CHRISTMAS BREW

Finca Santa Clara

The farm sits on the fertile southern slopes of Volcán de Agua in the Antigua Valley, ringed by three volcanoes: Agua, Acatenango and Fuego. The Zelaya family has been growing coffee in Guatemala since 1908, and is one of only a handful of genuine Antigua growers.

Ricardo Zelaya, the fourth generation of the family to produce coffee here, has run the farm since 1989. In that time he has grown it from 17 hectares of coffee to 110, and built a wet mill, drying patios and a greenhouse so every step of processing happens with care on the farm.

This lot is Gesha, a variety prized for its delicate, floral character, grown at 1,550–1,890 metres. It’s naturally processed, with the coffee dried whole in its cherry for extra sweetness and depth. The cup is elegant and perfumed, with notes of coffee blossom, jasmine and lemongrass.

Finca Santa Isabel

Finca Santa Isabel lies near the town of San Cristóbal Verapaz in Cobán, a cool, misty and famously rainy corner of Guatemala. The land was first granted to the Valdés family in 1875. It later passed out of their hands, until Luis Valdés bought it back in 1960 and planted the first coffee in 1965.

Today Don Luis runs the farm with his son, also Luis and known to everyone as Wicho. Cobán’s humid climate makes coffee hard to dry, and the region wasn’t always known for quality, but the two of them were convinced it had more to offer. Wicho, an agronomist, spent some 15 years developing the farm’s own pruning schedule, which has greatly reduced the impact of coffee leaf rust.

This lot is Caturra and Catuai, grown at 1,400–1,600 metres and fully washed. The cup is sweet and juicy, with notes of black cherry and chocolate and a bright, lemonade-like finish.