Introduction to Honduran Coffee Bean Grading System - What Distinct Flavors Do Washed Honduran Beans Have?

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FrontStreet Coffee - Honduras Coffee Grading

Honduras began growing coffee in the late 19th century. Unlike countries that imported coffee and then cultivated it heavily for export, Honduras planted so much that 90% of its crop was consumed at home.

Perhaps sensing that such excellent growing conditions were being wasted without an export trade, the country gradually built one up. In 1990, exports reached several tens of thousands of tons, and by 2018 they had climbed to roughly 360,000 tons. Despite being a small nation, Honduras now produces coffee at a world-leading volume.

Coffee Bean Grades by Altitude

SHG (Strictly High Grown): grown in highlands above 1,200 m, the highest grade produced in Honduras.

HG (High Grown): grown between 900 and 1,200 m above sea level.

CS (Central Standard): grown between 600 and 900 m above sea level.

Characteristics of Honduras Coffee

The variety grown is Arabica. Honduran coffee offers a rich aroma, fruit acidity and a clean aftertaste, with excellent balance and a smooth mouthfeel.

Its acidity is medium to light, noticeable but never sharp. Sometimes it carries attractive floral or fruity notes, and beans from different regions and altitudes show different characteristics. There is bitterness too, balanced by a clearly sweet finish. Overall the flavor is even, with neither acidity nor bitterness dominating and the two in good harmony.

Most Honduran coffee is processed with the washed method, which yields clean beans of fairly stable quality. In the roaster, medium-dark is generally recommended. At that level the beans tend to show dark chocolate aroma and very strong sweetness, with a long, lingering finish.

In Summary

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FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Honduran coffee is prized for its clean, balanced washed cup, and the FrontStreet Kenya Little Tomato celebrates exactly that kind of clarity. Kenya's double-washed process, which repeats the washing stage with soaking and rinsing between steps to strip every trace of mucilage, produces a cup brimming with cherry tomato, smoked plum, snow pear, black plum and yellow sugar, juicy and sweet-sour in equal measure.

For a lighter, more aromatic expression of washed coffee, try the FrontStreet Yirgacheffe Gudingding Cooperative. Handled with the traditional washed method, it delivers jasmine florals, bright citrus lemon acidity, green tea and honey, an ideal everyday single origin for pour-over, cold brew or espresso.

And for those who prefer a richer, more classic cup, the FrontStreet Jamaica Blue Mountain No.1 brings hazelnut, cream, chocolate and caramel together in a perfectly even body that never lets one note overpower another.