Coffee Description
.
Roast Level from the Roaster
Refers to the roast level in comparison with other coffees from the roaster
Light
Variety
Catuai
Process
Honey
Elevation
1,500 MASL masl
Region
Comayagua
About Lilian Marlen Argueta Ventura of Honduras
Lilian Marlen Argueta Ventura has a 4 acre farm called Los Almendros in the community of La Tejera where she lives. In prior years, Marlen has sold her family's coffee in cherry to the local middleman.
For the last three year she has been working with Catracha Coffee. During this time she has improved farm management practices using lime to control the pH of the soil, fertilizing with organic compost, and spraying organic fungicides to control levels of leaf rust. These actions have improved the health of her farm and the quality of his coffee production.
Marlen has also learned to process coffee using her own micro-mill so that she can depulp, ferment, and dry coffee before delivering it to Catracha Coffee. Marlen follows a strict processing protocol, which includes hand sorting to remove under-ripe cherries and floating cherries to remove damaged and less dense beans. She also allows cherries to ferment
slightly in the cool night air on raised beds before depulping the next day. Depulped coffee is dry-fermented in a wooden box for 20 hours and then placed on a shade cloth to dry in the sun with the mucilage still attached to the seeds.
The resulting honey processed coffee has the same clean crisp acidity as a washed coffee, and with the honey process, an additional fruit forward aroma and flavor. The process also lets Marlen skip the washing stage and significantly reduce water consumption. Marlen’s farm has
several different kinds of shade trees including Diphysa Americana (Guachipilin), Sweet Gum, (Liquidambar), Inga (Guajiniquil), and Almendros (Almond) for which the farm is named. The farm also has a number of fruit-bearing trees including several varieties
of bananas, avocado, and mango trees.
During the COVID 19 pandemic, group activities have been suspended but women continue to make crafts and also masks to earn extra income. Artists have been visiting homes to paint small works of art on windows and doors. They have also been painting stools and selling
them for extra income. Many families are also starting family gardens and trading seeds to diversify their harvest.
Comayagua, Honduras
Theory Coffee Roasters
Roasting coffee was originally an escape fantasy/retirement dream for owner Sam LaRobardiere, until roasting equipment and some green coffee basically fell into his lap. Then as a hobby roaster, he began selling at a pop-up for community events and artisan markets, and in 2018 took the leap to open both a roastery and coffee shop.
Over the years, the folks at Theory Coffee Roasters have honed their coffee skills and built strong coffee-sourcing relationships. Along the way, they have had some fun achievements. Theory brought home the gold medal in the highly competitive espresso category at the nation’s largest roasting competition, Golden Bean North America, in 2018. Theory placed top 10 Overall in the Good Food Awards 2019. Shortly after, Theory Competed against 8 other roasters and won the Twitter Headquarter’s Brew-Off competition in 2019 becoming the sole coffee provider for the Twitter HQ in San Francisco. Theory was also included in the Food & Wine Magazine’s 100 Best Coffee Shops in America in 2019. They were also named as one of the top 30 Coffee Roasters in North America in Fresh Cup Magazine. Joel Lohner, roasting and production manager, placed as one of the top 3 in cup tasters at the Coffee Champ competition. Sam LaRobardiere and Joel Lohner both received their Q-Grader license, which is the equivalent to a wine sommelier in the coffee industry.
While Theory is motivated by the great accomplishments of the past, we continue to be even more excited about the future. Our commitment is to continue to bring our beloved customers even more award-winning coffees that are roasted to display the optimal balance of each coffee's best attributes. You can buy with confidence that Theory will deliver the best coffees in the world...right to your doorstep.
