Finca La Hermosa Pache

01 · Overview

Grown at Finca La Hermosa in Guatemala’s Acatenango region, this washed Pache coffee offers a rich, balanced cup with fruit, spice and deep chocolate notes.

Produced by Max and Claudia Pérez at 1,900 metres above sea level, it combines the structure and clarity of a washed coffee with a comforting sweetness that works beautifully as both espresso and filter.

02 · Origin

Acatenango is one of Guatemala’s best-known coffee-growing regions, shaped by high elevation and volcanic soils. These conditions help coffee cherries ripen slowly, encouraging sweetness, density and complexity in the cup.

Pache is a compact coffee variety first discovered in Guatemala. Its smaller plants are well suited to high-altitude farms and can produce coffees with excellent balance and sweetness.

03 · About the Producer

Finca La Hermosa is run by Max and Claudia Pérez, who purchased the previously abandoned farm in 2010 and began the long process of bringing it back into production.

Max grew up on a coffee farm in Huehuetenango and had always hoped to build a coffee business of his own. Together, he and Claudia transformed Finca La Hermosa into a productive farm, introducing a range of varieties chosen to suit its sandy volcanic soil, climate and growing conditions.

The farm covers around 320 hectares, with approximately 120 hectares used productively for coffee. It also provides employment for around 140 people.

Water scarcity has been one of the farm’s biggest challenges. With limited rainfall and little access to public water infrastructure, Max and Claudia constructed a mechanical well to supply irrigation and provide cleaner water for the surrounding community.

The farm places a strong emphasis on responsible production, practical sustainability and treating its employees with respect.

04 · Processing

This coffee is washed, meaning the fruit is removed from the coffee seed before the beans are fermented, cleaned and dried.

This method helps create a cleaner and more structured cup, allowing the coffee’s cherry sweetness, spice and cocoa character to remain distinct rather than becoming overly heavy or fermented.

Careful processing at origin, combined with the farm’s high elevation, contributes to a balanced coffee with good clarity and depth.

05 · In the Cup

Flavour Notes

• 🍒 Cherries
• 🌰 Brown Spice
• 🍫 Baker's Chocolate

Expect a balanced cup with ripe cherry sweetness at the front, followed by warm brown spice and a deeper dark chocolate character.

The chocolate note is closer to cocoa or baking chocolate than sweet milk chocolate, giving the coffee a rich and slightly more grown-up finish. The washed process keeps the cup clean and structured, while the cherry note adds enough fruit to keep it lively.

06 · Best For

• Espresso
• Flat White
• Cappuccino
• Moka Pot
• AeroPress
• Pour Over
• French Press

07 · From the Roaster

I chose this coffee because it offers something different from the brighter, more fruit-led coffees in the range. The cherry note gives it sweetness, but the brown spice and baker’s chocolate make it feel deeper and more comforting.

My aim when roasting it is to bring out that chocolate richness without losing the clean fruit character. I expect it to work especially well as espresso and in milk-based drinks, where the cocoa and spice should come through clearly.