Buena Esperanza 2012 Harvest Tasting Event

The Buena Esperanza lot from Hacienda Santa Rosa Alfaro in Huehuetenango, Guatemala was one of our most popular coffees last year.  Though it arrived much delayed, it had an instant following.  Calen from Voltage competed at the NERBC with it which was a footnote to third generation owner Gustavo Alfaro's visit to Cambridge last year.  Gustavo got to hang with us at barismo, Voltage, Simon's, and a few other neighborhood haunts in a whirlwind tour of our town.

Gustavo's coffee is milled and awaiting shipment to us, but thanks to an invite to the World Barista Championship side brew bar, we arranged a little extra to be air freighted to us ahead of normal shipping schedule.  When we committed to the WBC, we knew Gustavo would love that chance to be featured and have worked to make it happen.  Most of that air freighted lot is headed out to Vienna shortly but we are planning on having a little bit for a tasting with 'El Catador' Silas Moulton over at dwelltime this coming Tuesday at 3pm.  Silas spent several weeks living and working at Hacienda Santa Rosa during the peak of their harvest.  He did many varying experiments on the farm and learned a lot in the process.  The finale of which was a plaque installed by Gustavo to note how far the farm had come that was placed at the entrance to the Buena Esperanza lot.

It was a humbling and unique experience on our side that really put into perspective how much goes into making a great coffee.  The same lot we worked on was split in half, one part going to us with the other going to the Cup of Excellence placing 4th in the rankings.  A huge turn for a farm that not long ago was not selling microlots or doing any direct trade.

Join us over at dwelltime (364 Broadway, Cambridge, MA) the 29th of May at 3pm for samples of Syphon brews featuring the Buena Esperanza a week off dry mill.  Get a conversation with Silas and a unique taste experience.  This event is free but the supply is limited so first come, first served.

Gustavo Alfaro at the Cup of Excellence competition.

Buena Esperanza Alfaro

Gustavo at barismo

Technically speaking, Buena Esperanza Alfaro is a lot from Hacienda Santa Rosa in Huehuetenango, Guatemala owned by Gustavo Alfaro. It's a separate plot at about 1800m that we picked up because of a unique varietal. Well, it's not exactly unique, it's a varietal that rightfully doesn't get a lot of respect because where it's commonly grown is fairly low elevation (mostly in Brazil) with poorer results. We're talking about Mundo Nuevo, which would cause many a seasoned coffee pro to do a double take and question whether it could be good and why someone would plant it this high.  It's actually exceptional at this high elevation on his farm and has gotten rave reviews out of the gate from top barista locally. It was a bit of a competition to get this coffee from him after word got out about how it was cupping.  When we tasted it blind, it stood out in a big way and still holds up in production. It has been uniquely honey crisp apple (a note that shows up in many of  the Santa Rosa coffees) while floral pear blossom on the nose followed macadamia nut and nougat in the cup.  Next to the lot of Mundo Nuevo, there is some Tekisik that should have a good yield next crop for a more traditional bourbon style Huehuetenango offering. There are plans to plant some experimental lots as well, including some African varietals, so the hopes are high at the aptly named 'good hope'.

Gustavo with Simon at Simon's

The owner of Hacienda Santa Rosa is the charismatic and creative Gustavo Alfaro, a fourth generation owner of Santa Rosa. Gustavo recently came out to visit us and we chose to do a quick cafe crawl. It was a great experience where many ideas were exchanged over a lot of coffee and good food with friends. Gustavo made instant relationships among the community as we visited shops and did our best to be good hosts.

In it's essence, we were explaining both his story and the personalities of those that would be representing his coffees. Both Gustavo and those he met gained from the experience in a lot of ways.  We feel like he came away with a clear understanding for the strong community that exists here, not just the excitement, but truly the sincerity behind it.

Calen and Gustavo at Voltage

Gustavo had one strong commentary after tasting our Zone10 espresso, an all Guatemala espresso named after the Zona Viva in Guatemala City.  He wanted us to change it to Zona10 and to have just his coffees in it!  We'll take it under advisement have a special Alfaro edition in the spring with artwork based on his ideas just in time for the NERBC.  Rumor has it that a local barista is going to compete with this after meeting Gustavo!

For us, the experience was a reaffirmation to keep working hard and moving forward with big ideas.  We've been blessed by good fortune to find people along the way who understand us and get excited about coffee the way we do.  After years of hearing the critics, many people are coming around to the same seriousness we feel about coffee.  We feel like Gustavo is one of those people and are looking forward to working with him in the years to come.