Fair Trade Organically Grown Honduras

Intro

For a limited time, we bring you this wonderful dark roast coffee from the Café Organico Marcala, S.A. (COMSA) co-operative located in Marcala, La Paz, Honduras.

COMSA is a coffee producer society based in Marcala, La Paz, Honduras that proposes economic, social, and environmental objectives as a strategy to reduce poverty and to promote sustainable development. Founded in 2001 with 7000 lempiras (300 US$) of social capital, COMSA grew out of an initiative of the Rural Business Development Foundation (FUNDER). Sixty producers in Marcala (12 women, 48 men) came together as the founding members of COMSA with the goal of directly exporting their coffee production. In 2018, COMSA has grown to have more than 1200 farmer members.

Origin Information

Grower - Irma Alicia Garcia, Jahaira Yosely Cardona, Justina Cálix, Enma Dalila Gonzales, María Transito Contreras, Pastora Fredesvinda Garcia, Esther Chávez, Reina Isabel Nolasco, Edil Guillermina Santos, Reina Margarita Gómez, Rosa Marilia Sánchez, Thelma Erasminia Márquez, María Aurora Pérez, Alba Daysi Zelaya, Carla Patricia Moreno | Café Organico Marcala, S.A. (COMSA)
Variety - Catuai, Icatu, Ihcafe 90, and Catimor
Region - Marcala, La Paz, Honduras
Number of producers - 1573 (25% Women)
Harvest - December - March
Altitude - 1200 – 1700 masl
Process - Fully washed and dried on patios and elevated tables inside solar dryers that provide protection from the rain
Certifications - Organic, Fair Trade, SPP, Denomination of Origin Marcala

Roast

We roasted this batch of Honduras to a dark roast. Depending on the grind and brewing method, this Honduras can produce notes of caramel and chocolate, along with lighter notes like tropical fruits, apricots and berries.

Brewing

We suggest using the pour-over method to maximized the aroma and flavor of this coffee using a 1:16 coffee to water ratio with the water between 200F and 205F. Once grounds are placed in the filter, pre-soak grounds by covering with water for ~30sec to allow for blooming, then finish with either a steady pour or a couple of short pours to complete the brewing process.

Background

Supporting women in coffee - Here is one of those rare opportunities where all that is good about coffee intersect. Simply a trifecta of: organic farm management practices; traceable to women producers in the Marcala region, a protected designation of origin (DENOMINACION DE ORIGEN CAFE DE MARCALA); and a meticulous post-harvest standard of hand sorting cherry, cherry floating to remove less dense and damaged beans, proper fermentation, and long drying times. It starts with a concept called Finca Humana (the Human Farm) at Café Organico Marcala, S.A. (COMSA), where the wellbeing of humans is the core objective and educating more than 1,500 producer-members to successfully live in harmony with nature is everywhere. At La Fortaleza, the COMSA biodynamic demonstration farm, the focus of transferring knowledge takes place through week-long seminars called Pata de Chucho (pawprints left by a stray dog), which aptly reveals COMSA’s dogged exploration for human productivity in harmony with nature. The trailblazing ideas for using organic matter to productively cultivate high quality coffee is only a sliver of what COMSA teaches about the power of nature through the Finca Humana philosophy. COMSA dedicates funding from the proceeds of coffee sales to run a cutting edge International school dedicated to filling children’s minds with possibility, and training them to be the future leaders of Finca Humana. And COMSA has significantly increased the participation of women within the organization, which has resulted in an active women’s group that processes their own community lots called Manos de Mujer. This particular lot is a washed processed coffee, which comes from 15 farms owned by Irma Alicia Garcia, Jahaira Yosely Cardona, Justina Cálix, Enma Dalila Gonzales, María Transito Contreras, Pastora Fredesvinda Garcia, Esther Chávez, Reina Isabel Nolasco, Edil Guillermina Santos, Reina Margarita Gómez, Rosa Marilia Sánchez, Thelma Erasminia Márquez, María Aurora Pérez, Alba Daysi Zelaya, Carla Patricia Moreno.