Honduras Coffee Bean Growing Regions & Flavor Profiles - Why Honduras Coffee is Popular

Whether at FrontStreet Coffee's Dongshankou store in Guangzhou or its online Taobao shop, more than 50 varieties of coffee beans from around the world are displayed. Among them, three coffees from Honduras each offer distinct flavor profiles. Before listing these coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee conducted extensive origin research, tasting coffees from multiple Honduran growing regions. Through continuous adjustments to roasting curves, cupping, pour-over brewing, and other processes, FrontStreet Coffee finally determined which beans to feature. Some might find this process overly complex, but it's precisely because of this approach that FrontStreet Coffee can guarantee that each of these 50+ coffee beans offers unique characteristics, ensuring that every visitor to FrontStreet Coffee can find their perfect coffee bean.

Each country's coffee has different characteristics. Take Africa as an example—African coffees are characterized by fruity acidity. While this fruity acidity is a common trait across most African countries, each nation has its own focus: Ethiopia's acidity is bright and clear, Kenya's is intense and vibrant, Rwanda's is less intense than Kenya's but fuller-bodied than Ethiopia's... Honduras, located in Central America, while sharing similar coffee flavors with neighboring countries, offers exotic spice elements in its aroma, followed by nutty and chocolate-rich notes in the finish, with overall balanced and layered complexity.

Honduran Geography

Honduras is a mountainous country located in northern Central America. It borders the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Gulf of Fonseca (Pacific Ocean) to the south. It shares borders with Nicaragua and El Salvador to the southeast and Guatemala to the west. More than three-quarters of its territory consists of mountains and plateaus, with mountain ranges extending from west to east. The interior features lava plateaus with many intermountain valleys, while coastal areas have plains. Honduras has a tropical climate, with coastal plains experiencing tropical rainforest climate. Honduras possesses ideal coffee growing conditions: microclimates, altitude, soil, and abundant rainfall.

Not only is Honduras the largest coffee producer in Central America, but when counting only washed Arabica beans, Honduras is actually the world's second-largest producer of washed Arabica beans. In the early 21st century, Honduran coffee surpassed bananas to become the country's most important cash crop. Banana production was dominated by large American companies, but coffee cultivation is carried out by small farmers. Honduras currently has 110,000 coffee farmers, with manual harvesting of coffee cherries being the primary picking method. The harvest season runs from November to March each year.

Honduran Coffee Development

Honduran coffee was first introduced by Spanish merchants in the late 18th century. By 1804, Honduras was already cultivating coffee on a small scale.

Actually, the delayed development of Honduran coffee had historical reasons, primarily the lack of transportation infrastructure connecting growing regions to ports, which hindered the country's coffee industry from taking off. However, after 1970, the government established the official coffee institution Instituto Hondureño del Cafe (IHCAFE) dedicated to improving coffee quality. Combined with the fact that coffee trees can be grown throughout Honduras, this allowed Honduran coffee production to surpass Costa Rica and Guatemala by 2011.

In 1975, Brazil suffered from frost damage, causing a sharp decline in coffee production. Honduras seized this opportunity, with coffee production surging from 500,000 bags to 1.8 million bags, which were quickly snapped up. From that point forward, Honduran coffee production truly began to develop. In the 1990s, the specialty coffee movement rose in Central America. While other countries competed on quality, Honduras lagged behind in coffee quality. The main reason was that during green bean processing, the final drying stage was affected by abundant and unpredictable rainfall in mountainous regions.

In 2004, Honduras held its first Cup of Excellence competition, where 21 coffees from across the country received recognition and participated in online auctions.

In 2011, Honduras became the highest coffee-producing country in Central America and the world's second-largest producer of Arabica coffee.

Today, Honduras has become one of the world's top ten coffee-producing countries and the world's second-largest Arabica coffee producer. Coffee plays an important role in its economy and national development. Honduras has 280,000 hectares of coffee plantations, mostly small-scale farms with plantations under 3.5 hectares, which account for 60% of Honduras's total coffee production.

Honduran Coffee Grades

By Growing Altitude

Strictly High Grown (SHG): Over 1,200 meters
High Grown (HG): 1,000-1,200 meters
Central Standard (CS): 600-1,000 meters

By Defect Rate

American Standard USP, US preparation; European Standard EP Euro preparation.

Honduran green bean naming convention: Honduras SHG EP (Country + Altitude Grade + Defect Standard)

Honduran Coffee Growing Regions

Since 2007, Honduras has strengthened its origin labeling system, dividing coffee growing regions into six main areas:

1. Copán Region

Location: Located in western Honduras, bordering Guatemala, including parts of Copán, Ocotepeque, Cortés, Santa Bárbara, and Lempira departments.
Altitude: 1,000 - 1,500 meters
Temperature: 11.5-22.5°C
Precipitation: 1,300-2,300 mm
Harvest: November - March

Honduras Las Gemelas Estate

Region: Copán
Estate: Las Gemelas
Altitude: 1,250 meters
Variety: Red Catuai
Processing Method: Natural
Flavor: Brown sugar, berries, grapes, fermented wine aroma

Honduras San Vicente Processing Station

Region: Copán
Processing Station: San Vicente
Altitude: 1,600-1,900 meters
Variety: Pacas
Grade: SHG
Processing Method: Washed
Flavor: Raspberry, cherry, almond, caramel, green apple, grape

2. Opalaca Region

Location: Located between Santa Bárbara, Intibucá, and Lempira areas.
Altitude: 1,100-1,500 meters
Temperature: 11.5-22.5°C
Precipitation: 1,400-1,950 mm
Harvest Season: November - February
Varieties: Bourbon, Typica, Catuai, Pacas
Flavor: Very delicate acidity, overall balanced profile, with distinct tropical fruit notes like grape and blackberry.

3. Montecillos

Location: Located in La Paz, Comayagua, Santa Bárbara, and Intibucá departments, bordering El Salvador in southwestern Honduras.
Altitude: 1,200-1,600 meters
Temperature: 12-21.2°C
Precipitation: 1,300-2,300 mm
Harvest Season: November - April
Varieties: Bourbon, Catuai, Typica
Flavor: Bright and lively acidity, with orange and peach notes, long aftertaste, velvety mouthfeel.

4. Comayagua

Location: Located in central Honduras, including Comayagua and Francisco Morazán departments.
Altitude: 1,000 - 1,500 meters
Temperature: 14.0 - 22.0°C
Precipitation: 1,350 - 1,700 mm
Varieties: Bourbon, Caturra, Typica, Pacas
Harvest Season: December - March
Flavor: Primarily lemon-flavored, with obvious sweet fruit aroma, creamier body, citrus sweetness, and notes of sweetness and chocolate.

5. Agalta Tropical

Location: Located in southeastern Honduras, including Olancho and Yoro departments.
Altitude: 1,000-1,400 meters
Temperature: 14.5-22.5°C
Precipitation: 1,300-1,950 mm
Harvest Season: December - March
Varieties: Bourbon, Catuai, Typica
Flavor: Honey fragrance and aroma, with strong citrus flavor and subtle yet distinct acidity.

6. El Paraíso

Location: Located in southern Honduras, including El Paraíso department, bordering Nicaragua.
Altitude: 1,100-1,500 meters
Temperature: 16-22.5°C
Precipitation: 1,000-1,400 mm
Harvest Season: December - March

Honduras La Finca La Lima Washed Parainema

Region: El Paraíso
Altitude: 1,400 meters
Variety: Parainema
Processing Method: Washed processing
Grade: SHG
Flavor: Citrus, berries, grapefruit peel, nuts and dark cocoa notes when cool, distinct berry acidity, tea-like quality

In addition to these 6 main coffee growing regions, there are some smaller regions. Finca Sweet Orange and Finca Mocca from the La Paz region in southwestern Honduras both produce coffees with excellent flavor profiles, and FrontStreet Coffee has featured several of these coffees.

Honduras Sweet Orange Estate

Region: Marcala
Altitude: 1,425 meters
Variety: Catuai
Processing Method: Washed
Flavor: Citrus, melon, floral notes, cane sugar, orange peel, nuts, tea-like quality

Honduras Finca Mocca Sherry

Region: Marcala
Estate: Finca Mocca
Altitude: 1,500-1,700 meters
Variety: Caturra, Catuai, Pacas
Processing Method: Fine washed + whiskey sherry barrel fermentation
Flavor: Wine aroma, vanilla cream, dark cocoa, nuts, liquor-filled chocolate

Honduras Finca Mocca Litchi Orchid

Region: Marcala
Estate: Finca Mocca
Altitude: 1,500-1,700 meters
Variety: Caturra, Catuai
Processing Method: Fine washed + brandy barrel fermentation
Flavor: Fermented notes, wine aroma, subtle cream, nuts, chocolate

Honduran Coffee Processing Methods

Honduran coffee is primarily processed using the washed method. The process generally begins with soaking, during which defective fruits float to the surface and can be removed and discarded. Next, the pulp and skin are removed, and the beans are soaked in water to ferment and remove mucilage, then thoroughly washed and dried until the moisture content reaches about 12%.

Depending on the roast level, Honduran coffee can reveal multi-layered flavors. Medium roasting can maximize the bean's sweetness, while dark roasting enhances bitterness but the sweetness doesn't disappear. Generally, medium roasting offers the best mouthfeel with rich, unique aroma.

Honduran Coffee Varieties

Honduran coffee beans are grown at an average altitude of 1,000-1,600m. The main cultivated varieties include Bourbon, Typica, Caturra, Catuai, and Pacas.

Bourbon is a variant of early Typica after being transplanted to Yemen, with the bean shape changing from slender and pointed to round. In 1715, the French transplanted the round Yemen Mocha beans to Bourbon Island off the east coast of Africa (renamed Réunion Island after the French Revolution), and it was then named Bourbon. The round Bourbon beans made their way to Brazil and Central/South America in 1727. In 1732, the British also transplanted Yemen Mocha to St. Helena Island (where Napoleon was later imprisoned) - these were also round Bourbon beans. Bourbon is often a champion in American specialty coffee cuppings.

Typica is the oldest native variety from Ethiopia. Typica has bronze-colored young leaves and oval or slender, pointed beans. It offers elegant flavors but has weaker constitution, poor disease resistance, and low yield. FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaican Blue Mountain, Sumatran Mandheling, and Hawaiian Kona are all Typica varieties.

Caturra is a natural variant of Bourbon, discovered in Brazil in 1937. Its plant is not as tall as Bourbon, being more compact. While inheriting Bourbon's lineage, it has relatively weak disease resistance but higher yield than Bourbon. Although discovered in Brazil, Caturra is not suitable for growing there and wasn't cultivated on a large scale in Brazil. Instead, it became popular in Central and South America, such as Colombia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Honduras. The higher the altitude where Caturra is planted, the better the quality, but correspondingly lower the yield.

When FrontStreet Coffee roasts Caturra, we can clearly feel that with light roasting, Caturra's acidic aroma is prominent and overall bright. With proper handling, sweetness can be expressed very well, but the body is relatively lower compared to Bourbon, and the cleanness of the cup is somewhat lacking. Typically, Caturra has red cherries, but in very rare regions, yellow Caturra exists, such as the small amount of yellow Caturra grown in Hawaii.

Catuai is a hybrid coffee variety created by crossing Caturra and Mundo Novo. Catuai has good resistance to natural disasters, particularly wind and rain. Catuai trees are relatively compact, and compared to other coffee trees, Catuai fruits grow more firmly and are not easy to pick. The fruits come in both red and yellow varieties.

Pacas is a Bourbon variant discovered in El Salvador. In 1935, Salvadoran coffee farmer Pacas selected high-yielding San Ramon Bourbon varieties to plant on his farm. In 1956, friends noticed that the Bourbon on his farm yielded more than other coffee trees of the same variety, so they invited a professor from the University of Florida to identify it. It was determined that Bourbon had undergone genetic mutation, and the new variety was named "Pacas" after the farm's reputation. Pacas became quite popular in Central America due to its high yield and good quality.

FrontStreet Coffee's Honduran Sherry coffee beans contain the Pacas coffee variety.

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