Guatemala
Wiliam Silvestre - Guatemala
250g
QUALITY SCORE: 88.00
Cup Notes
Tangerine / Caramel / White Grape / Pear
Suggested for espresso and filter
when we roast
We freshly roast to order all coffees on Monday, Wednesday and Friday (excluding national holidays), and ship the same day! Cut-off time is 11:59pm (UTC+1) of the day before the roast day. *We only ship whole beans*
Details
- Quality Score
- 88.00
- Producer
- Wiliam Silvestre
- Country
- Guatemala
- Terroir
- Huehuetenango
- Altitude
- 1735 - 1840 mt
- Process
- Washed, Sundried on Patio
- Arabica cultivar
- Caturra, Catuai, Paches
- Picked in
- January 2020
- Arrived in
- June 2020
- Shipped in
- Jute + GrainPro
- Roast profile by
- Rubens Gardelli
- Roasted on
- Customised solid-drum roaster
THE STORY BEHIND
Nestled in the mountains between two highland towns (Jacaltenango and San Antonio Huista) lies Yalan Huihuit’z farm. In the local Popti Mayan language, these words mean “under the great mountain” - and the breathtaking views and ideal coffee-growing climate are part of the splendor of the area. Huehuetenango is one of Guatemala’s three
non-volcanic regions. It is also the highest and the driest region cultivated, which makes it one of the best areas for coffee production.
Since Huehuetenango’s is extremely remote, nearly all producers process their own coffee. Fortunately, the region has abundant rivers and streams, making it relatively easy for producers to set up mills.
Huehue’s geographic conditions help create exceptional coffees with a distinct acidity and fruity flavours. Wiliam is a second generation coffee farmer who began growing coffee on this farm after his father had passed away and left him this land. He's been growing coffee for seven years now.
A young and passionate coffee farmer, Wiliam is aware of the challenges to face and excited about innovating and growing to meet the market. He is constantly thinking about adapting his crop to the changing climate and improving quality in order to sell top specialty lots.
Wiliam is a member of VICAFE, a cooperative of innovative coffee growers based in San Antonio Huista. This group, made up of 25 young coffee farmers in the region, has embraced focus on quality and post-harvest techniques in order to secure good coffee prices for its members. VICAFE, which opened its own coffee shop in 2020, has worked to promote youth and gender equity in coffee so as to open coffee careers to a new generation in Huehuetenango.
THE VARIETY
Caturra coffee varietal was developed by the Alcides Carvalho Coffee Center of the IAC, Instituto Agronomico of the Sao Paulo State in Brazil.
In 1937, IAC received seed samples of genetic material originated on the border of the states of Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo. The samples came from Red Caturra and yellow Caturra cultivars. These two cultivars originated by natural mutation of Bourbon Red, originally a tall coffee shrub, found in the Serra do Caparaó , which is now a mountainous National Park north east of the city of Rio de Janeiro.
This is the first naturally occurred coffee mutation found, with small size and high yield capacity. Red and Yellow Caturra are characterised by the cherries sitting close to each other on the coffee shrub. These varietals have excellent cup quality, because they are very close genetically to the Bourbon varietal.
Catuai. A cross between highly productive Mundo Novo and compact Caturra, made by the Instituto Agronomico (IAC) of Sao Paulo State in Campinas, Brazil. The plant is highly productive compared to Bourbon, in part because of its small size, which allows plants to be closely spaced; it can be planted at nearly double the density. The plant’s shape makes it relatively easy to apply pest and disease treatments. It is mainly characterized by great vigor and its low height; it is less compact than Caturra. It is highly susceptible to coffee leaf rust.
Pache. A natural mutation of the Typica variety related to a single gene that causes the plant to grow smaller (dwarfism), which allows it to be planted more densely and achieve higher yields. The variety was discovered in 1949 in Guatemala on the Brito farm in Santa Cruz Naranjo, Santa Rosa. From there it was selected by mass selection, meaning that a group of individuals are selected based on their superior performance, seed from these plants is bulked to form a new generation, and then the process is repeated. Mass selection took place across private farms in Guatemala, and from there spread to other regions and countries.
THE FERMENTATION PROCESS
Washed coffees showcase solely the bean. They let you taste you what’s on the inside, not the outside. Washed coffees depend almost 100% on the bean having absorbed enough natural sugars and nutrients during its growing cycle. This means the varietal, soil, weather, ripeness, fermentation, washing, and drying are absolutely key.
Washed coffees reflect both the science of growing the perfect coffee bean and the fact that farmers are an integral part of crafting the taste of a coffee bean. When looking at washed coffees, it becomes apparent that the country of origin and environmental conditions play a vital role in adding to the flavour.
During wet processing, the pulp (i.e.the exocarp and a part of the mesocarp) is removed mechanically. The remaining mesocarp, called mucilage, sticks to the parchment and is also removed before drying. During this process, the sugars present in the mucilage are removed through natural fermentation or mechanical scrubbing. Mucilage is insoluble in water and clings to parchment too strongly to be removed by simple washing. Mucilage can be removed by fermentation followed by washing or by strong friction in machines called mucilage removers. Fermentation can be done by stacking the coffee outside or placing it under water and allowing nature to take its course. After the sugars are removed, the beans then can be taken through a secondary washing to remove any additional debris, and then the coffee is sun-dried on patios and drying beds.
