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Guatemala Coffee Flavor Profile: The Organic Sweet and Tart Notes of Atitlan's Volcanic Region

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, Professional coffee knowledge exchange. For more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style). FrontStreet Coffee's Guatemala Atitlan Introduction - The Republic of Guatemala, commonly known as Guatemala, is a presidential republic in Central America, located in the southern part of the North American continent, in northwestern Central America, bordering Mexico to the west and north, Belize to the northeast, and Honduras to the southeast.

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Cafe_Style (WeChat public account).

FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Guatemala Atitlan

The Republic of Guatemala, commonly referred to as Guatemala, is a presidential republic in Central America. Located in the southern part of the North American continent and northwestern Central America, it borders Mexico to the west and north, Belize to the northeast, Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast, the Gulf of Honduras (Caribbean Sea) to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The country's total area is 108,900 square kilometers.

Guatemala was one of the centers of ancient Mayan culture. In 1524, it became a Spanish colony. On September 15, 1821, it declared independence. In 1823, it joined the Central American Federation. The republic was established in 1839. It later experienced long-term authoritarian rule. The democratization process began in 1944, and from 1954 onward, it entered a period of alternating right-wing military and civilian governments. Left-wing military organizations emerged in 1960. In 1982, leftist guerrilla groups across Guatemala merged to form the "Guatemalan National Revolutionary Union," with armed struggles throughout the country. In December 1996, the Arzu government (National Advancement Party) and the "Guatemalan National Revolutionary Union" reached the "Final Peace Accord," ending 36 years of civil unrest.

Guatemala has three World Heritage sites: Antigua Guatemala, the Quiriguá Archaeological Park and Mayan Cultural Site, and Tikal National Park.

Atitlan

One of Guatemala's four volcanic coffee regions. The soil in Atitlan is among the most fertile organic matter. Ninety percent of the coffee is grown along extremely steep slopes, extending all the way to Lake Atitlan, which is the largest and most famous of Guatemala's many volcanic lakes.

The coffee from this region is rich and fragrant, with intoxicating aromas, a sweet-acidic flavor profile, and full-bodied coffee beans. The growing altitude ranges from 5,000-5,600 feet (1,500-1,700 meters). The region has volcanic ash soil and a great volcanic lake climate. Annual rainfall is approximately 72-92 inches (1,800-2,300 mm). The average annual temperature is 68-73°F (20-23°C) with relative humidity of 75%-85%.

The main drying methods in this region are sun-drying and machine-drying, with shade trees including Gravilea and Albizia species. Coffee varieties include Bourbon, Typica, Caturra, and Catuai. The production season in this region runs from December to March of the following year.

Knowledge point: "Arabica" is not synonymous with good coffee. Even among Arabica varieties, there are grade differences.

In short: FrontStreet Coffee is a coffee research center that enjoys sharing coffee knowledge with everyone. We share without reservation to help more friends fall in love with coffee. Additionally, we hold three discounted coffee events every month because FrontStreet Coffee wants to provide the best coffee to more friends at the lowest possible price. This has been our mission for the past six years!