Maria Eugenia - La Huerta
La Huerta, a fully off-grid farm, shares a striking resemblance to the forests of British Columbia, Canada, with cedar and maple trees found throughout its landscape.
Advocated by my friend Claudia, who shares a close friendship with Maria and her husband, La Huerta is a coffee that stands out on every cupping table. This old Typica variety, blended with a local "Bourbones," is a a outstanding combination.
Located deep in the mountains, La Huerta is not for the faint of heart—without hiking experience, reaching it can be quite a challenge.
The Mozonte region is renowned for its distinctive cup profile, leveraging a favorable microclimate conducive to coffee cultivation, thereby indicating sustained growth potential in Nicaragua's coffee industry.
The journey to La Huerta involves crossing two rapid streams, ascending steep inclines, and navigating through dense forest. The experience brought back memories of my regular hikes in British Columbia, as the climate here is strikingly similar. The humidity, forestry, and even the vegetation, including maple trees, make this place feel like a tropical cousin to Canada’s wilderness.
La Huerta stands strong and rebellious, rooted in principles of dignity, passion, and extraordinary hospitality. At the heart of the farm is a modest cabin in the woods that simultaneously serves as a bedroom, storage space, kitchen, and living room—a space that reflects the simplicity and determination of Maria Eugenia.
Every tool and piece of equipment on the farm has been carried in by horse, as there is no other way to access this remote and challenging terrain. Despite its difficult location, La Huerta is a oasis. Clean spring water runs through the farm, lush forests surround it, and the soil is remarkably fertile.
The processing is done by Tim and Claudia of the Bridazul team. If you ask me, it's a competition lot.
The Mozonte region is renowned for its distinctive cup profile, leveraging a favorable microclimate conducive to coffee cultivation, thereby indicating sustained growth potential in Nicaragua's coffee industry.
Coffee in Nicaragua
Despite a tumultuous economic and political history, Nicaragua harbours substantial latent capabilities for the production of high-quality coffee. Coffee, though subject to some variability in its global ranking, maintains a consistent presence as one of Nicaragua's top export commodities annually. This sector engenders employment for more than 330,000 individuals, constituting roughly 5% of the nation's total population, 15% of its labour force, and over half of its agricultural workforce.