San Cayetano Carbonic Natural Decaf, Guatemala | DECAF ESPRESSO

In the Santa Rosa region, nestled in the southern reaches of Guatemala, is Finca San Cayetano. The farm is in its third generation of coffee growers, and it run by Natchez S.A. In addition to coffee, Finca San Cayetano also grows bananas and harvests honey from beehives. The farm received its name from a curious tradition that links the people and the Catholic saints with the same name; the ancient and original owner Cayetano Valladares was a devout religious person but a passionate coffee grower too.

During the harvest, once the cherries reach peak ripeness, they are carefully handpicked and delivered to the mill, located onsite. At the mill, the cherries ferment in piles for 18 – 24 hours before being pulped to remove the external fruit. Fresh water from the nearby water source is used to wash the beans to clean away any remaining mucilage. The coffee is then dispersed evenly on patios to dry in the open sun until the ideal moisture content is reached.