Guatemala is one of Barefoot’s focus countries. These are countries where we have visited the farms, broken bread with the farmers and have deep relationships. They produce exceptional coffees with widely varying flavors based on terroir and varietal. Comparatively, the area occupied by Guatemala is slightly smaller than the state of Tennessee. Guatemala is defined by it’s mountains. Traveling in Guatemala is an exercise in climbing great heights. The highest peak is over 4,220 meters. Locals say that if all the mountains in Guatemala were flattened the area would be larger than Texas. Don’t go if you get sick on roller coasters.
Sitting smack in the middle of Central America, Guatemala shares its northern border with Mexico and it’s northeastern border with Belize. To the south El Salvador and Honduras nestle along the same borders and mountains and sharte many of the same fantastic coffee growing conditions. Due to it’s crossroads location Guatemala has coasts on both the Caribbean Atlantic ocean and the cooler Pacific ocean. This dichotomy, combined with the vast mountain ranges provides a perfect climate for growing superb coffee.
Guatemala is one of the most advanced coffee growing countries in the world. Anacafe, the government coffee authority, has lead the world in defining and encouraging every aspect of how to grow and process great tasting coffee. Anacafe has identified eight unique coffee growing regions that have distinct micro-climates and flavor profiles. Each of the eight regions has a unique personality forged from the combination of distinct natural and human elements. Varied micro-climates, volcanic soils, consistent rainfall patterns and high altitudes predestine Guatemala for growing seriously great coffee. Over 270,000 hectares of coffee are planted in Guatemala with 98% of all coffee shade grown and 98% high grown washed Arabica species.
The people of Guatemala are a wide ranging cornucopia of Spanish descent, Europeans and indigenous (Mayan, Inca, Mam and more). Guatemala has a troubled past of cultural and social upheaval with persistent racial and cultural persecution. It is still a problem today but the people are making great strides towards cultural acceptance. The Spanish “influence” is everywhere in Guatemala. From the decimated Mayan people and ruins, to the great cultural divide and racial tensions and in beautiful cities like Antigua.
What makes Guatemalan coffees so special?:
High altitudes:
Crisscrossing mountain ranges, including the legendary Sierra Madre, allow coffee to be grown in most regions of Guatemala. The finest coffee is grown between 1,500-2,500 meters (4,500-7,500 feet) above sea level.
More than 300 microclimates:
Major geopgraphic influences, like the warm Atlantic and cooler Pacific oceans, large crater lakes, flat plains, tropical rainforests, and high mountain ranges, combine to create more than three hundred microclimates. These microclimates contribute to each coffees distinct cup profile.
Consistent rainfall patterns:
Rainfall in Guatemala’s coffee regions is not only plentiful, but varied. Annual averages range from 800-5,000 millimeters (32 to 200 inches), falling within a well-defined rainy season. At least one hard, dependable rain during the dry season induces the flowering that turns into coffee eight months later.
Excellent cultivation and processing:
Anacafe has done a stellar job of educating Guatemalan coffee farmers and managers on high quality coffee cultivation and processing. The vast majority of coffee in Guatemala is fully washed due to the plentiful fresh water sources and steep mountains. The dry mills in Guatemala are extremely advanced and produce amazingly clean and consistent coffee.
All of these traits have come together to enable Barefoot to focus on Guatemalan coffee. Combine these natural traits with the amazing warmth and quality focus of the Guatemalan people and the amazingly consistent high quality of their coffee and you have a winning blend of great environmental, social, and economic benefits along with the fantastic coffee.
For the 2008-2009 season Barefoot is putting a major effort into supporting the excellent farmers and coffees of Guatemala. Barefoot will continue to partner with our favorite farm Finca Vista Hermosa even as we expand our partnership to new farms and co-ops in Guatemala. This year not only will we have three microlots from Finca Vista Hermosa but we will also be featuring a brand new coffee from a fantastic co-operative called Nahuala in western Guatemala. And Barefoot was fortunate enough to be one of the roasters who successfully won the #4 ranked coffee from the 2008 Cup of Excellence auction El Soccoro. All of these coffees have radically different flavor profiles from each other allowing you to literally taste the difference micro-climates make in three distinct coffees from the same country.
Enjoy the flavors and colors of Guatemala. Enjoy the coffee and the people. Remember with each sip all of the hard working people who struggled to bring you these amazing coffees.
For more information visit Anacafe at http://www.guatemalancoffees.com/