Moises Hidardo Hernandez is a fourth-generation coffee farmer and the founder of Cafés Especiales Mercedes Ocotepeque (CAFESMO). Finca Las Cascaritas is the farm he inherited from his father and currently operates with his mother, herself a third-generation coffee farmer. Together they grow several coffee varieties such as Parainema, Bourbon, and Obata.
The farm sits on hilly and tree-covered terrain covering 3.5 hectares at altitudes1230 MASL to 1300 MASL. The diversity of plant life includes pine trees native to the region, as well as banana, American walnut and hazel pine.
In addition to natural, honey, and washed specialty coffees, Hidardo started to work on experimental microlots in 2015 to explore the possibilities of developing unusual cup profiles. Using non-traditional processes on lesser-known varietals has led him to produce coffees with pronounced fruity and winey notes that would appeal to consumers with more adventurous preferences.
The Exporter
CAFESMO is a collective of 250+ smallholder farmers based in the Honduran coffee-growing region close to Guatemala and El Salvador.
Their coffee farms are bordered by the country’s highest peaks, Cerro Pital in the west, and the Guisayote National Reserve and the Pacayita volcano on the other side. The mountainous topography creates micro-climates beneficial to different coffees, such as Parainema, Pacas, Lempira, Catuaí, Obatá, Colombia, and IHCAFE90.
Their members’ harvests are processed in their own centralized facility, which has a wet mill, drying patios, a dry mill, and a cupping lab.
