A New Spectacular Crop of Guatemala Monja Blanca!
Spella Caffè proudly welcomes back this year’s crop of Guatemala Monja Blanca. It is one of our community’s favorite perennial offerings!
Coffee farmer from the Atitlán Region
Image Credit from De La Gente
Guatemala Monja Blanca is grown between 1550-1650 masl (meters above sea level); a coffee carefully nurtured amidst ancient Mayan villages, and verdant hills teeming with mineral and vegetative life. A bucolic landscape comprising three major steep sloped volcanoes surrounding Lake Atitlán; this region rightfully boasts of its high grade quality crops and coffee plantations. Savor a lively amount of acidity balanced with a lovely sweetness and a medium body mouthfeel in this Monja Blanca washed coffee.
What is in a flower…and a name?
La Monja Blanca means “the white nun” and was named Guatemala’s national flower in 1934; it symbolizes peace, beauty, and art. The center resembles a nun bent over in prayer which inspired its name. “... it takes fifteen years before it flowers and only blooms from December till February.” The Mixed Culture.
Coffee beans grown in Guatemala’s Atitlán region are singular in their profile and just as unique in nature as their namesake, La Monja Blanca.
Walking through corn fields in the Atitlán Region with Volcano Toliman visible
Image Credit from De La Gente
Flavor Profile
This coffee imparts flavors of Italian plum, browned sugar, and cocoa. When speaking on the Monja Blanca, Andrea Spella said, “It is elegant, rich, and chewy, this coffee fits everyone’s cup. An egalitarian brew, if you will.” It pairs well with breakfast, after a delicious meal, or with dessert. Spectacular coffee stands on its own any time of day, and Monja Blanca shines all season long as a daily brew in our two Spella Caffès!
Bean Production
The beans are produced by a combination of smallholder farms and wet milled by Granos del Sur and Beneficio Santiago La Laguna owned by Juan Francisco Pira. Juan Francisco Pira takes pride in collecting beans from regional farms and choosing the highest quality available while passing on economic incentives to those farms whose coffee is purchased for the Monja Blanca. This coffee is a blend of several regional varieties including Bourbon, Caturra, Villa Sarchi, Typica, and Catuai. Atlas Imports
The Region of Atitlán
This region has three major volcanoes: San Pedro, Toliman, and Atitlán that surround Lake Atitlán. The climate is temperate reaching lows of about 48 degrees fahrenheit in the winters and highs of 82 in the summers. This region relies upon its coffee production, as well as fishing, tourism, and growing vegetables to help sustain its economy. It is humid and rainy, the forests are sometimes shrouded in fog, and there are winds that sweep across the lake bringing to the shore comforting breezes. Dinamica Coffee
The Monja Blanca shines with perfectly balanced acidity, sweetness, cocoa, and stone fruit. It will comfort your palate with a wonderfully beautiful Guatemalan cup of coffee.
This remarkable coffee shines best in a pour over, Moka Pot, or French Press.
We hope you savor this wonderful crop and consider gifting it to those you love this season. It is one of our most popular coffees. We know you will fall in love with this beautiful bean and treasure its lovely flavors in the still moments of the day. It is served and sold in our caffès and available on our website in our online shop.
Enjoy your own Guatemala Monja Blanca at home by visiting Spella’s online shop or one of our fabulous caffès!
Available at our caffès located at Alder Street and Woodblock Chocolate.
