Danelaw - Honduras
Brought to you by Dog and Hat!
Origin
Mauro Rodriguez's Finca Mayo in the Yoro mountain region of Central Honduras
Variety
Parainema
Processing
Washed
Altitude
1250 masl
Roast Profile
Omni-Roast
Tasting Notes
Notes of Blackberry, Stone Fruits and Pink Grapefruit
Coffee Facts
SCA Score - 85.5
Mauro’s farm was the first coffee farm I ever set foot on back in 2018. High in the mountains of Yoro in Central Honduras, he looked after me well and we shared a meal together that evening. Since then we’ve kept in touch on WhatsApp.
In 2020, Honduras suffered 2 hurricanes in the space of 2 weeks, which left Mauro’s village, Subirana, cut off as the only bridge was destroyed. They rebuilt and carried on. Because that’s what they do round here.
In 2011 the area suffered a devastating leaf rust epidemic - a fungus that prevents light reaching the leaves and slowly kills the plants. They had to rip up trees, replant and start again.
The Co-operative that Mauro is president of, COMISUYL, invested heavily in recovering from Leaf Rust. Organic Farming, a partnership with the Mesoamerican Development Institute and the Pico Pijol national park mean that European roasters are able to buy carbon credits from them to offset their CO2 emissions, as the co-op, and particularly its integrated open canopy maintenance of the rainforest means that they are able to offer carbon sequestration as a complementary service to their coffee
The co-op also invested in solar panels to power their central processing site. Here, they have mechanical dryers used to help prepare the coffee, and it’s very unusual for these to be solar powered in Central America - another example of their progressive mindset
When they re-planted after leaf rust, a lot of their new plants were rust-resistant hybrid varietals. These typically have quite a harsh, sometimes woody character, but they also have a unique, thick, creamy body (like me) making them ideal for espresso blends
Mauro’s coffee is different. He was especially selective of the cherries he picked, selecting only the ripest Parainema cherries. This is a hybrid too, but a much cleaner, sweeter version.
This was then processed carefully using the washed method, where all the fruit is removed quickly, the coffee fermented for 12-24 hours and then dried.
