Guatemala Pacamara Natural

Blind Assessment: Complex, sweetly tart, spice-toned. Peach, fine musk, toffee, macadamia nut, roasted cacao nib in aroma and cup. Sweet-tart structure with vibrant, juicy acidity; plush, syrupy mouthfeel. The elegant, lingering finish centers around notes of peach, toffee and fine musk, all cocoa-toned.

Notes: This coffee earned the highest rating in a cupping of coffees from big-bean varieties for Coffee Review’s November 2018 tasting report. Produced at Finca La Hermosa entirely of the Pacamara variety of Arabica. The Pacamara is a big-beaned hybrid of the Bourbon-related Pacas and the huge-beaned Maragogipe, itself a mutant of the ancient Typica variety. This is a dry-processed or “natural” version, meaning the beans were dried inside the fruit rather than after the soft fruit residue has been removed, as is the case with wet-processed or “washed” coffees. Roaster Yu Chih Hao is co-founder of Fumi Coffee, a new roaster in Hsinchu, Taiwan specializing in specialty coffee and homemade desserts. Visit https://m.facebook.com/fumicafe035586631/ for more information.

The Bottom Line : A multi-layered cup redolent with stone fruit, sweet nuts and pungent florals, animated by a bright, engaging acidity.