Description
Nueva Granada is located in the department of San Marcos in northwestern Guatemala, on the Pacific Ocean along the western Guatemala-Mexico border. The climate is very variable within the department due to the dramatic differences in altitude. The Geisha variety of Arabica originated in Ethiopia and only recently has been produced in Guatemala on a very limited basis for the specialty coffee market.
This variety only produces about a fifth of what normal, modern variety coffee trees produces. Recent prices paid for this variety make up for the additional costs so there are several farms producing this variety again in small volumes. The Geisha coffee plant is easily recognizable as it has sparse branches that point upward. A small portion of the farms’ Geisha production is processed using the Honey method (pulped and dried in mucilage) giving the cup pronounced floral – jasmine & bergamot as well as watermelon & strawberry tones. Currently the majority of Nueva Granada’s Geisha coffee is sold to Japan.
