Alexander Sabillon Parainema, Honduras

While history and tradition are the foundations of some of the world’s best coffees, it sometimes takes a young producer with a willingness to take chances and experiment to cultivate something truly special. While hailing from a long line of coffee farmers in the Santa Barbara region of Honduras, Alexander Sabillon is the youngest of his clan and the first to produce coffee that is truly specialty. After acquiring a small 1.5-hectare farm that was completely devastated by rust four years ago, Alexander has started anew, doing a great job with replanting, pruning, and managing his farm with the utmost care. While most of the existing farm is planted with the Catuaí variety, Alexander also has a growing plot of Parainema coffee.

Parainema is a member of the Sarchimor hybrid family. Sarchimors are hybrids of the Costa Rican Villa Sarchi variety and the Timor hybrid. The Honduran Coffee Institute, IHCAFE, created the Parainema cultivar by selectively breeding the offspring of these two plants to increase resistance to coffee leaf rust and preserve cup quality. In 2017, a Parainema won the Honduras Cup of Excellence competition, despite its reputation for producing lower-quality coffee due to its rust-resistant varieties. This is Alexander’s 3rd harvest of Parainema, and he did a great job with the harvest and processing – he created a unique offering that we are incredibly excited to share with you!