Honduras Caballero Amazonas #2

Roaster’s Notes:

For caffeine culture enthusiasts and those who regularly enjoy high-quality coffee from us, you must be familiar with our friendship with the Caballero family by now. 😊 This is our fourth lot and second harvest of Amazonas Caballero coffee. While we know how much Caballero’s natural coffees are loved in Turkey, their washed productions hold a special place in terms of flavor. Honduras Caballero Amazonas #2 is more complex and has a livelier acidity compared to its sibling, Caballero Lot 5, from last year.

Marysabel and Moises are highly conscious of environmental sustainability throughout their production process. They dedicate a significant portion of their annual work to improving the soil conditions for coffee trees, and they use their own prepared organic compost for this purpose. If you wish to learn more about their meticulous approach to coffee production, you can watch the interview we conducted with Marysabel Caballero through this link. (Video)

Those who have read about Caballero 5 and Caballero Bomba de Fruta would remember that Marysabel and Moises have multiple farms in the same region. They sell the harvests from these farms individually under their respective farm names, while they sell the combined harvests from all their farms under the name Caballero, along with specific lot names. Among the new Caballero coffee samples we received, there were both naturals and washed coffees. Within the entire set, Caballero Amazonas 5 stood out with its complexity and cup quality, making it our favorite.

Although Catuai varieties are generally known for their light acidity and sweetness, this Catuai stands out with a classic washed acidity liveliness, clarity in the cup, and complexity. This result is undoubtedly achieved thanks to the careful and high-quality production by the farmers.

Coffee Processing:

Local collectors are hired and trained to select only the ripest cherries. During harvesting, each collector is given two baskets: one for ripe cherries and the other for overripe, damaged, and unripe coffee cherries (used for commercial purposes). After the coffee cherries are harvested and brought to the station, the collectors are paid per kilogram of cherries they collected.

Processing: The mucilage is separated to allow the beans to undergo a short fermentation. The coffee beans are then fermented with their parchment for 12 hours, followed by using African washing techniques. During this stage, the fermentation is completed in the pool, while the unripe and defective beans continue to be separated by water. After the first washing is done, the beans are washed again in clean running water for approximately 12 hours.

Once the processing is completed, the coffee beans are dried on elevated beds, covered by shades, for a period of 11 to 20 days, depending on the humidity and environmental conditions.

Honduras Caballero Amazonas #2 is an outstanding example of a washed coffee, with notes of dried fruits, fresh hazelnut, and a hint of apple in the aroma, and flavors of sweet lemon, yellow apple, fresh hazelnut, and lime blossom, accompanied by a medium acidity and a light to medium body.

Enjoy!”