Guatemala Unión Cantinil

Whole bean coffee

Origin: Guatemala

Region: Huehuetenango

Locality: Unión Cantinil

Producers: Various smallholding farmers

Elevation: 1500 - 1800 masl

Process: Washed, dried on patios

Varieties: Bourbon, Catuai, Caturra, Pache

Tasting notes: Vanilla, brown sugar, cherry

Unión Cantinil is a town in the remote and mountainous region of Huehuetenango in northern Guatemala. This coffee was produced by 76 small-holding producers who grow Bourbon, Catuai, Caturra, and Pache varieties. Huehuetenango is one of the most well-known and highly regarded coffee regions in Guatemala, known for its full-bodied and rounded profile of dark chocolate and stone fruits.

Farmers use production methods that follow the local tradition, de-pulping freshly picked coffee cherries and fermenting them overnight for 12 - 18 hours. After fermentation, the seeds are washed clean with fresh water and dried in the sun on cement patios. Coffee on the patios must be raked and turned constantly during the day to promote even drying until the desired moisture content is reached.

With this coffee from Unión Cantinil we taste vanilla, brown sugar, and ripe black cherry. This coffee is extremely versatile, and we’re roasting it three different ways. In addition to roasting it lightly as a Single Origin offering, Unión Cantinil is also the coffee behind the current version of Deep Thought, and is a 50% component of Chit Chat.

Transparency

This is our first year sourcing Huehuetenango coffee through Covoya Specialty Coffee. We purchased 50 69kg bags “on the spot”. We scored an arrival sample of this coffee 86.5 points and paid $4.75/lb FOT.