Just outside the town of Antigua is the small village of San Felipe de Jesus. And among the houses on the twisting and narrow side streets is an old coffee farm called La Folie. It is owned by Penny Matheu, having been divided off from the greater Matheu family lands and the neighboring Finca Filadelfia.
The farm operates as a small estate of 91 acres, but processes the coffee at the Zelaya family mill a few miles away. La Folie did exceptionally well in the 2010 Cup of Excellence competition, reaching 5th place, an amazing result for a first-time entrant. I visited the farm after the event, and despite the fact it was bombarded with rain and mud in a violent storm the day previous. It’s a beautiful old-style farm at 5100-5200 feet, planted chiefly in Bourbon, with Caturra and some Typica as well.
The manager, Don Julio Valencia, lives on the farm, and the plantings are well-organized in blocks and rows, a classic Antigua style farm on flat, fertile grounds.*
Welcome to my Table, here in the corner of this cafe. Today we’re sipping the Guatemala Finca La Folie, from Kuma Coffee in Seattle, Washington, courtesy of Craft Coffee. Feel free to pull up a chair.
THEDETAILS:
region: Antigua, Guatemala
farm: Finca La Folie
producer: Penny Matheu
association: N/A
elevation: 1550 meters above sea level
cultivars: Bourbon
process: fully washed, patio dried
certifications: standard
CUPPINGNOTES:
The aroma of the Guatemala Finca La Folie is pretty unique, and really fragrant with some beautiful scents of citrus, green grape, honey, and chocolate.
Taking my first few sips of the cup immediately post-brew, my palate is greeted by a silky, medium-bodied coffee that immediately bites at my taste buds with notes of tart grapefruit. There are soothing, sugary raw honey and bittersweet dark chocolate and silky, fragrant rose hip elements to the profile that saves it from being too tart, though.
As the cup cools off, it continues to develop through layers upon layers of citrus. Grapefruit, pomelo, tangy blood orange… Each sip presents my taste buds with something different. There are even flavors of almond and tart green grape.
Medium body; silky mouthfeel; citric acidity; clean finish.
FINALTHOUGHTS:
Kuma Coffee’s Guatemala Finca La Folie is a gloriously complex, intricate, exquisite coffee. It’s a coffee that doesn’t quit, revealing something new with layer upon layer.
The thing that really, really impressed/baffled/confounded/pleased me about the Guatemala Finca La Folie was that it was an incredibly citric and acidic coffee, but managed to retain a tremendous balance throughout the cup. At no point was it too citric, too tart, too acidic…
This was an absolutely incredible coffee. One you need to try.
*content provided by Coffee Shrub
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Andrew is a husband, father, dog lover, craft beverage enthusiast, content creator, and niche market Internet celebrity. Formerly of A Table in the Corner of the Cafe and The Pulitzer Project and contributor to Barista Magazine and Mental Floss, he’s been writing on the Internet for years.