Fredy Orantes (Natural Gesha) Fraijanes, Guatemala

One of our favorite coffees was tasted this past year, a natural process coffee from a leading producer of the Fraijanes region of Guatemala. Fredy Orantes is a true leader among the coffee growers of Santa Rosa, and has worked tirelessly to maintain high standards in the field and during the harvest in order to produce the best possible coffees. Fredy is an expert with both larger lots and small microlots, and every aspect of coffee picking and processing is done with care in order to ensure top quality. Fredy is always thinking about sustainability on the farm. He actively cares for the variety of trees on the farm - Grevillea and Cuje are the most numerous but he also maintains other types of fruit trees (avocado) and native trees. The soil is carefully maintained, and soil management includes the application of organic materials that have been composted such as fallen leaves and branches as well as coffee pulp. A variety of native animals and birds appear on the farm, and Fredy explains that the farm isn’t even fenced in; as in nature these creatures can come and go as they please! A R C O I R I S (rainbow) P R O C E S S I N G N O T E S : Fredy’s coffees are processed with utmost care and attention to detail at his mill, which is at 1650 meters - slightly lower than the farm where the plants grow. This year, with the weather a little cooler than usual, Fredy’s expertise in properly processing lots was even more critical than usual. Only the ripest Gesha cherries are selected for this lot, and they are soaked in water to remove any dust or floaters (immature or malformed beans) after picking. Soaking the cherries also serves to lower the microbial count and homogenize the temperature of the cherries. They are then placed on raised beds to dry; during a cooler year with more cloudy days, this resulted in a 25 to 30 day drying period carefully managed by Fredy. When on raised beds, the cherries need to be turned frequently in order to ensure thorough and even drying; Fredy laid the coffee out at 10 AM and collected it each afternoon at 2 PM to ensure that it dried during the warmest parts of the day. This coffee has been imported by Primavera Coffee Importers. Tasting Notes: Candied tropical fruit, floral, elegant Origin: Fraijanes, Guatemala Producer: Fredy Orantes on his farm Buena Vista Altitude: 1870 masl Cultivar: Gesha Process: Natural - sundried on raised beds for 25 - 30 days