Nicaragua Fincas Mierisch

Producer Fincas Mierisch
Farm La Huella
Municipality El Arenal
Department Matagalpa

Sun Exposure Cloud Forest with dense fog
Farm Size 76 Hectares
Altitude 1400 masl
Latitude 13.019606 N
Longitude 85.909114 W

Variety H1
Process Washed
Fermentation Anaerobic; 48hr in cold stored sealed barrels
Drying 32 days

Harvest Year 2024

Flavor Caramel, Vanilla, Orange, Dried Berries
Descriptors Smooth, Balanced, Easy drinking

About this coffee The Mierisch family have been on the leading edge of Nicaraguan coffee for over a decade. We first met them in 2019, and then again in 2021 we had the honor to connect where we learned more about their commitment to cup quality, environmental stewardship, and drive to continually explore processing techniques. Since then we have solidified our relationship and we are excited to share one of their newer coffees – La Huella H1 Cold Anaerobic Washed!

La Huella is a special farm, located high up in the Cerro Arenal Nature Reserve, tucked in among the cloud forest where a dense fog covers the coffee bushes for around 60% of the day. As a result of the unique micro-climate found within the reserve, the coffee bushes receive ample rainfall yet must work hard to produce cherries due to the lack of sunlight from the constant fog – the results are dense, highly aromatic and sweet coffee cherries.

The special lot offered here consists of the H1 varietal – a cross between a Timor Hybrid and an Ethiopian Rume Sudan – which was originally developed in Costa Rica and is now being grown on various farms throughout Central America.

Ripe cherries are harvested, floated and sorted, and finally pulped before being sealed in barrels in a cold storage facility kept between 42F-50F degrees for 48 hours. After fermentation, the coffee is washed clean and spread thinly on patios in full sun for four days before being transferred to raised beds inside a greenhouse. Here they undergo a stepped process of 50% shade for 12 days and then 75% shade for an additional 16 days, resulting in a total drying time of 32 days. This stepped, measured, slow drying results in a coffee with a long shelf. Combined with resting in parchment until sold, this coffee keeps that quality up from the time it’s first cupped until the time it reaches us!