Rare & Unique Series: Fredy Orantes | Pacamara | Guatemala

About Fredy & his farm:

Fredy Orantes is an experienced coffee producer and a true leader amongst the coffee growers in the Santa Rosa area in the Fraijanes region where his farm – Buena Vista is located. The farm spreads over 7 hectares of land at average altitudes of around 1800 masl. It takes its name from the beautiful views from its slopes overlooking the Santa Rosa town.

The Fraijanes Plateau lies in the central area of the country, in proximity to another coffee region Antigua. Fraijanes is characterized by volcanic soils, high altitudes and a lot of sun during the dry season. Dry sunny days during harvest season allow for production of some great honey and natural processed coffees.

Fredy works tirelessly to maintain high standards in the field during the year as well as during harvest time in order to produce the best possible coffees. By keeping careful records, he is able to create special microlots, including lots separated by coffee variety, which are then carefully processed by his method of choice. Fredy has a good understanding of the impact each processing method can have and his attention to details means he produces outstanding clean and vibrant coffees, highlighting different flavour attributes with different processing methods. 

Fredy is always thinking about sustainability on the farm. He actively cares for the variety of trees on the farm - grevillea and cuje are the most numerous but he also maintains other types of fruit trees and native trees. The soil is carefully maintained, and soil management includes the application of organic materials that have been composted such as fallen leaves and branches as well as coffee pulp. A variety of native animals and birds appear on the farm, and Fredy explains that the farm isn’t even fenced in; as in nature these creatures can come and go as they please!

We’ve been buying Fredy’s microlots for a few years now but this is the first time we’ve had the opportunity to purchase a Pacamara variety lot. This particular lot has been picked from new Pacamara trees Fredy planted in 2019 which have now started producing fruit. The lot was processed using a maceration in cherry and drying as naturals in the sun on raised beds. After a very careful picking, with workers choosing only the ripest cherries, the coffee is placed into clean sacks for a fermentation of about 48 hours. When this fermentation period is over, Fredy adds the coffee to his raised beds, positioned to take advantage of the abundant sunlight of Fraijanes. The coffee dries on these beds for about 18-20 days, with frequent turning to encourage thorough and even drying. Then, the coffee is stored until it can be delivered to our mill for dehulling and export.

About our exporter partner in Guatemala - Primavera Coffee:

Coffee production in Huehue is dominated by small producers whose farms are often based in very remote areas. The remote location requires that the majority of producers process and dry their own coffees. Their farm set up usually includes a small wet mill equipped with de-pulper and fermentation tank for washed processing, and concrete patios for drying. Being in charge of their own harvest and processing allows quality focused producers to be in control of the procedures and harness the best of their coffee's potential.

As with all of our coffee from Guatemala this lot has been sourced with the help of our friends from Primavera Coffee. Primavera are a Guatemala based exporter as well as an importer here in the UK. Headed up by Nadine Rash, Primavera Coffee are a company built on values of quality, transparency and sustainability. Having operations in Guatemala, Primavera are not only able to work directly with small producers and cooperative, they also employ local agronomists who are able to provide vital support in the fields such as technical advice on farming, fermentation and post-harvest processing practices.

Always striving to optimise value for producers, Primavera operates with fair margins to cover their costs and logistics. As they explain: “Sourcing directly from the coffee growers shortens the supply chain, allowing us to give them more of the financial benefits for their coffee. Not only is the price fairer for the producer, this form of direct trade allows farmers to be recognized for superior quality, efforts and enthusiasm.”