This is our first time offering coffee from Mario Ricardo Alcon Melendez’ farm, a fifth generation coffee farmer who we were connected with by way of our good friends over at The Guat Lab. This coffee is full of tart flavors, reminiscent of a blueberry pie topped with cinnamon sugar. It has an incredibly creamy body, and is very sweet, both indicative of the black honey process used by Mario on this coffee.
"Located in the Acatenango Valley, in the Balam Juyu hills; Mr. Pedro Mendez owner of "El Socorro" a farm that extended through 2,060 hectares (ha) which Mr. Melendez decided to inherit to his 4 children. In that moment the farm was diversified into the following products: Corn, Bean, Sugar cane, Cattle, Forest, and Coffee. My great grandfather, Fidel Melendez, changed the name to his farm's part and named it Monte de Oro, inferring to the great fertility of the farm ground. Fidel Melendez inherit to my grandfather Ricardo Melendez who intensified the coffee growing, which then became a single crop farm. In this process was introduced new varieties and techniques of coffee crop. In 1980 my grandfather passed away, and then came the time for my mother Ericka Melendez to take over the farm’s administration. It's important to note that she was the first lady in the area who administrated a coffee farm with success, back then it was the civil war epoch in Guatemala. Even though all the threats and problems which cause this intern conflict my mother didn't give up, and ran the farm with success. In 2008, my mother and my father, Mario Rene Alarcón Aguilar, decided that it was time to give the farm a refresh, and that it was the time for me to take the administration. My name is Mario (because of my father) Ricardo (because my grandfather), Alarcon Melendez and I'm the 5th generation who has been on charged of the farm."