The Moreno family
The Moreno family have been growing excellent quality coffee for years. Erin’s father Pedro was one of the first producers to enter the specialty coffee market in Santa Barbara, founding the coffee industry in the town of El Cedral, where the family is still based. Pedro still works on the farms occasionally, even at 90 years old. Erin inherited this plot of the farm from Pedro, initially planted with Catimor. However, after witnessing the success of Paraneima on other parts of the farm, Erin chose to replant the entire plot soon after he took over.
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Varietal / Parainema
Parainema is a native Honduran varietal, created in response to a nematode outbreak in the mid 80’s. The Honduran Coffee Institute carefully selected from strains of Sarchimor hybrids, looking for nematode resistance, while maintaining positive attributes in the cup and a degree of disease resistance. The varietal is known to bring a heavy silky body and some slight herbal notes to the cup, alongside a notable bean size and length. We feel the varietal characteristics are clear here, with fresh floral aromas followed by a crisp and juicy acidity.
Processing / Anaerobic pre-fermentation
The anaerobic pre-fermentation highlights this acidity, while adding layers of complexity, especially in the finish. The herbal Parainema character softens into an almost tea-like dryness in the finish, bringing an excellent balance to the cup. To achieve this, Erin sealed Paraneima cherries in plastic bags for 48 hours, kick starting fermentation, pushing for the generation of lactic acid bacteria.
From here, a more traditional washed protocol was followed, de-pulped, fermented in tanks for 18 hours, then washed with clean water several times before drying.
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El Cedral
We visited Erin and his family in March 2023 in El Cedral. He explained his decisions in farming, having stopped using pesticides and chemical fertilisers around 10 years ago, like many in the area. This year, a major struggle was finding labour to help with farm tasks. Many young people have left the area to find better opportunities, especially after a 2020 hurricane wrought havoc on several communities in Santa Barbara. Even Erin’s son has moved to the US, sending money home from his job as a truck driver. The lack of labour meant efficiency savings had to be made. Erin lost much of his first picking to the lack of help on the farm, meaning many cherries became overripe on the the tree, or simply dropped to the ground. The further two pickings were accomplished with help from family members, and were all processed with the same protocol, in order to save on labour. This sacrifice in number of lots has not affected quality, doubling down on the process that consistently produces Erin’s finest coffees.
We purchased all of the Parainema that Erin produced this year, once again communicating its fresh floral aromas and bright acidity in the cup.
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