Journey to Origin: Sarah Elliot, Chicago Cafe Manager, in Guatemala & Colombia

Journey to Origin: Sarah Elliot, Chicago Cafe Manager, in Guatemala & Colombia

This month, our team travelled to Guatemala and Colombia to visit the coffee farmers who bring us the delicious coffee we drink everyday. Sarah Elliot, our Cafe Manager in Chicago, shares snippets of her coffee journey in the photos below.

 

First day on the ground and we’re off to see some farms. The best way: back of a pick-up. Surrounded by trees, breathing the fresh air, and taking in the 360 view of the best Guatemala has to offer. What a way to start the trip.

 

Welcome to el Beneficio Santa Barbara, the wet mill where cherries from multiple farms nearby are processed. The two volcanos in the background, Fuego and Acatenango, provide not just a stunning view, but also the rich soil that helps coffee flourish in this area.

 

It was an honor to meet Armando, a local farmer in Santa Rosa who we currently source coffee from. At 1560m, he grows mostly catuai varietal, and has worked these three hectares since he was young, next to his father. His passion and love for the land has created such a beautiful coffee to drink.

 

Away from the central group, I found this women hand picking. She didn’t speak English and my Spanish is minimal but when I held up my camera she nodded before focusing on her task again. Hand picking and dedication like this ensure only the ripest cherries make it to the mills, increasing the quality.

 

At the end of the day at Finca Agua Tibia, the ripe cherries are weighed and sorted. The best is washed and milled there while the lower quality is bagged and sent to be processed separately.

Stayed tuned for more photos from Sarah's travels.


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