Characteristics of Honduras Santa Barbara Coffee Region_Introduction to Major Coffee Growing Areas in Honduras

Professional coffee knowledge exchange, more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style)

Honduras Coffee Beans - Sagastume Family Parainema Variety

Country: Honduras | Region: Santa Barbara | Cooperative: San Vicente Processing Plant | Producer: Sagastume Family | Processing Method: Washed | Variety: Parainema

Roast Level: Very Light Roast | Flavor Profile: Floral/Orange/Vanilla/Maple Syrup/San Marzano Tomato | Flavor Description: Upward bright floral and orange aromas, syrupy sweet taste, delicate acidity, smooth aftertaste.

When discussing Central American coffee, coffee enthusiasts might immediately think of coffee-producing countries like Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Panama. However, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Honduras in Central America are actually significant coffee-producing nations as well.

Today, Honduras' coffee industry is quietly revealing its brilliance, and its produced coffee beans have reached specialty coffee standards.

Geographical Location

Honduras is located in northern Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean's Fonseca Bay to the south. It borders Nicaragua and El Salvador to the east and south, and Guatemala to the west, with mostly mountainous and highland terrain. It has a tropical climate with moderate temperatures and abundant rainfall, making it an ideal place for coffee cultivation.

It wasn't until the 1975 Brazilian frost disaster, which severely affected production and sharply reduced coffee output, that Honduras seized the opportunity. Coffee production surged from 500,000 bags to 1.8 million bags and was completely sold out. Since then, Honduras' coffee production has truly developed.

Regional Distribution

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

Therefore, Honduras produces two types of high-quality coffee: one is "High Grown Coffee" cultivated at altitudes between 1,000-1,500 meters, and the other is "Strictly High Grown Coffee" grown at altitudes between 1,500-2,000 meters, representing Honduras' highest grade. Most of these are exported to the United States and Germany.

Flavor Profile

The flavor is excellent, rich and mellow, suitable for blending. Honduras coffee beans' most noticeable characteristic is their relatively soft and mellow mouthfeel, occasionally with a slight sweetness; low acidity. Among Central American coffee regions, Honduras coffee is known for its black berry flavors and caramel sweetness, with medium body, and some batches even have black pepper and tobacco leaf flavors.

FrontStreet Coffee's Recommended Roasting Method

Honduras belongs to hard beans with medium moisture content, and the beans are relatively uniform in size. We have a general range: to develop Honduras' mellow flavor characteristics, hard beans need to be roasted to at least medium level. Determining the approximate range, we've designed medium, medium-dark, and second crack curves.

FrontStreet Coffee recommends keeping detailed records before roasting, including the coffee beans' moisture content, density, origin, processing method, and the roasting environment's temperature and humidity in the roasting room. Plan your roasting curve accordingly. Record relevant chemical and physical changes during the roasting process, as this will help you better understand the final roasting results and improve your roasting curve.

Processing Methods

Honduran coffee beans are relatively large in size, uniform, and evenly colored with a glossy appearance. For harvesting convenience, farmers prune coffee trees to no more than 150 centimeters in height, as taller trees would require ladders for picking, which is time-consuming and could damage the tree by bending branches. Since each coffee fruit matures at different times, maintaining good coffee bean quality requires manual harvesting, followed by selection of ripe fruits. Coffee fruits on the same branch often require several weeks to complete harvesting.

High-quality Honduran coffee uses the washed processing method. Generally, it first undergoes soaking, during which defective fruits float to the surface and can be discarded first. Then, good fruits are placed in a depulper, where machine rotation removes the fruit skin. The depulped fruits are then mechanically sorted to select high-quality fruits. Usually, larger fruits represent better maturity. Honduran coffee uses the natural drying method, so its taste always has a light fruity aroma.

Honduran coffee can reveal multi-layered flavors depending on the degree of roast. Medium roasting can maximize the beans' sweetness, while dark roasting enhances bitterness, but the sweetness doesn't disappear. Generally, medium roasting provides the best taste, with rich and unique aromas, making it highly favored among Honduras coffee enthusiasts.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473