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18 Sep 2020 | Cheryl Ng

The Coffee Bird Lands in Singapore

A little bird told us that some of the world’s best coffee is grown in Guatemala. 

Last year we were visited in Singapore by Marta Dalton, a sixth-generation Guatemalan coffee farmer. She started Coffee Bird in 2011 to reconnect with her family’s coffee farming heritage with a mission to help farmers access international markets and change the way coffee is traded. Like Bettr, Coffee Bird is also women-led with values of sustainability and social good at the forefront of business.

Marta Dalton, founder of Coffee Bird. Image: Coffee Bird

Coffee Bird Copyright David Post1

Marta’s family farm, Finca Filadelfia - the oldest in Antigua - has long upheld standards for high quality coffee in the region. Together with her mother, Marta branched out into the rest of Guatemala’s coffee-abundant regions to connect farmers with roasters, with only one requisite to join the Coffee Bird platform: excellent quality coffee.

Coffee Bird is deeply enmeshed in every step of the coffee supply chain with their farmers, from the first introduction, including initial and mid harvest assessment, sample and lot selection, order placement, milling, warehousing, export, shipping, quality checks, import, post harvest debrief, trend reporting and future harvest planning.

In addition to producing delicious coffee, Marta decided to also send Coffee Bird’s product out to roasters all over the world differently: in eco-conscious denim bags that upcycle unused denim fabric. 

Guatemala is the 3rd largest denim producer in the Americas and 13% of new fabric is wasted, going straight to landfill.

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When Marta was with us in Singapore, she shared about Guatemala’s more than 340 microclimates - it’s no wonder Guatemalan coffee profiles are so diverse! Despite being a small country, Guatemala is one of the most climatically diverse nations in the world. We decided to join forces with Coffee Bird, and since this last harvest we received two new coffees from Guatemala.

Martateaching
Marta shares about Guatemala’s diverse microclimates.

The first is a single origin coffee called Los Suspiros, meaning “The Sighs”, from Guatemala’s coffee-famed highland region of Huehuetenango (“Whe Whe” for short). Imagine a deep breath of fresh air whilst taking in the endless vistas of massive valleys of the region. Coffee in Huehue is grown at altitudes above 1500m and it is also one of the only three regions without volcanic soil. Los Suspiros is the name of the collaboration between Fredy Morales and Axel Palacios representing 3,200 acres and is part of a 3-generation family owned greater farm called Alta Mira, which spans 10,560 acres. Fredy & Axel grew up together, playing basketball. When Fredy went to university, Axel started working at his grandfather’s farm. When Fredy returned to work at his father’s farm, they became compadres, coffee friends. Axel helped Fredy and his brother with technical forestry support, while Fredy taught Axel how to cup.

Los Suspiros is a fully-washed coffee with notes of orange, blueberry, and Darjeeling black tea.

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Coffee Bird farmer during harvest. Image: Coffee Bird

The second coffee is from Finca Rabanales, and is part of our signature Bettr Heart Blend with notes of caramelised brown sugar, chocolate, and prunes. This is a semi-washed Caturra coffee from the Frajianes region of Guatemala, which is characterised by high precipitation and shifting humidity. One of Guatemala’s active volcanoes, Pacaya Volcano, is located in the region and occasionally erupts. The volcanic eruptions nourish the soil with minerals and deposit ash. The sun is abundant in the dry season, helping to lift the morning fog and dew.

PacayaVolcano
Pacaya Volcano, Guatemala. Image: Twenty20

Don Gregorio Zamara founded Finca Rabanales in 1894, and the farm is now run by his great great grandchildren. Out of the five siblings that make up the family, Rafael and Maria Elena manage the technical field details and support the cupping operations. This farm is one of the few that are still located within the limits of Guatemala city.

Get a taste of this carefully selected, and even more carefully grown coffee from Coffee Bird’s farming communities at https://www.bettr.coffee/

MartaVisiting
Marta visiting with the Bettr Group team in Singapore, 2019. Image: Bettr Group