The Story and Legend of Guatemala La Tisha Estate Washed Specialty Coffee Beans

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Coffee was truly introduced to Guatemala in 1750 by Jesuit priests, and German colonists developed the local coffee industry at the end of the 19th century. Today, most coffee grows in the southern part of the country. Guatemala has seven major coffee regions: Antigua, Coban, Atitlan, Huehuetenango, Fraijanes, Oriente, and San Marcos. Each has its own climate variations, so beans from each area carry their own character. Broadly speaking, though, Guatemalan coffee offers a gentle, rich texture, elegant aroma, and pleasant, bright fruit-like acidity — earning it the title of the aristocrat of coffee.

Hand-poured Guatemala Latisha: 15g of coffee, medium grind (small Fuji ghost-tooth blade setting 4), V60 dripper, water temperature 88-89°C. First pour 30g of water for a 27-second bloom, then pour to 105g and stop. Wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to halfway, then continue pouring slowly until reaching 225g. Avoid the final tail section. Coffee-to-water ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Manufacturer: FrontStreet Coffee | Address: No. 10 Bao'an Front Street, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou | Contact: 020-38364473 | Ingredients: In-house roasted coffee beans | Shelf life: 90 days | Net weight: 227g | Packaging: Bulk | Taste: Aromatic and mellow | State: Roasted coffee beans | Sugar content: Sugar-free | Origin: Guatemala | Coffee type: Other | Roast degree: Medium roast

Guatemala Finca Las Deliclas

Country: Guatemala

Grade: SHB

Region: Fraijanes, Guatemala City

Altitude: 1,675 meters

Harvest period: October to February of the following year

Processing method: Washed

Volcanic soil, high altitude, a humid and rainy climate, and active volcanism have shaped the unique geography of the Fraijanes plateau. Pacaya Volcano, within this area, is the most active of Guatemala's three still-erupting volcanoes, often dusting the Fraijanes plateau in a thin layer of ash and feeding the soil abundant minerals. The bean-drying period coincides with the plateau's sunniest season: mornings are often cloudy and foggy, but the haze dissipates quickly, guaranteeing good sun exposure.

Varieties: Bourbon, Caturra

Processing facility: Finca Latisha Estate

Flavor notes: Black tea, floral notes, rich caramel sensation

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Notice the brew recipe above calls for a V60? There's a good reason. If you're new to pour-over and ask a seasoned hand to recommend a practical, easy-to-use, good-looking dripper, chances are they'll point you to the V60. Its maker, Hario, was founded in 1921 in Tokyo as a respected producer of laboratory-grade heatproof glass — the glass server that pairs with your pour-over is one of its best-known products. In 2004, Hario redesigned the V60's prototype into the form we know today, naming it after its unique 60° cone angle and "V" shape, and launched it the following year.

The conical design with its 60° angle forces water to flow toward the center before dripping through, extending the contact time between water and grounds so aromas and flavors extract fully. Its signature single large outlet lets liquid run unimpeded — flow rate depends largely on the brewer's pouring control and shows up directly in the cup. Before the millennium, coffee favored medium-dark roasts and prized body, sweetness, and caramelized notes like chocolate, maple, nuts, and vanilla — characteristics that siphons and cloth filters express beautifully, in classics like FrontStreet Blue Mountain No. 1 and PWN Golden Mandheling. With the third wave, drinkers began chasing origin character — Ethiopian white florals, Kenyan berry acidity — and roasting shifted lighter. The V60's fast extraction gives coffee more dimensional aroma and lively acidity, letting florals, fruit acidity, delicate sweetness, and tea notes shine. That's why floral-fruity coffees like FrontStreet's Yirgacheffe Guodingding, the tropical-fruit-packed Huakui, Gesha-style Strawberry Sugar, and raisin-nuanced Mozart are perfect matches for the V60.

As for which V60 to buy: they now come in resin, ceramic, glass, copper, stainless steel, and more. Each material affects looks, weight, and heat retention — and thus subtly shifts extraction — but the structural design stays the same. FrontStreet favors the resin version for two reasons: resin insulates against heat loss effectively, and in standardized mass production it holds the tightest tolerances. Pair your V60 with a bright washed lot like FrontStreet's Yirgacheffe Guodingding — citrus, berries, and florals with a green-tea finish, soft and luminous rather than sour — or, for bolder fruit, the Kenya "Cherry Tomato": SL28 and SL34 grown at 1,550-1,750 meters in Thika, washed with Kenya's signature 72-hour double fermentation, and lightly roasted to preserve cherry tomato, dried dark plum, snow pear, black plum, yellow sugar, and a whisper of green tea in one juicy, unmistakable cup.