Foundry Coffee Roasters: Guatemala, La Joya Oscura, Washed

Completing our offering from Guatemala for this year is the wonderful Joya Oscura. This is a really intriguing coffee. You'l find lots of complexity here, lovely gently sparkling acidity and so it was a bit of a surprise to find that it also works so well in espresso. This one has been something of a revelation for us and we're sure you'll love it too.

The farmer is eighty years old, has had his farm for 35 years and Rogelio is still committed to doing everything he can to push coffee quality on his farm. Well done and thank you Rogelio, your efforts have really paid off this time.

About the producer

Rogelio lives and manages the Joya Oscura farm together with his son José Lopez Xutuc in San Antonio Huista. The name of the farm arose years ago, as the farm was located in an area where the rest of the mountain was fully covered with vegetation. Sun and daylight would hardly come through thick layers of branches and leaves, the “Joya Oscura”, the “Dark Jewel” is how the land was referred to and why this farm carries that name.

About 35 years ago, Rogelio started with his farm. It was challenging, he explains, because at that time the farm was not accessible for vehicles and he had to bring farm inputs by horse and transport the coffee in the same way. In those days, the only varieties that were available were Caturra, Catuai and Bourbon. At that time there was simply no other choice, but now he feels lucky to still grow these ones, as they turned out to have the best quality results. “I am 80 years old but as long as God allows me to live, I will be after improving quality and becoming better each and every day.” Rogelio and José plan to focus on training the coffee pickers and those who work in the wet mill and have a soil analysis conducted on their farm.