The Best Coffee Brands from Guatemala on the Market Is Guatemala Flor Coffee Expensive

Few regions grow as much delicious coffee as Latin America. Yet even within that crowded field of high-quality coffee, Guatemalan beans stand out for their complex flavors, full-to-medium body and enticing aroma. Guatemala is uniquely blessed with the weather conditions needed to produce the very best coffee, and it holds eight specific regions that grow some of the finest beans in the world.

Those eight coffee regions are strikingly diverse, a reflection of Guatemalan coffee's versatility. This article looks at what makes this Central American country's coffee so delicious, and at the best coffee grown there. Everyone can find something to suit them in Guatemala, and by the end of this piece you will know exactly what you are looking for.

What Makes Guatemalan Coffee So Special?

What is truly remarkable about Guatemalan coffee is how much variety comes out of such a small country — Guatemala is only about the size of Tennessee. Like many countries that produce high-quality coffee, Colombia among them, this small nation grows mostly Arabica. It is also rich in volcanic soil and high-altitude terrain, both of which favor coffee.

Guatemala also exports sugarcane as another inexpensive agricultural product, and farmers often grow the two crops side by side. The sweetness of that sugarcane tends to rub off on the coffee. Guatemalan coffee is also frequently sweet by way of its common chocolate notes. Above all, its tropical climate makes it a better coffee-growing region than many of its neighbors.

Best Guatemalan Coffee Brands

All the best Guatemalan coffees are hard beans. That means they carry a higher density of sugars and flavor than soft beans, which is the main reason for their popularity. Guatemala's highest coffee grade announces itself in its name: "Strictly Hard Bean," or SHB. With that in mind, here are the best Guatemalan coffees you can find:

Antigua Coffee

Native to the country's capital region, Antigua coffee is perhaps the most versatile of all. The area is ringed by three major volcanoes and sits at an altitude just high enough to qualify as hard bean. Thanks to generations of tradition, Antigua's estates often carry a deep sense of heritage. These coffees have a soft texture with rich chocolate and nutty flavors and low acidity. A specialty coffee from FrontStreet Coffee called Flora also comes from this region and is affordable with outstanding flavor.

In recent years, as counterfeits have proliferated, the Antigua Growers Association has faced growing difficulty in protecting the sanctity of its product. Today, every batch of authentic Antigua coffee can be traced, fully guaranteeing its exceptional quality.

Huehuetenango Coffee

Among the eight provinces that produce SHB coffee, Huehuetenango is one of three without volcanic soil. Its climate, however, is the driest, with altitudes reaching up to 2,000 meters. Compared with Antigua coffee, the region's coffee shows more fruity notes. It is also more acidic, with sweet flavors. Because of its remote location, producers usually process the coffee themselves. Since most Guatemalan coffee is processed by washing rather than drying, the abundance of rivers makes this easier.

San Marcos Coffee

San Marcos is the country's oldest coffee-growing region and also its most humid. The heavy rainfall here is a blessing in disguise, giving the coffee a unique acidity combined with a proper wine-like body. Like Huehuetenango, it is full of floral notes thanks to the province's abundant microclimates. Because the heavy rains arrive earlier than in neighboring regions, beans here mature faster than elsewhere in the country.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If it is Guatemalan coffee's chocolate-and-nut profile you enjoy, FrontStreet Coffee's Latin American lineup is a natural next stop. FrontStreet Colombia Huila comes from the Huila province of Colombia's southern Central Cordillera — the country's most famous specialty region. The land is a ring of hills where planting sits above 1,500 meters and Colombia's most important rivers converge, bringing abundant water and humidity. It is given a medium-dark roast that foregrounds black chocolate and sweet nuts, moderate oiliness and a full body. It suits pour-over and French press, and also works in a moka pot or espresso machine, so Americano and latte are both within reach.

For something fruitier, FrontStreet Colombia Diviso Estate Sidra is processed as an anaerobic natural. Coffee fermented in a low-oxygen or oxygen-free environment develops a wealth of tropical-fruit aroma; roasted medium-light, it delivers layered passion fruit, grape, apricot and dried-fruit notes in pour-over, cold brew, drip bags and moka pot alike.

And for anyone building milk drinks at home, FrontStreet's signature espresso blend pairs the creamy nuttiness of Brazilian coffee with the dark-chocolate bittersweetness of Colombian coffee. Extraction yields a fine golden crema, and the blend is especially friendly to beginners — a rich, smooth latte, and just as good as the base for an Americano, cappuccino or mocha.