Tier 2: Legacy Farms Honduras Natural Process

TIER 2

Tier 2 coffees are our mid-tier price point coffees. The increased price reflects our higher purchase price of the green coffee, which correlates to higher demand, lower supply, and increased sensory attributes. For those interested in SCA cupping scores, these coffees will consistently be in the mid-to-higher-80’s, which are classified as “excellent.” The cupping score for this coffee was 87.  For perspective, less than 10% of all coffee harvested worldwide is specialty-grade coffee with a minimum SCA cupping score (sensory analysis) of 80/100.  Only 39% of specialty-grade coffees are estimated to be Tier 2 coffees.

LIMITED QUANTITY 

We only have 30 pounds of this coffee.

ABOUT LEGACY FARMS

Legacy Farms Coffee in Cerro Bueno, Honduras is owned and operated by Ashley Williams and his family who live in Kansas but frequently travel back to their farm in Honduras.  Ashley and his wife, Julia, met in 2000 during a short term Christian mission trip to Honduras.  In 2010, when they purchased land to build homes for Honduran families, they learned that the land contained coffee trees.  Legacy Farms Coffee was born out their desire to create a lasting positive impact in Honduras.  Since 2010, the Williams family has poured their lives into the Cerro Bueno community through expanding their coffee farming operation providing local employment, a US market for other local coffee growers' green coffee, and by investment in local housing, education, and medical.  You can find numerous podcasts where Ashley has been interviewed and you can read their story directly on their website: https://legacyfarmscoffee.com.  "Direct trade" has become a fashionable marketing term these days and has largely been viable only for much larger coffee roasters.  It is rare that small coffee roasting businesses such as ours can engage in direct trade with a coffee producer but in this case Ashley is both the producer and the exporter.

FLAVOR PROFILE (What we taste)

The dominant flavor note of this coffee that we taste is blackberry but think dark berries.  Over the years, we have roasted and tasted lots of coffees with blackberry notes but this is the most balanced and most enjoyable one we have ever tasted.

As a light roast, this coffee has floral and blackberry notes, moderate sweetness, lower to moderate acidity, and a heavier body.  Using a scale of 0-10, we place the sweetness at a 6, the acidity at a 3, the body at a 7, and no bitterness.

As a medium-dark roast, this coffee has blackberry and caramelized sugar notes, moderate sweetness, lower acidity, and a heavier body.  Using a scale of 0-10, we place the sweetness at a 5-7, the acidity at a 2, the body at a 7, and no bitterness.

RECOMMENDED BREWING METHODS

As a light roast, we have only brewed it as a filter and immersion but will in time experiment with it as espresso.  As a lighter roasted coffee, we recommend starting with a water temperature between 201-208F depending on brew method as lighter roasts are more prone to under extraction.  If the coffee tastes sour, 1) grind finer, 2) gradually increase the water temperature, and/or decrease the amount of ground coffee or water used to increase the extraction.  If the coffee tastes bitter and over extracted, 1) coarsen up the grind size, 2) gradually decrease the water temperature, and/or 3) increase the amount of ground coffee or decrease the amount of water used.  For filter/drip and immersion, we recommend starting with a brewing ratio of 1:15 (e.g., 20 grams of coffee to 300 grams of water), but this again is an area you will adjust for taste preferences.  Common ratios are 1:15 to 1:17.  If you decide to brew it as espresso, we would recommend using a higher water temperature (e.g., 203-205F) if your machine allows and starting with a 1:3 ratio (e.g., 18 grams of coffee to 54 grams of coffee in the cup), but experimenting with longer and shorter ratios until you find the balance of flavors you prefer.  

As a medium-dark roast, this coffee is versatile and is great brewed as filter/drip, immersion, cold brew, and espresso.  We recommend starting with a water temperature of 198-201F depending on the brew method as darker roasts are more prone to over extraction.  If the coffee tastes bitter and over extracted, 1) coarsen up the grind size, 2) gradually decrease the water temperature, and/or 3) increase the amount of ground coffee or decrease the amount of water used. For filter/drip and immersion, we recommend starting with a brewing ratio of 1:15 (e.g., 20 grams of coffee to 300 grams of water), but this again is an area you will adjust for taste preferences.  Common ratios are 1:15 to 1:17.  For espresso, we would recommend starting with a water temperature of 200-202F and a 1:2 ratio, but be open to experimenting with smaller and larger ratios to find the balance of flavors you prefer.

ABOUT THIS COFFEE

Producers:  Legacy Farms Coffee and the Williams' Family

Country: Honduras

Continent: Central America / North America

Region: Cerro Bueno

Varietals: Lempira

Process: Natural

Altitude/elevation: 1450 meters to 1520 MASL (4772-5003 feet)

Green Coffee Certifications: Organic practices but no organic certification

Harvest Period: December 2024 to March 2025

Transparency

Want to learn more about this coffee and the producer who makes it possible?  Want to learn more about the prices we paid for this coffee?  We paid $9.00 per pound for the green coffee.  Our goal is to create more transparency about our purchasing decisions so that you can make as informed a buying decision as possible.  Click on the following link to learn more about this coffee and the producers who make it possible:  

https://legacyfarmscoffee.com