Honduras Finca El Conejo Catuai Natural Organic
Captain's Gold top 3! This direct trade microlot from Delmer & Joel Banegas features the ubiquitous Catuai variety with a twist - it's natural processed. But if you're thinking "oh look another intense fruity natural", think again! This coffee is warm and grounded with excellent body and an almost velvety texture. With notes of red apple, dried fruit, hibiscus, vanilla and milk chocolate, it's a natural that thinks it's a washed - in the best way possible!
The Banegas brothers aren’t like family to us, they are family! Joel and Delmer’s farm, Finca El Conejo, is one of the few experimental coffee farms in the Comayagua region of Honduras and they are out to make waves. With 5 generations of coffee farming and degrees in Agricultural Engineering behind them, every lot is a microlot and every microlot is a chance to try something new and delicious. With this microlot, their goal was to elevate the humble Catuai variety.
Catuai is a variety usually sought after for its more “conventional” attributes – chocolatey, nutty and creamy. It cleans up well when fully washed, but usually gets stuck under that boring category of being a great blender, since not much stands out on its own. So the brothers decided to carefully dry process it and really let the bean shine. The result is a super clean cup that’s gently bright and sweet with excellent body and a nearly velvety texture. Instead of the usual intensely fruity profile from natural processing, you still get those conventional washed flavors – sweet milk chocolate, almond and honey – but with the added bonus of gentle dried fruit, apple and even hibiscus. I think of it as a natural for folks who like washed coffee! This coffee is a great example of how variety cultivation and selection paired with processing makes for a unique, and absolutely delicious cup.
Reminder! This coffee is raw, you must roast it before brewing
Arrival Date: July 30th, 2024. Harvest season: 2023 - 2024, packed in GrainPro
Acidity & Brightness: Gently bright and fairly sweet
Balance & Finish: Well balanced with a quick, clean finish
Body & Texture: Full bodied with a creamy texture
Flavors: Milk chocolate, dried fruit, almond, apple, hibiscus and vanilla.
Grade: SHG-EP, grown at 1550 masl
Certifications:Direct trade, Organic & Bird friendly
Processing: Fully washed and dried in raised African style beds
Grower: Delmer & Joel Banegas | Finca el Conejo, De la Finca Coffee
Region: Los Planes, Comayagua, Honduras
Varietals: Catuai
Recommended Roast Range: City+ to Full City + (Light-medium to medium-Dark
We like this coffee best at City + to Full Medium (as 1st crack is trailing off), but it will perform well nearly anywhere in the Light-medium to Medium-dark spectrum. Lighter roasts accent bright and vibrant acidity in the form of crisp apple and lemon zest along with more pronounced floral tones. Darker roasts will lose a bit of brightness in favor of body as well as bringing out more rounded sweetness and accent caramel and chocolate tones.
De La Finca Coffee - "De La Finca family members and fifth generation coffee farmers, Joel and Delmer, are two young entrepreneurs who were given a plot of land by Joel's father (Joel Banegas Sr, Finca Mira Flores) to start growing coffee. Delmer took full responsibility for maintaining the land and workers while Joel decided to go to college to study agricultural engineering and specialize in coffee. They have joined forces to make Finca el Conejo one of the few experimental coffee farms in the Comayagua region.”
