Story

The Sierra Mágica is located in the northern part of the state of Puebla, an area known for its magical places, diverse wild flora and fauna, and impressive natural beauty. The city of Zapotitlán de Méndez lies at the heart of these mountains. This unique town is the most significant in the state and hosts two cultures: Totonac and Nahuatl, separated by the Zempoala River. This river is dreamlike, with waterfalls cascading from the highest canyon peaks, and it flows throughout the area, serving as a vital water resource.

Zapotitlán de Méndez is situated along a route that includes a series of beautiful towns crossing the Sierra Norte: Pahuatlan, Zacatlán, Zongosotla, and Ignacio Zaragoza. Many years ago, the town was founded due to the displacement of a Totonac group caused by territorial disputes and overpopulation. They moved along the banks of the Zempoala River, seeking a place to settle, unaware that they had entered Nahuatl territory.

In the Sierra Norte, where the coffee of Sierra Mágica is grown today, sugar cane, bananas, and avocados are cultivated for local consumption, and ornamental plants are grown in greenhouses for sale. The soil is volcanic and rich in minerals.

Contributing Producers

In 2010, with the decline in coffee prices, buyers and intermediaries in the local market offered prices below the cost of production, preventing producers from prospering. This group decided to organize themselves better to find other markets, but despite countless attempts, sales to intermediaries always ended up with low prices. In 2021, Caravela began searching for specialty coffees and established the Grower’s Education Program (PECA in Spanish), which offers training and education on farm management, quality, and sustainability to coffee growers who joined in the area. The program also focuses on building long-term relationships to start a new phase in their coffee sales and production process.

Of the 214 growers affiliated with the group Productores Agropecuarios PUHUAC, Sierra Mágica includes 80 coffee growers from the Puebla Zapotitlán de Méndez region, 60 of whom are men and 20 are women. Most coffee farmers are between 60 and 80 years old and have more than 40 years of experience in coffee production and farming. On average, their farms cover between 1 and 6 hectares of coffee. The coffee in this area is of outstanding quality, grown at optimal elevations. The harvest occurs between January and March each year.

Producers focus on harvesting cherries at their optimum ripeness, floating day lots in plastic tanks to remove lower-density cherries, and fermentation can last up to 18 hours on average. The drying method is mainly carried out on concrete patios and raised beds as producers continue improving the available infrastructure. In this area, coffee grows under shade, and it is possible to find ingas, pines, cedars, oaks, and liquidambar trees as part of the agroforestry system. Coffee is grown at 1100 MASL, with the following varietal distribution: Typica 30%, Bourbon 40%, Caturra 20%, and Marsellesa 10%.