-known estates by a panel of cuppers for The Tea and Coffee Trade Journal and The Coffee Review. The Peaberry won the Nov. 99 Coffee cupping too. For this reason, it sells at a slightly higher price than other Antiguas. This is new crop 2001 purchased from the family that owns the farm, the Fallas
Brightness- Liveliness:
 85
Body- Movement:
 85
Flavor- Depth:
 88
Finish- Conclusion:
 87 Roast: City or Full City. While roasting this Guatemalan into 2nd crack produces nice chocolate roast tastes and mute acidity, you will be missing out on the flowery flavors of this coffee
Score:
86.5
 Compare to: Other high-grown Centrals that have complexity and balance: best quality Panama and Costa Rican
Guatemala SHB Atitlan SWP Decaf -Organic, Fair Trade, Songbird
Country: Guatemalan Grade: SHB Island: Atitlán Mark: Organic, FairTrade, and Songbird Cert.
Processing: washed Crop: 00/01 Appearance: 0d/300gr 16/17scr Varietal: Typica
        Dry Fragrance: 82 Notes: This is the SWP decaf version of the exact same coffee we have non-defcaffeinated. It retained a remarkable amount of charachter through the rigorous SWP process, and its fun to cup against is caffeinated lot to see exactly wat decaffeinating does to a coffee. While it has a mollases taste it picks up in the process, this is not a bad thing in the cup. And plenty of the Guat character is there too! I usually avoid SWP in Centrals ...the acidity is the first thing diminished by the swiss water method. But this coffee proves an exception; perhaps becase it is fresh and originates in reat Guat coffee! In the cup I thought it was sweet, malty, fruity, lush, ...all good stuff!. Also, this is a cup that really strikes you in terms of its power as it cools. Your opinion of it will definitely change as it becomes tepid and you can really sense the brightness.
Wet Aroma: 82
Brightness- Liveliness: 84
Body- Movement: 81
Flavor- Depth: 84 Roast: Keep this at City roast if you want to get the best sense of the fruity character in the cup.
Finish- Conclusion: 83
Score: 82.7 Compare to: A very nice non-decaf Guatemala. This coffee owes its quality as a decaf to the incredibly high quality of the coffee it originates with!
Guatemalan Huixoc Huehuetenango
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Huehuetenango Mark:

Huixoc
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2001 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 17/18 Screen Varietal: Bourbon, Caturra, Catuaí
        Dry Fragrance: 85 Notes: There are some incredible Huehuetenango coffees this year, and the Asobagri Fair Trade lot we had earlier this year and the Huixoc represent the bright, sweetly floral end of the spectrum. As with the Asobagri, you can see by the numbers that I think this coffee is excellent. If follows through with the recent cupping history of Guatemalan coffees: if you want outstanding, fruity, bright Central American you are probably going to find it in Huehuetenango. It is medium-bodied, with outstanding aromatics, delicate floral notes in the acidity and fruitiness, and a good aftertaste. It has qualitites almost like Yirgacheffe in terms of a honeyed fruitiness, lighter body, and great aroma.
Wet Aroma: 88
Brightness- Liveliness: 88
Body- Movement: 84
Flavor- Depth: 89 Roast: City Roast: You lose the delicate bright flavors if you roast this too dark.
Finish- Conclusion: 87
Score: 87.1 Compare to: The bright and delicate acidity and strong aromatics remind me of Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, but this is truly a fruity, bright Central
Guatemalan Atitlan Organic/Shade -La Voz Co-op FT
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Lake Atitlan Mark:

La Voz Co-op, OCIA Organic Cert., Fair Trade Cert.

Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2001 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 17/18 Screen Varietal: Bourbon, Caturra, Catuaí
        Dry Fragrance: 86 Notes: The fragrance from the dry ground coffee is lush. The La Voz has a cleary fruity aromatics with a fullness that borders on sweetly winey (as opposed to citrusy). But in the cup the flavor is more of fresh raspberry, passing into a slightly winey aftertaste. The body is medium to light and the cup has an overall clean character with apparantly moderate aftertaste ... but an uncanny way of staying around a lot longer than you expect it to! I have had this before where an aftertaste fades, then seems to return ...particularily after you have had quite a few sips. Maybe its just a symptom of "coffee drunkenness" or something...
Wet Aroma: 87
Brightness- Liveliness: 86
Body- Movement: 82
Flavor- Depth: 86 Roast: City Roast: You lose the delicate bright flavors if you roast this too dark. But if you want a tangy dark roast with a light body …go for it.
Finish- Conclusion: 84
Score: 85.2 Compare to: Fruity Guatemalan coffes, such as Huehuetenango. This coffee was excellent last year too, and we sold out of it very quickly
Guatemala Antigua -Finca Bella Carmona
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB, EP Region: Antigua Mark: Finca Bella Carmona
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2001 Appearance: 0.2 d/300gr, 17-18 Screen Varietal: Bourbon Typica
        Dry Fragrance: 84

Notes: Antigua is the well-known premier growing region in Guatemala, but I have always found this a bit confusing. You can't say Antigua is better than Huehuetenango, Atitlan, or any other region; only that it is different. While other Guatemalan coffees are fruitier, the Antigua character is moderate acidity, and hints of chocolate and spice. The Bella Carmona had some problems last year, and I thought it was due to evidence of slight frost damage I saw in out green coffee samples from the 99/00 season. But this year it is incredibly good, a superior example of the Antigua cup character. It has such great balance between moderate acidity (with no discernable fruitiness, neither citrusy nor winey), and milk chocolate flavors developing at the City stage and turning more bittersweet as the coffee enters the Full City stage. Roasted a few snaps into second crack it also develops excellent pungency and its long aftertaste. You might need to wait until the cup cools to reveal the quality of this coffee, but that's the fun of discovery with an excellent coffee: the changes that occur over time, both in the cup and on your palate. Try this coffee a bit lighter, and a bit darker ...I think you will agree that both roasts are excellent!

For every lb. of this coffee sold, we are donating .20 to Coffee Kids projects in Guatemalan farming communities

Wet Aroma: 84
Brightness- Liveliness: 86
Body- Movement: 86
Flavor- Depth: 90 Roast: City to Full City . The cup is buttery and milk chocolate at the City stage. The bittersweet develop at Full City, right at the verge of 2nd crack.
Finish- Conclusion: 87
Score: 86.2 Compare to: Truly great Antigua character
Guatemala Acatenango -Naranjo Kikiya
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB, EP Region: Naranjo, Acatenango Mark: Kikiya Farm
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2001 Appearance: 0.2 d/300gr, 17-18 Screen Varietal: Bourbon Typica
        Dry Fragrance: 85

Notes: Acatenango is adjacent to Antigua, to the East, and is often sold as "Antigua-like" coffee. That is not really accurate because the Acatenago is fruitier than most Antigua coffees. But as with Tarrazu in Costar Rica, exporters are trying to attach the familiar name of one region on coffees grown outside of it. The problem with their efforts is that many coffees from these "name brand" regions are not as good as coffees grown adjacent to it! (Of course, there are some great Antiguas this year -- Bella Carmona is excellent and San Nicholas is good ...but everything from Antigua is not great coffee, such as the Apollo.) This cup is truly excellent; medium bodied, with a great package of fruitiness and chocolate bittersweet. Considering that is not heavy-bodied (no Guatemalan is...), it has an amazing long aftertaste. In this case by "aftertaste" I don't mean the finish of the first sip you take, after the coffee leaves your mouth. But rather the flavors that persist after your palate has been really saturated with the coffee after a few sips..

For every lb. of this coffee sold, we are donating .20 to Coffee Kids projects in Guatemalan farming communities

Wet Aroma: 86
Brightness- Liveliness: 88
Body- Movement: 83
Flavor- Depth: 87 Roast: City, Full City . I prefer the flavors at City stage, before any sounds of second crack are heard.
Finish- Conclusion: 84
Score: 85.5 Compare to: More like Huehuetenago (fruity) than Antigua.
Guatemalan Organic Huehuetenango FT
Country: Guatemala Grade: HB Region: Barillas,
Huehuetenango		 Mark:

Asobagri Co-op
OCIA Organic/
Fair Trade Cert.
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 00/01 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 17/18 Screen Varietal: Bourbon, Caturra, Catuaí
        Dry Fragrance: 85 Notes: You can see by the numbers that I think this coffee is excellent. If follows through with the recent cupping history of Guatemalan coffees: if you want outstanding, fruity, bright Central American you are probably going to find it in Huehuetenango. It is medium-bodied, with outstanding aromatics, delicate floral notes in the acidity and fruitiness, and a good aftertaste. But please don't let anyone add cream to this coffee or you will just kill it! This coffee comes from the 500 member/farmers of the Asobagri Co-op in Barillas, Huehuetenango. Each farmer belongs to a micro-coop of 10-25 members and they collectively wet-mill their own coffee to exacting standards taught by the co-op via technical volunteers. The organization is very sophisticated and successful to take the place of technified-centralized wet-milling, and result in such an excellent top-quality cup!
Wet Aroma: 88
Brightness- Liveliness: 88
Body- Movement: 84
Flavor- Depth: 89 Roast: City Roast: You lose the delicate bright flavors if you roast this too dark. In the extreme light roast there is a malty/barley roast taste.
Finish- Conclusion: 86
Score: 86.7 Compare to: The bright and delicate acidity and strong aromatics remind me of Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, but this is truly a fruity, bright Central
Guatemalan SHB Natural Decaf
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Pooled Mark: Coffein Natural Decaf
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2000 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 16/17scr Varietal: ?
        Dry Fragrance: 84 Notes: This is an excellent central American Decaf that retains its distinctive Guatemalan character despite being decaffeinated. Its pooled from various regions, but all are SHB (Strictly Hard Bean ---high altitude) coffees. Natural Decafs are a newer 'chemical' process that use a safe fruit-derived type of Ethyl Acetate to extract the caffeine from the green coffee. The Ethyl Acetate process is this case performed in Germany by the decaffeinator Coffein who brands their own process …presumably because they think they do a better job than others. One thing for sure, any decaffeination performed in Germany is done under the strictest regulations in the world ...in terms of environmental impact, plant safety and highest standards for the coffee itself.
Wet Aroma: 83
Brightness- Liveliness: 84
Body- Movement: 78
Flavor- Depth: 82 Roast: City to Full City: Roast it to your preference.
Finish- Conclusion: 80
Score: 81.8 Compare to: Costa Rican Natural Decaf
Guatemalan Organic SHB Finca San Rafael
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Fraijanes Mark: San Rafael Farm
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2001 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 16/17scr Varietal: varied
        Dry Fragrance: 84 Notes: This is an early new 2001 new crop Guatemalan. You have to be careful about buying early crop coffees. The earliest coffees offered from Central American origins are most often lower-grown (coffee cherry matures earlier in lower altitude regions, such as HB grade coffees.) They can also be rushed through processing in the pergamino (parchment) stage using mechanical drying rather than patio drying. Mechanical drying isnt necessarily bad when done properly, but there's a telltale smokey scent to the green coffee when it is botched. Anyway, this estate coffee shows no sign of being lower-grown or rushed to markey. It's an SHB (Strictly Hard Bean, highest altitude) coffee that cups like an Antigua by gum, and a very very good one at that. While not a sweet or fruity coffee, it has a sharp pleasant bittersweet flavor with a twist of hazelnut in it, and a long aftertaste. It is medium-bodied as most Guats are, and medium in terms of acidity too. ***We're having a little debate over this: the answer is coming soon!
Wet Aroma: 83
Brightness- Liveliness: 83
Body- Movement: 82
Flavor- Depth: 87 Roast: City. Let it go all the way through the first crack, wait for that silence between the first and second cracks, smell the roast smoke turn from toasty to pungent and stop it there…
Finish- Conclusion: 85
Score: 84.0 Compare to: Antigua really.
Guatemalan Organic Fraijanes -La Montana Estate
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Fraijanes Mark: La Montana Estate
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: 2000 Appearance: 0 d/300gr, 16/17scr Varietal: Typica
        Dry Fragrance: 86 Notes: This is a suberb, clean cup that isn't going to rock your world, bring down the wall or make you fluent in Latin. It will quietly and methodically make you a believer in the notion that the "other" Guatemalan growing regions deserve a lot more attention, and that perhaps Antiguas are not the only Guatemalan coffee worht paying an extra nickel for... Raisin flavors are dominant here (I know, raisin is not really a fruit flavor we talk about much in coffee, but thats really what I get from the La Montana) and undoubtedly great balance. This is a crowd-pleasers for sure, not so long in the aftertaste to make it obtrusive, but with a very refined mild acidity and complexity that will make you wish it DID have a long aftertaste! Not to worry, as long as there's more in the cup...
Wet Aroma: 86
Brightness- Liveliness: 85
Body- Movement: 85
Flavor- Depth: 87 Roast: City. At this point you have maximized the great flavors and complexity without allowing roasty tastes to dominate them too much...
Finish- Conclusion: 85
Score: 85.7 Compare to:
Guatemalan Antigua SHB -Los Volcanes
Country: Guatemala Grade: SHB Region: Antigua Mark: Los Volcanes Estate
Processing: Wet-processed Crop: