ÜBER Buena Vista – Orlando Aguilar
Buena Vista Farm sits near La Palma, a small mountain town high in the Chalatenango region – El Salvador’s coolest and northernmost area. Nestled along the mountain range that borders Honduras and Guatemala, this region offers ideal conditions for growing top-quality specialty coffee. The cool, tropical highlands slow down cherry maturation, resulting in remarkable aromatic complexity.
The producer, Orlando Aguilar, comes from a family of coffee growers and learned the craft from his brothers. With dedication and persistence, he built his own farm – Buena Vista, named after the breathtaking views of the surrounding mountains. At around 1,300 meters above sea level, Orlando cultivates Pacamara, a rare and intensely flavorful variety created by the Instituto Salvadoreño de Investigaciones del Café (ISIC) as a cross between Pacas and Maragogype.
Orlando is fully committed to quality: harvesting is done exclusively by hand, with only the ripest, deep-red cherries being carefully selected. Fermentation takes place dry, in sacks, for up to 12 hours – a signature method of Orlando’s that enhances the coffee’s aromatic intensity and speeds up fermentation. After pulping, the beans are washed and dried in the sun on raised beds for roughly 13 days, being turned every 20 minutes – a labor-intensive yet crucial routine to ensure perfectly even drying and pristine quality.
A key highlight is Orlando’s commitment to sustainability. Together with other local producers, he creates organic fertilizers and repurposes coffee pulp as a natural nutrient source for his plants. This strengthens soil health and supports the long-term resilience of the region.
Buena Vista is more than just a coffee – it is the result of hard work, deep expertise, sustainable practices, and genuine passion. A coffee with character, depth, and a strong sense of origin, showing what becomes possible when tradition and innovation work hand in hand.
