Guatemala - San Pedro Necta - Calahute (Filter)

Tastes like: Cherry, blackcurrant, dark chocolate

Calahute is owned by the Anzueto family, who purchased the land and planted it with coffee in 1952. Today, it is managed by third-generation coffee producer Alfonso Anzueto, who inherited the farm from his father.

Calahute (which translates to “Free Deer”) is located in Huehuetenango, a stunning region located in the west of Guatemala near the border of Mexico. To reach the estate, a steep road ascends the side of El Tapón Mountain in Huehuetenango and eventually rises to the town of San Pedro Necta. The verdant hills surrounding the town centre are home to many independent farmers, who grow coffee as their primary source of income.

The estate is relatively large for this region (most of the producers in San Pedro Necta have very small farms), with 210 hectares (out of a total 226) dedicated to coffee. While this lot is made up of Bourbon, a number of other varieties are grown on the estate, including Caturra, Catuai, Pacamara, Tekisik, Typica — and more recently, rare varieties like Sidra and Parainema have been introduced. Alfonso has also planted what he calls “an Ethiopian heirloom plot,” made up of various Ethiopian varieties he has gathered over the years that are grown with minimal management, “to see which ones thrive,” he explains. Because the estate is over 50 years old and quite large, Alfonso and his team are still uncovering treasures on a regular basis. One of their most recent discoveries was a pair of old Pacamara trees, that looked different to the ones they had recently planted at a different plot. They’ve now decided to reproduce these trees because of their excellent cup quality and great adaptability to Calahute’s soil.

REGION: Huehuetenango
FARM: Calahute
PRODUCER: Alfonso Anzueto
ELEVATION: 1,300 – 1,500 MASL
VARIETY: Bourbon
PROCESS: Washed