About This Coffee
Jose Renato Sanchez Hernandez learned about coffee from his father, who was a lifelong coffee producer. Thanks to his father’s hard work and the profits from coffee production, Jose Renato was able to attend school.
When he was 25, Jose Renato planted his own Catuai trees on a 1-hectare plot his father had given him. As his plot flourished, Jose Renato saved his money and eventually purchased his own land, a 3-hectare plot also planted with coffee. The profits from both these plots helped him continue purchasing land until he reached his current 13-hectare farm.
Jose Renato began producing specialty coffee in 2006. He entered his coffees into the 2006 Honduras Cup of Excellence and placed 7th for the Western region. He was able to sell his coffee at an excellent price to a buyer from Japan. He continues to seek new opportunities to differentiate his coffee and to sell his specialty lots under his own name.
Harvest & Post-Harvest
Cherry is selectively handpicked and processed at Finca La Cidra. Cherry sits overnight to lightly ferment and is then pulped. Coffee is dry fermented for 12 to 18 hours and then washed 4 times in clean water. Parchment is laid on concrete patios to sundry. Its raked frequently to ensure even drying. While it dries, workers hand sort parchment to remove any defective or damaged beans. It takes approximately 12 days for parchment to dry.
SHG
Strictly High Grown (SHG) specifies the altitude at which the coffee was grown. A coffee must be grown at 1,200 meters above sea level or higher to be considered SHG. The higher altitude and lower temperatures mean that the coffee fruit matures more slowly, creating a denser bean.
European Preparation (EP)
EP stands for European Preparation. EP beans are Screen 15+ with a low defect tolerance.
Coffee in Honduras
Honduras is a small yet mighty coffee producer. The country boasts the largest per capita coffee production in the world. Beginning in 2017, Honduras began placing in third place for Arabica production volume globally. For this slot, they compete with Ethiopia—a country 10 times larger than Honduras. The two countries trade between third and fourth place annually, but the achievement is impressive, nonetheless.
Honduras has everything it needs to become a premier specialty coffee producer. The country has the right growing conditions, abundant fertile soils and soaring altitudes (nearly all farms are at more than 1,000 meters above sea level), plus a variety of microclimates.
Beginning in the early 2000s the industry began to focus on quality. Improved infrastructure (better mechanical dryers, centralized wet mills, an increasing number of solar dryers), quality control/assurance trainings (separating lots by qualities, cupping schools, etc.), the rise of specialty-focused exporters, increased volumes of certified coffees and the strengthening cooperative movement all have worked in tandem to make Honduran coffee ‘one to watch’.
It is only in more recent years that coffee production in Honduras has reached specialty levels comparable to other Central American countries, but specialty roasters are responding with enthusiasm. In 2017, a lot in the Cup of Excellence garnered the highest price ever paid for a Cup of Excellence coffee in any country: $124.50 per pound (approximately $56.50 per kg).
Above all, while Honduras increasingly offers high end microlots, what the country arguably represents overall is exceptional value. Quality has improved massively over the last 15 years, and in addition to unique specialty lots, the country offers very solid, clean blenders at very attractive prices.