Finca La Guaba

Finca La Guaba is run by Amet Rosario in la Cordilla, in the town of Utuado, Puerto Rico. He is a multi-generational coffee farmer working to reconnect with the land his family has cultivated for generations. From the beginning, we found common ground in how we see Puerto Rican culture — a real desire to reinvest in our own people and rebuild a relationship with the land. Amet is doing god’s work in not only growing coffee, but being so approachable and helpful.

For a lot of political (corruption) and economic (local emphasis on manufacturing and US trade laws disenfranchising farmers) reasons, Puerto Rico now struggles to sustain its own agriculture. Many people have grown disconnected from where food comes from. Amet is part of a growing group of Puerto Ricans pushing back against that, taking care of the land and helping move things toward more local self-sufficiency.

The varietals used in this field blend are unique to PR. Limaní was developed in Adjuntas by Puerto Rico’s Agricultural Experiment Station as a rust-resistant variety, created from a cross between Timor Hybrid and Villa Sarchi. After years of testing, it was released to farmers in the mid-1990s.

Frontón was developed through the same research efforts in Ciales. It’s a cross between Timor Hybrid and Caturra, also bred with resistance to coffee leaf rust in mind.

Both varieties trace their roots back to the classic Arabica lines, Bourbon and Typica. Youc can read more at the Cuela blog.

This coffee also connects to what I’m trying to build on my end: learning my roast style and doing it in a way that feels honest and sustainable. My own family is part of that same mindset — my cousin is even growing cacao and experimenting with making chocolate entirely in Puerto Rico, from tree to bar. We both are driven by this link to our Coffee Farming roots two generations back.