From Farm to Cup | Meet Finca Vista Hermosa
It was late at night when we pulled up to Finca Vista Hermosa, so it was pitch black out and we didn’t get to see the beautiful view. However, you never forget the first time you wake up on a coffee farm. The smell in the air, the cool breeze, and the sounds of birds in the distance. This farm lived up to its name, beautiful view, and the view is still my phone’s background. I know there is always a special connection to a place that you’ve visited, and I know that our customers have not had the privilege of being hosted by Don Edwin at his family farm, so you’ll have to feel the connection I feel to this farm by extension. But trust me, it is exactly what you’d hope it would be. A piece of heaven on earth that helps produce my favorite drink.
Our connection to FVH is through Edwin Martinez from Onyx coffee. We started buying all of our Guatemala coffees from them a few years ago and have since built a great relationship with the organization. We have loved working together with them to source the best coffees Guatemala has to offer. Every single Guatemalan coffee we have coming this next year is a direct result of this relationship that we’ve built. So when I had an opportunity to buy from their family farm, it was a no-brainer. Of course, I wanted some of their coffee. I was pleasantly surprised (although I shouldn’t have been) to sample it and enjoy such great coffee.
The farm was originally purchased by Don Papi who just turned 103 this last week. 65 years ago he bought a few hectares of coffee land in the highlands of Huehuetenango while pastoring a church in Huehue (he and I have that in common, both pastors and coffee lovers). Those hectares eventually became Finca Vista Hermosa. They have poured so much time and energy into this farm and you feel the love as you walk the farm. One morning we walked to the wet mill and saw how they process the beans. As we stood on the drying patios, Don Edwin showed us the ramps that he used to ride on his skateboard as a kid. I loved that because it connected us to a farm that isn’t just primarily a revenue stream, but that felt like my parent’s ranch. A place with great memories where kids grew up around the family business. When we walked the rows of Don Edwin’s variety garden, I couldn’t help but notice the love and attention to detail that went into this farm.
In the U.S., we see coffee everywhere. Most grocery stores have an entire aisle dedicated to it. But how often do we actually sit down and think about the number of small businesses and lives that are affected just to get Sagebrush Coffee into your cup? This coffee isn’t just supporting our family, it supports the families at the dry mill, the logistics companies, the importer, the bag-making company, the wet mill, the farm, and others I’m probably missing in this supply chain. Each of these has its own story and it is fun to take a sip of FVH coffee and think of their story.
Check out this video for a first-hand account. We watched this video and said things like, “that’s where we ate breakfast,” or, “that’s the kitchen where the sweet family cooked us food,” or, “we walked that variety garden.” It was a blessing to see it firsthand and hopefully, it is a treat for you to watch the video.
