About This Coffee
José Roberto Monterroso purchased Finca El Morito in 1994. With his family, Monterroso initially planted the more traditional varieties, including Bourbon, Catuai and Pache. As he continued learning and improving their cultivation process, he began experimenting with different cultivation and processing techniques.
Cultivation
Thanks to the farm’s high altitudes of up to 2,200 meters above sea level, and the Monterroso family’s careful cultivation, the more delicate Pacamara and Geisha varieties have been able to flourish at Finca El Morito.
Harvest & Post-Harvest
The Monterroso family carefully handpicks ripe, red cherry and processes it on their farm. Ripe cherry is laid on outdoor patios to dry. Cherry is raked frequently to ensure even drying. It takes an average of 10 to 20 days for cherry to dry.
Coffee in Guatemala
Guatemala boasts a variety of growing regions and conditions that produce spectacular coffees. Today, the country is revered as a producer of some of the most flavorful and nuanced cups worldwide. We are proud to work with several exceptional in-country partners to bring these coffees to market.
The Guatemalan coffee industry experienced a major setback with the 2010 appearance of Coffee Leaf Rust (CLR) in Latin America. The epidemic peaked in severity in 2012, and though CLR continues to affect some farms, Guatemala continues to produce high-quality, record-breaking coffees. In 2017, new and varied processing methods pushed prices at the Guatemalan Cup of Excellence contest to record highs.
The quality of coffee being produced in Guatemala is increasing, overall, due to the diversity of the industry’s producers. There are more and more small holder farmers producing exceptional coffee at high altitudes. Cooperatives are becoming more appealing to so many smallholders because they often offer farmers financing and other support for improving their farming and processing and are frequently able to offer higher prices for cherry than middlemen. Many cooperatives have initiated quality improvement training for farmer members and are becoming more adept at helping members market their coffee as specialty.