Stephen Leighton of the Has Bean Weblog has in fact just been to Guatemala, visiting a number of specialist growers, such as El Bosque in the municipality of Amatitlán.Stephen is the owner of Has Bean Coffee Ltd. based in Stafford, a micro coffee roaster dealing in high quality coffees from around the world.
He writes that he "left the [Anacafe] boardroom with the same warm feelings for Guatemala. For years they have sold coffee on their Hue Hue’s and their Antiguas and have sat there saying our coffees good. On the whole they were but its not enough in the modern market you need more. You can see this very clearly in Costa Rica. The Costa Rican model for me has meant they have dropped down the specialty pecking order to the poitn I rarely get exited and it has become very one dimensional. Guatemalan coffee has a lot more to offer in terms of Varity of tastes and I think they are building on that."
On El Bosque, the Has Bean site informs visitors that the farm "is situated on volcanic terrain between 5,000 and 5,500 feet" and "covers 32 hectares, all dedicated to the cultivation of strictly hard bean Bourbon. Although not an organic coffee no pesticides nor herbicides are used on the farm. In the cup sweet, its clean, good body with wicked hints of spice, awesome espresso and fantastic filter, a must try. " (Filtered through the pure crystaline waters of Lake Amatitlán?!)
No comments:
Post a Comment