Limoncillo Estate (Central and South America)
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Our importer of green (unroasted) coffee is world recognized as the ‘grand dame’ of exceptional coffees. In fact, she coined the term ‘specialty coffee’ to describe the truly great, world class coffees. As is often the case, over time, some roasters have applied the term to coffees that are a far cry from the exceptional coffees it was intended to represent. That having been said, she is often requested to participate in judging estate coffees around the world. In May 2006 she was in Nicaragua as a judge in the Cup of Excellence competition in Granada, about 40 miles from Managua. What follows is her description of that event and a subsequent trip to the Limoncillo Estate.
‘We cupped diligently for four days, tasting, evaluating, discussing and re-tasting coffees roasted and prepared in the hotel’s open air lobby each morning. Finally, Friday evening, the winners were announced in the chapel of one of the oldest convents in America (Granada claims to be the oldest continuously inhabited town on both continents, having been founded in 1527). There was a grand ceremony, several groups of local musicians and dancers, near endless speeches, a buffet dinner, lots of Ron (rum) and Cerveza, and a great deal of emotion as the 25 finest coffees were announced and the farmers came up to claim their commemorative plates.
We rested the next day, and then joined our friends Steve and Erwin Mierisch for an all day jeep trip to their family farm, the Limoncillo Estate. It is a rugged drive. There were one or two places they didn’t attempt with a full jeep because of the previous night’s rain. We climbed all over the estate and saw different species of trees in excellent health everywhere. The farm ranges in altitude from 900 meters to 1300 meters (2970 to 4290 feet) in altitude. Different varieties grow best at different altitudes. The farm is named for the large stand of lemon trees found growing there indigenously. With four waterfalls, numerous streams, many varieties of plants, animals and birds, less than half of the acreage is planted in shade grown coffee.
I think that this note Steve wrote about the farm and the family’s passion for it sums it up well, so I’ll just quote.
’At our Limoncillo farm we have child programs. Our most recent is a Child Daycare Center. This program gives working mothers access to childcare on the farm. Here infants, toddlers and children have a place where they receive food and healthcare, and engage in educational activities. The nursery employs women from the community to care for the children. The nursery is used most actively during harvest months, which coincide with school vacation, December to February. This is a great option for families who have come to the farm temporarily for the harvest season.
We take pride in being environmentally and socially responsible and are always looking for new ways to improve our efforts. We have a hydroelectric plant that, while small, will soon power the farm’s operational needs as well as those who reside in the community.
We use organic composting every chance we get to lessen our need for chemical fertilizers. We use the cherry mucilage from the past crop as one of the main components in this compost. Further, we have worm beds in which Humic acid is produced. In layman’s terms, Humic acid is an organic fertilizer which is very rich and beneficial to plants. We implement organic compost fertilization whenever possible and currently use a bio-digester to improve yield. The bio-digesters also generate useable gases that are used to fuel the kitchens which lessens the deforestation that is associated with wood burning stoves.
Limoncillo Estate is a true family operation. Since 1889, we have produced high quality shade-grown coffee, while maintaining the environment and providing employment in our community.’