Sleeping Woman

Starting next week, we’ll be offering the Guatemala La Finca Perla, Sleeping Woman, on the menu. This is the coffee we offered the first few weeks we opened back in January 2009 and was a favorite amongst many. The harvest  for this year’s crop started back in October 2008 and ended just in May of this year and 49^th Parallel just receive its shipment a few weeks ago. 49^th Parallel has been directly trading coffee with the owners of La Finca Perla, Ricardo, Enrique & Roberto Arenas since 2007 and they have told us that this years harvest is the best yet. This coffee, which comes from 2 species of coffee plant (Caturra & Bourbon), has always been known for its abundance of chocolate and caramel notes and although we personally prefer all coffees black, this specific offering is quite pleasant with or without cream (certain coffees just don’t shine or take cream as well as others). This year’s harvest has produced a much similar profile but with a crisper acidity and notes of peach and vanilla. The owners of La Finca Perla are quite dedicated to producing a quality coffee and they most certainly pay attention to details: from harvesting the ripest cherries only, to ensuring proper drying of the beans once it’s been washed and pulped by either sun ( if weather allows) or dryers. La Finca Perla employs between 2500 and 3000 people on the farm which about 15% of the total land is dedicated to coffee. Much left over hectares are actually preserved native trees and plants which also sources several natural springs which in turn irrigates the farm. The farm also advocates for the community’s wellbeing and have actually promoted health campaigns such as vaccinations and helped revitalize the economy by providing work and helping build villages. These are the best examples of the benefits reaped from working directly with coffee farmers around the world, and honestly, we all, from farmer to consumer can see and taste the difference. As the economy slowly recovers from one of its worst downfalls yet, all of us need to think twice about how and where our dollars are spent. If you’re one to enjoy coffee for what it truly is, then your dollars are very well spent the minute you’ve decided to set foot through our doors. You can rest well at night knowing that you contributed to someone else’s livelihood, locally and from across the ocean.

Guatemala La Finca Perla, to be available starting on 9.4.09