Honduran Coffee Estate Single Origin Bean Grading, Pricing, Green Beans and Roasting Curves

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Honduran Coffee Estate Single Origin Bean Grading, Pricing, Green Beans, and Roasting Curves

Variety: Bourbon

Processor: COMISAJUL Cooperative Organization

San Juan de los Ocho is a small village in central Honduras, located 40 kilometers northeast of the capital Tegucigalpa. The town is part of the Francisco Morazán district, which also includes Nuevo Rosario, Guacamaya, and Plan Grande, with a total population of approximately 1,400.

Although San Juan de los Ocho was historically known for its mineral deposits, today it stands out for being located within the buffer zone of La Tigra National Park—a rainforest ecosystem and Honduras's first national park. The park serves as a massive watershed, providing drinking water for 500,000 residents of the capital.

Flavor: Clean, roasted nuts, milk chocolate

In Honduras, coffee-producing regions are divided into six major regions across the western and southern areas: Santa Barbara, El Paraiso, Copan, La Paz, Comayagua, and Olancho, with an average cultivation altitude above 1,100 meters. The coffee varieties are Arabica, with 69% classified as HG (High Grown), 12% as SHG (Strictly High Grown), and 19% as CS. Main varieties include Typica, Bourbon, Caturra, Villa Sarchi, and Lempira.

Bourbon coffee (French: Café Bourbon) is coffee produced from Arabica coffee trees of the Bourbon cultivar. Bourbon coffee was originally cultivated on Réunion Island, which was called Île Bourbon before 1789. It was later occupied by the French to connect with the African continent and Latin America, and today it is one of the two most popular Arabica coffee producing regions in the world. Bourbon coffee is typically grown at elevations of 3,500 to 6,500 feet (1,062–1,972 meters).

Hand-poured Honduran coffee: 15g of grounds, medium grind (using Fuji's ghost-toothed grinder with setting 4), V60 dripper, water temperature 88-89°C. First pour with 30g of water for a 27-second bloom, then pour to 105g and pause. Wait until the water level drops to half before pouring again, slowly pouring until reaching 225g total. Discard the tail section. Water-to-coffee ratio is 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

In 2011, Direct Coffee introduced Finca Santa Marta from the Ocotepeque region, which was the champion estate of the 2006 C.O.E. coffee competition and is a top-tier coffee-producing farm in Honduras.

Property Characteristics

Farm Name: Finca Santa Marta

City: Tegucigalpita, Yoro

Region: Ocotepeque

Country: Honduras

Altitude: 1,250-1,480 meters

Farm Size: 59 hectares

Coffee Growing Area: 3-5 hectares

Annual Precipitation: 1,300 mm

Soil: Clay loam, sandy loam

Annual Production: 400 bags of green coffee beans

Certification: Organic

Shade Trees: Guama, Liquidambar, Oak, Cedar, Guajiniquel, and Musaceas

Water Source: Natural Water Sources from the Santa Marta Farm

Coffee Characteristics

Variety: Catuai

Processing System: Washed, dried on patios

Flowering Period: September – October

Harvest Period: Handpicked from January through March

Appearance: Screen 18

Awards: 2006 Cup of Excellence, 1st place

Top Jury Descriptions: Cupping roast level at 60 seconds after first crack (Cinnamon roast)

Aroma/Flavor: Peanuts, nuts, almonds, licorice, hazelnuts, jasmine flowers, starfruit, kumquats, honey, sugarcane, brown sugar, malt, frankincense

Acidity: Very fresh, clean, low acidity, citrus, berries, mint, low complexity, smooth acidity

Complexity and Other: Well-balanced, medium-long aftertaste, smooth and oily mouthfeel, very sweet finish, silky smooth without impurities

Direct Coffee Cupping Scores and Overall Evaluation

Cupping Date: March 5, 2011

Dry Aroma: 9

Wet Aroma: 8

Clean: 9

Brightness: 9

Body: 7

Balance: 9

Complexity: 7

Sweetness: 9

Acidity: 7

Aftertaste: 8

Cupping Score: 82

Overall Evaluation: Since Finca Santa Marta in Honduras won first place in the 2006 coffee competition, it has begun collaborating with international coffee buyers, enabling the coffee beans to maintain excellent quality. Those who appreciate the lively peanut and nut aroma after grinding, as well as the jasmine tea-like character when the coffee cools, will find this a gentle, crisp, and delicious coffee from Honduras—a high-quality estate with few drawbacks.

Honduras San Vicente Processing Plant

Varieties: Pacas + IH90

Processing: Washed

Region: Pena Blanca, Santa Barbara Province

Processing Plant: Beneficio San Vicente

Variety: Pacas + IH90 (one of the new varieties developed by the Honduran Coffee Institute)

Grade: SHG

Altitude: 1,300-1,500 meters

Certification: N/A

Flavor Profile: Almonds, cedar, dark chocolate, dark fruits, plums, caramel, full body

Introduction

Coffee cultivation began in Honduras in 1804, and today there are 280,000 hectares of coffee farms. Most are small-scale coffee farmers, with most coffee farms covering less than 3.5 hectares. These small coffee farmers account for 60% of Honduras's coffee production. In 2011, Honduras's coffee production surpassed Guatemala, and in 2012, it became the world's second-largest exporter of washed Arabica beans, second only to Brazil. Currently, it ranks seventh globally in production.

Unlike banana plantations owned by American large conglomerates, 92% of Honduran coffee farmers are small-scale individuals. Coffee-related workers account for 12.5% of the total population of 8 million, making coffee an extremely important crop in Honduras. In coffee farms, farmers harvest red cherries, perform washed fermentation processing, and grade them according to market demands to satisfy consumers' different flavor preferences.

Honduras harvests three million bags of coffee annually, supplying high-quality coffee with unique flavors. With abundant quantity and excellent quality, it has become the largest coffee-producing country in Central America and one of the world's top ten coffee exporters. Honduras's coffee industry involves the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of families nationwide and provides one million job opportunities, making it an important economic agricultural sector.

Honduras's major coffee-producing regions are distributed across the western and southern areas: Copan, Opalaca, Montecillos, Comayagua, Agalta, and El Paraiso—six major regions with an average cultivation altitude above 1,000 meters. The coffee varieties are 100% Arabica, with 69% classified as HG, 12% as SHG, and 19% as CS. Main coffee varieties include Typica, Bourbon, Caturra, Villa Sarchi, and Lempira.

Honduran coffee consistently maintains high quality, and its prices are also the most competitive among Central American countries. The beans are small, round, and slightly bluish-green, featuring mild fruit acidity, full body, and subtle sweetness. They are suitable both as blend coffee or single origin, and are best suited for medium to dark roasting. The main export destinations are the United States, Germany, and Japan.

Honduras is now the largest coffee-producing country in Central America, with continuously increasing production in recent years. In 2012, due to favorable international coffee prices, that year's coffee production exceeded 5 million bags from 2010, with significant increases in both production quantity and quality.

The largest coffee-producing province in Honduras is the Santa Barbara region, located in western Honduras, northwest of Yojoa Lake. This area has developed into a famous coffee-producing region in Honduras over the past few years. Additionally, this region produced a famous agronomist, Mr. Angel Arturo Paz, who owns a processing plant—San Vicente—in the Peña Blanca town of Santa Barbara Province, north of Yojoa Lake in western Honduras. He has been a consistent winner in Honduras's Cup of Excellence (COE) competitions.

San Vicente Processing Plant purchases coffee cherries from small farmers in surrounding towns like El Cielito, Las Flores, and El Cedral (each place has at least 35 families and one school). Although the quantities are often too small to independently process batches from each small farmer, coffee from these regions has consistently impressed with its high sweetness and fruit-like characteristics.

San Vicente is a family-owned processing plant with local fame. Through projects assisting farmers in improving cultivation techniques and production equipment, it is dedicated to maintaining close relationships with producers and rigorously quality-checking each batch through cupping.

This batch from San Vicente Processing Plant with Rainforest Alliance SHG certification is produced by combining coffee from small farmers in surrounding areas for joint production and marketing. Since each small farmer averages only 1-2 hectares of cultivation area, the amount of green coffee beans produced cannot be sold individually; they must be combined for batch marketing, somewhat similar to production cooperatives or coffee production and marketing groups.

This batch from San Vicente comes from small farmer Edgardo Tinoco in nearby villages. Small farmers have very small cultivation areas and cannot independently process and sell green beans, so they can only sell to processing plants for combined sales.

Flavor Profile: Almonds, cedar, dark chocolate, dark fruits, plums, caramel, full body

Rainforest Certification

Finca La Lesquinada

Region: Aldea Cerro Negro, Copan, Honduras

Altitude: 1,650m

Processing: Natural

Roast Level: Medium

World Cupping Champion Flavor Description: Hazelnuts, pine, apricots

Honduras has historically not ranked among the top in the specialty coffee market, but the country has natural environmental advantages—soil quality, altitude, and climate conditions are excellent. Neighboring Guatemala, El Salvador, and Nicaragua also have advanced coffee production. What Honduras lacks is infrastructure and recognition in consumer markets.

Honduras is known for commercial beans rather than specialty beans, so even excellent quality cannot fetch good prices. Many beans from Copan and Santa Barbara regions are mislabeled as Guatemalan beans and sold at Guatemalan prices. Furthermore, there has been a long-term failure to recognize its own specialty coffee potential.

The main problem is that coffee cherries receive minimal processing and are sold wet to processing plants. This often causes coffee cherries to become moldy and damaged before proper drying reduces moisture content to 12%. Such cherries passing through drying become defective beans due to improper handling. Without corresponding price returns for good quality, coffee farmers, processing plants, and exporters lack incentives and motivation to invest in developing coffee cultivation potential. Consequently, Honduran coffee beans become recognized as mild blended beans rather than single-origin or estate-specific beans—a vicious cycle.

But now things are different. With assistance from USAID, Fintrac, and several cooperatives like La Central, they vigorously promote and educate Honduran farmers to produce good coffee, with proper processing to maximize the final coffee flavor. Additionally, Fair Trade funding supports processing equipment and enhances farmers' professional knowledge, helping Honduran coffee gradually emerge from its低谷 and become a rising star in Central American coffee in the past year or two.

Brewing Method

Recommended water temperature: 88-92°C, grind setting 4 (Tiamo 700s grinder HG0421), 20g of grounds

(1) Pour 50g of water for pre-infusion for 30 seconds

(2) Pour until total reaches 300g, steep until 1 minute 20 seconds, then drain

(3) Remove the dripper at 2 minutes to complete

Honduras, like other producing countries, is very diverse, and I cannot cover all with one description. The largest region is Santa Barbara, with other regions including Copan, Ocotepeque, Lempira, La Paz, and El Paraiso in the south. Cultivation altitudes range from 1,500-2,000 meters, primarily growing Strictly High Grown (SHG) beans. Generally, recent cuppings of Honduran coffee reveal lower acidity and higher sweetness with distinct caramel notes, making it an excellent choice for espresso blends.

Honduras

Population: 8,250,000

Although not described by HCAFE as a coffee-growing region, many roasters label coffee from Honduras's Santa Barbara region. Several coffee-producing areas cross into Santa Barbara (a government administrative division of a country). Some might say it needs its own description, but it seems more appropriate to list the growing regions according to official principles. There are also excellent Pacas variety batches from the Santa Barbara region, which under good quality conditions possess a unique, fruity flavor worth pursuing.

COPAN

The Copan region is located in Copan City in western Honduras, famous for its local Mayan ruins. This area borders Guatemala, and such regions remind me to value the actual origin of coffee rather than the producing country. National divisions are somewhat arbitrary, as consumers have difficulty distinguishing whether coffee beans come from Honduras or Guatemala. The Copan region is located north of the Santa Barbara coffee region.

Altitude: 1,000-1,500m

Harvest: November – March

Varieties: Bourbon, Caturra, Catuai

OPALACA

The Opalaca region is located in the southern area of Santa Barbara and extends into Intibuca and Lempira. It is named after the Opalaca mountain range that runs through the area.

Altitude: 1,100-1,500m

Harvest: November – February

Varieties: Bourbon, Catuai, Typica

Honduras - 2006 C.O.E. Champion Estate - Finca Santa Marta

El Matazano Estate, located between La Paz and Macala, is owned by Francisco Antonio Castillo David. Francisco began coffee cultivation in 1995, working with 4 families on cultivation and post-processing matters. In recent years, fierce leaf rust disease has reduced production by 50%, forcing everyone to work harder on disease prevention and stricter quality control.

This year, El Matazano maintained its excellent tradition and won Cup of Excellence recognition. Francisco stated that the competition level of Honduran entries is quite high, making it difficult to reach the international judging stage and win. He thanked the close cooperation of the 4 family members, which allowed them to win again!

Auchan purchased the same competition batch, only 15 bags total. We promised Francisco that as long as the same quality level is maintained, we are willing to purchase long-term!

Basic Information:

Estate: El Matazano

Owner: Francisco Antonio Castillo David

Estate Area: 3 hectares

Cultivated Varieties: Catuai

Altitude: 1,500-1,600 meters

Region: El Matazano, Tutule, La Paz, Honduras

Annual Production: 80 bags

Harvest Period: April 2015

Processing: Washed, solar-dried on greenhouse racks in the final stage

This Batch Label: Auchan Direct Relationship Coffee

Quantity: 15 bags

Cupping Flavor: Honey, caramel sweetness, bright acidity with sweet notes, blackcurrant, grapefruit, vanilla herbal notes, chocolate, stone fruits

Manufacturer: FrontStreet Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee)

Address: No. 10 Bao'an Front Street, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou

Contact: 020-38364473

Ingredients: In-house roasted

Shelf Life: 30 days

Net Weight: 227g

Packaging: Bulk

Taste: Mellow coffee beans

Roast Level: Roasted coffee beans

Sugar Content: Sugar-free

Origin: Honduras

Coffee Type: Other

Roast Degree: Medium roast

Honduras San Juancito Lot#1

Country: Honduras

Region: San Juan de los Ocho

Altitude: 1,450-1,550 meters

Processing Method: Washed

Because Honduras is located in a tropical region, San Juan de los Ocho experiences minimal temperature variation throughout the year. Therefore, what is considered winter is actually the rainy season, while summer is the dry season. In tropical regions, altitude's effect on temperature is greater than the duration of precipitation during the year. San Juancito's geographical location at altitudes above 1,239 meters makes the temperature slightly cool year-round. In summer (March–June), maximum temperatures often reach around 26°C, while minimum temperatures average around 18°C. Winter's average maximum temperature is 20°C, with minimums around 14°C.

San Juancito's modern economy largely depends on agriculture, mostly small-scale coffee production. Its climate and altitude are highly conducive to producing high-quality coffee beans. COMISAJUL, a cooperative organization of hundreds of small coffee farmers in central Honduras, is located in San Juan de los Ocho. COMISAJUL is a cooperative organized by hundreds of coffee farmers in the San Juan de los Ocho region, where coffee is grown on mountains at altitudes of 1,450-1,550 meters, shaded by banana, avocado, and papaya trees. During harvest season, coffee farmers hand-pick ripe fruits, process them using the washed method, then sun-dry them. The fermented water containing coffee pulp and skin from washing is collected and used as fertilizer for coffee trees. This coffee batch has a very clean taste, high sweetness, very gentle acidity, and milk chocolate flavor notes.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473