FINCA PENA BLANCA

ORIGIN : El Cielito, Santa Barbara, Honduras FARMER : Bertilio Reyes Portillo ALTITUDE : 1500-1600 m VARIETAL : Parainema PROCESSING : Blend of Anaerobic Washed & Natural ROAST : Light-Medium TASTING NOTES : Blackberry, Milk Chocolate, Floral, Lime, Blueberry

Bertilio Reyes Portillo knows what it takes to make great coffee. His start in the industry began with cultivating coffee, coming to a head in 1996 when he bought the land he had been managing for the last 12 years. Married to Maria Guadalupe, they make a living off his coffee land ownership and production. With the support of his family, Bertilio personally works his farms and is their main income source - despite the small-scale of his 'microlot' plots (~1-4 hectares). He has two permanent employees and ten temporary employees during harvest. Bertilio is a prominent figure in the community and volunteers much of his free time to the local church. Although he and his wife have no children of their own, they have helped to raise their nephew, Olvin, as one of their own. Inspired by his uncle, Olvin recently started his very own farm on nearby land. 

Bard Coffee has partnered with Bertilio for over a decade - shortly after he took home the title of 2009 Honduras Cup of Excellence Champion! Through our wonderfully collaborative partnership, Bertilio has been able to expand the lands he farms, thus improving his family’s quality of life as well as contributing back to his community. One of the fruits of this partnership is La Taza, a small farm Bertilio added to his estate.

Bertilio fertilizes once a year, in the month of June, during the rainy season, using a technique known as half moon at the base of the tree. He does his farm's weed control by hand, applies tree pruning with selective and sanitary purposes, and also regulates shade. He completes a very active Coffee Borer Beetle control even though he doesn't have an evident problem with it - simply for prevention.

His harvest starts in November and runs sometimes up until May. He recruits workers that live in other towns because there are not many in his own community. Collecting only the ripest red cherries, he then moves his crop in a pickup truck, half an hour, to the wet mill, where he then uses the least possible amount of water from a protected resource in his farm. His fermentations are done in cement tanks for an average of 12-14 hours, depending on weather and moisture conditions. Then the coffee is washed and taken into the exporters cement patios to dry. It then takes Bertilio at least one hour to transport his processed coffee in a rented pickup truck to the nearest facility or exporter, before it even touches down in the United States and across the globe!

He says his success lies in picking only the ripest cherries, pulping as fast as possible after picking, carefully supervising fermentation, and using the clean water. Bertilio, his family, and his workers are hypervigilant of environment protection and proper treatment of the residual waters. Their team is also reforesting with trees such as mahogany and laurel to support these efforts. He and his family take a strong stand against hunting in the farm premises and tree cutting. It's easy to understand why we simply adore any coffee Bertilio has had his hands on!

We roast on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and to ensure the best tasting coffees, orders received after Monday may not be processed or shipped until the following week.

Produced by Bertilio Reyes Portillo in the El Cielito region of Santa Barbara, Finca Pena Blanca represents a sophisticated approach to Honduran coffee production. This lot features the Parainema varietal, a plant known for its resilience and distinct cup profile. The coffee undergoes a unique processing method, utilizing a blend of anaerobic washed and natural techniques to achieve its complex character. While Honduras is often recognized for balanced, approachable profiles, the combination of anaerobic fermentation and natural drying can introduce vibrant acidity and deep fruit tones. When evaluating these specific notes of blackberry, milk chocolate, floral, lime, and blueberry, it is helpful to reference the flavor wheel to better understand how these diverse characteristics interact. By blending two distinct processing styles, this offering highlights the innovative potential of producers in the Santa Barbara region to push the boundaries of traditional cup profiles.