Guatemala Finca Villaure

Finca Villaure is from Aurelio Villatoro - a producer Coffee Bird have been working with for over 10 years this harvest. This is a small farm that borders Mexico. Through their work together over the last 10 years, Aurelio has been empowered and has brought his community along with him.

Aurelio grew up on his father’s farm, Finca La Esperanza. After leaving to go to school, Aurelio returned to his home to help his Father and learn the ins and outs of coffee production. His ultimate dream was to have his own farm, which he purchased in 1986 in Huehuetenango and called it Villaure, which is a combination of his first and last name: ’Vill’, from Villatoro and ‘Aure’ from Aurelio.

Aurelio has worked hard and dedicated his time to producing high quality coffee and has been awarded many national and international awards as well as competing in the Cup of Excellence four times. He has also received several ‘Best Farmer’ awards. Last season, Aurelio’s two sons joined the family business and they have begun to experiment with different processing techniques.

Many people cite Guatemala as their favourite coffee origin, and for good reason: coffees from here tend to be balanced and sweet but with lots of complexity, and the diverse regions from volcanoes to plateaus to rainforests provide a huge variety in growing conditions and terroir.

Guatemala is one of the world’s most renowned coffee-producing nations, and enjoys nigh-on perfect growing conditions across most of the country. Since its introduction in the mid-18th century, coffee has become a massively important part of Guatemala’s economy and culture.

With support from the national coffee association, Anacafé, Guatemala's coffee industry has grown to become the world's tenth largest producer, generating around 40 percent of the country's agricultural export revenue and supporting almost half a million families.

Speciality coffee is grown across eight distinct regions in Guatemala, designated by Anacafé as those producing Strictly Hard Bean (high altitude) coffee, and can be divided into five volcanic and three non-volcanic regions. Huehuetenango, one of our favourite coffee producing areas (which means 'Place of the Ancients') is the highest of the non-volcanic regions, located in the west of the country along the Mexican border and dominated by the Cuchumatanes Mountains.

Here, hot air sweeps across from the Plains of Tehuantepec in Mexico, and mixes with cooler mountainous air, creating a frost-proof microclimate that allows coffee to be cultivated up to 2,000 metres. Coffee from Huehuetenango (pronounced way-way-teh-nahn-go) is much sought-after and often places highly in Guatemala's Cup of Excellence competition.

Our speciality coffees are 100% traceable and ethically sourced. We work direct with farmers, or through trusted partners, to bring you the best coffee from around the world.

Sourced in partnership with: Coffee Bird