Finca San Carlos (Nueva Segovia) - Nicaragua

It is never more challenging to be a coffee farmer than when your little piece of land almost touches heaven. For Don Carlos Bautista, it has been a battle that he has fought for more than 10 years.

Don Carlos came to his farm after 40 years of working for other farmers in Nueva Segovia. He knew that he wanted to own his own farm. When he purchased Finca San Carlos, he knew that it would be ideal for growing quality coffee. What he didn’t think about was that drive up into the mountains! The last 1.6 kilometers of the drive, he has to ascend from 1,200 meters all the way to 1,700 meters above sea level. The journey is particularly challenging when the sandy roads get destroyed after a long night of heavy rain. But that’s Carlos Bautista’s reality, and he meets it with positivity and enthusiasm.

Carlos loves his farm and farming coffee deeply. Every activity on the farm he meets with eagerness and devotion. He works the farm himself and oversees the pruning of every branch and the plucking of every cherry. This year he is overjoyed that he finally has earned a good price for his coffee, rewarding him for this hard work. He usually sells his coffee to coyotes for a very low price that barely enables him to cover his costs.

All coffee is processed at the farm’s own wet mill. Only the ripest and most perfect cherries are picked during the harvest. These are delivered immediately to the wet mill, pulped, and then fermented in wooden tanks for between 24 to 36 hours depending on the climate at the time. After fermentation, the coffee is fully washed and then soaked in clean water until all traces of mucilage are removed. After washing, it is delivered to the Guadalupana mill in Ocotal where the coffee is carefully and evenly dried on raised beds. The drying process takes between 12 and 18 days depending of the weather, during which time it is carefully turned on a regular basis. After achieving optimal humidity, the coffee is rested and then dry milled at Ocotol mill when it is ready to be exported.