Philippines Finca De Garces Catimor Honey

Same farm. Same varietal. A different way of drying.

Finca de Garces, a family farm at 1,400 meters in the Bukidnon highlands, processes this Catimor with the mucilage left intact during drying. The honey method. The sugars in that fruit pulp migrate into the bean as it rests on the patio, rounding out the acidity that defines the washed lot and adding a quiet, honey-like sweetness in its place.

The Farm

Finca de Garces sits at 1,400 meters in the highlands of Bukidnon - a multi-generational family farm stewarded by the Garces family. Volcanic soils and cool mountain air slow cherry maturation at this elevation, concentrating sugars and building the complex sweetness that is making Bukidnon one of the Philippines' most promising coffee regions.

Honey processing leaves parchment to dry with the fruit mucilage still attached. The sugars in that mucilage migrate into the bean, rounding out acidity and adding a honey-like sweetness that distinguishes this process from either washed clarity or natural boldness.

For FDG's Catimor, honey sits in the middle - clean enough to taste the farm's terroir, sweet enough to hint at what a fuller natural could do. Apple, black cherry, and chamomile - clean but warm.

The Cup

The same volcanic soils. The same Garces family stewardship across generations. The same Caturra and Timor Hybrid cross thriving at elevation. What changes is what stays on the bean during drying, and how that decision shapes the cup.

Apple skin and black cherry up front. Chamomile aromatics in the middle. A finish that is gentler than the washed, fuller than a natural, sweet without ever tipping into ferment. The honey lot sits at the center of the process spectrum: clean enough to taste the terroir, sweet enough to hint at what a bolder process could draw out.

Tasting Notes

• Simple: Apple, cherry, chamomile
• Descriptive: Bright apple and black cherry softened by chamomile florals, with the rounded sweetness of honey-process drying
• Technical: Malic acidity from the Catimor base layered with rounded mucilage sugars and a delicate floral lift through the finish