The COE awards 3 Presidential Awards in Guatemala
The Alliance for Coffee Excellence (ACE) concluded the 16th edition of the Cup of Excellence competition in Guatemala City with in-country partners Asociacion Nacional del Café (Anacafé).
Of the 150 samples entered, the international panel of judges selected 20 coffees scoring 87+ for the Cup of Excellence (COE) Auction and awarded 3 Presidential Awards scoring 90+.
Bjorn Aarts from Dutch Barista Coffee Company in Netherlands said: “I’ve experienced the best classic profiles and amazing new flavors. Good farm management and meticulous processing showcased in the world’s best coffee.”
The coffees that scored 85+ by the international panel, will be going to a separate 5-day internet auction called the National Winner (NW) Auction to be held from July 22nd to July 26th. The NW Auction is optional for the farmer, there are a potential of 18 auctions lots, scored between 85-87, for Guatemala this year. These coffees are as good and often much better than the everyday specialty coffees that are being bought through typical premium contracts and direct trade relationships. Anacafé sets the opening price at $3.50/lb USD for coffees scoring 85.00-85.99 and $4.00/lb USD for coffees scoring 86-86.99.
After years several years of competing, the farm Las Macadamias took first place with a 90.16 natural Pacamara. Arturo Aguirre S. from the winning farm said: “We are very pleased with the results which prove the hard work and passion for quality from everyone from the El Injerto and Las Macadamias team; we appreciate the continued effort of ACE for doing this event which motivates producing countries to improve quality and helps producers with better opportunities!”
In second place was a washed Gesha and comes from the department of El Progreso from the farm Kalibus la Sierra owned by Castillo Cerezo, Pompeyo with a score of 90.14 points. El Injerto S.A. scored 90.03 for third place from the farm El Injerto with a washed Pacamara.
