Coffee Specifications

Coffee Variety Details

Arabica coffee plants of the Caturra, Típica, Bourbon, and Catuaí varietals line the steep, wooded inclines of our family farm, Finca La Guava. The coffee plants are shaded by various hard wood trees. Cacao, avocado, plantains, and citrus trees also contribute to this natural rainforest ecosystem.

Harvest

During the coffee harvest season, we visit the same plants multiple times to pick only the coffee cherries that are just the right shade of red. A plant’s cherries ripen at different times throughout the season. Pick them too green, and the coffee is not as sweet. Pick them too dark, and the coffee can taste overly fermented. Because we visit the same plant 7-15 times during a season, coffee harvesting is a delicate, labor-intensive, and long process.

Wet Process

Our coffee is carefully processed, bean by bean to assure a clean, delicious cup. We use the “wet process” to skin and pulp the coffee before it is dried. After picking the ripe, red coffee cherries, we carry them in baskets up to a small pulpadora (pulper) in the farmhouse. Coffee is pulped the day it is picked. The pulper removes the outer skin and inner pulp from the bean, leaving a thin mucilage. The coffee is then fermented in a small tank to remove the mucilage. Following fermentation, what remains is a thin, protective layer of parchment around the bean. This layer is known as pergamino.

Drying Process

The pergamino coffee is hand-carried from the pulper area to the dryer that will circulate air to ensure that beans are evenly dried. Drying the coffee to the optimum moisture level of 11%, and making sure it stays dry, is absolutely critical to producing a quality green coffee, and eventually a clean cup.

Preparing for Roasting Process

To protect the beans, preserving their freshness and quality, we store the dried coffee with its pergamino in-tact. Prior to roasting, the pergamino is removed with a huller machine, and then beans are sorted by size and density. Dense beans produce a richer cup of coffee. The cooler the growing conditions, the denser the bean. Finca la Guava is located high in the mountainous Cordillera Central of Puerto Rico, where our coffee plants are surrounded by tall shade trees. The lush environment, high elevations, and cool temperature of our farm translate into an exquisite cup of coffee.