RARE and UNIQUE series | Fredy Orantes | Pacamara | Guatemala
RARE and UNIQUE series | Fredy Orantes | Pacamara | Guatemala
Natural processed Pacamara variety produced by Fredy Orantes at his farm Buena Vista in Santa Rosa, Fraijanes.
Wonderfully silky & sweet with delicate florals, fruit forward with notes of golden kiwi and gooseberry compote, with a looong sweet finish.
This coffee is great for filter brewing (drip/pourover, aeropress, cafetière). Best enjoyed black.
Special mention & thanks to Alice Ferns - Ferns & Pens - for the beautiful label illustration.
Key Origin Info:
Producer: Fredy Orantes
Region: Fraijanes
Altitude: 1800 masl
Varietal: Pacamara - hybrid of two parents - the El Salvadorean Bourbon mutaction called Pacas and Maragogipe - a natural mutation of Typica
Process: Macerated natural, dried on raised beds
Exporter & Importer: Primavera
Cup profile: Silky body, delicate florals, golden kiwi, gooseberrry jam & cane sugar
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.
Finca Buena Vista with its many shade trees.
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 and this is the second year we’ve been able to purchase this coffee. 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.
