Starbucks Reserve Guatemala Huehuetenango Coffee Review
It’s always a good day when you’re using rare coffee beans. Regardless of how you feel about Starbucks, these beans are great, and the convenience of being able to pick them up in person at any of their Reserve-specific locations is amazing. I should note, too, this is not a sponsored post by Starbucks by any means at all. The reserve beans, in my opinion, might be one of the only good things about Starbucks. And that cinnamon coffee cake. Damn.
There aren't many of these coffee beans available for purchase online, so your best bet is to visit a nearby Starbucks cafe to see if they have them. If they don't, the baristas there can probably tell you if another Starbucks in your city stocks them.
The Guatemala Huehuetenango coffee was truly amazing. I've come to love coffees from that region because they usually have a hint of chocolate and a gentle sweetness. They're always exceptionally smooth and full of flavor.
This roast was just as good as expected.
ABOUT
On the Starbucks website, they offer the following small write-up about this roast:
“Candied orange, dark chocolate and graham cracker notes Facing the devastating effects of coffee leaf rust, six extraordinary farmers in Huehuetenango planted a transformative rust-resistant varietal: Marsellesa. This bag—from the first full harvest of these new trees—represents hope for the farmers of Latin America.”
Starbucks indicates that this coffee is from the Huehuetenango region of Guetemala, and offers the following details about the roast:
Roast Level: Light
Processing: Washed
Regarding this coffee, Starbucks offered the generous write-up on the back of the card:
“Guatemala's Huehuetenango region is home to extraordinary coffee, a credit that belongs to the communities who have tended these lands for generations. But rampant coffee leaf rust, a disease that decimates coffee trees, is threatening all they have worked for. Determined to save their livelihoods, farmers are cultivating a transformative rust-tolerant varietal: Marsellesa. Harvested from this innovative hybrid across five farms, this coffee brings new hope for the farmers of Latin America and embodies the harmonious connection between the soul and soil in Huehuetenango. We're proud to partner with farmers in the region as part of our commitment to donate 100 million disease-tolerant coffee trees by 2025.”
REVIEW
Truth be told, I do not like light roasts that much. I will settle for a medium rost, but lately I have thoroughly enjoyed darker roasts the most. That being said, this is still pretty damn good. If you are a fan of light roasts, you’re going to love this.
From the moment you open this bag, you can tell it's going to be extraordinary. The smell alone transports you to a state of coffee bliss, a feeling you never knew existed until you experienced it.
The taste is a delightful blend of unique flavors that come together like a beautiful symphony. It's amazing how flavors you never imagined could work so well together create such a harmonious and unforgettable experience. Chocolate, honey, and grape would not be my first choice of a roast to try, but…it works.
According to Starbucks, this coffee has “smooth and balanced notes of bittersweet chocolate and red grape with a honey-syrup sweetness.”
The chocolate notes are there, yes, but more on the site of bitter than bittersweet. The red grape offers a tart punch of acidic sweetness, and the honey-syrup sweetness is mild, but does linger longer than I had anticipated.
I used the beans from this roast to make Americanos (iced and hot), cappuccino, latte, flat white, cold brew, and an affogato. All were delightful.
I highly recommend this coffee to everyone. Whether you're new to coffee or have been drinking it for years, you should try this.
Rating: 9.0/10