Genetics x Environment x Management
Frequent GEM collaborators Moises and Marysabel from Finca El Puente bring us GEM 008—the first Batian variety coffee grown in Honduras. Developed by researchers in Kenya, Batian was bred to resist diseases while maintaining the vibrant complexity Kenyan coffees are famous for. Finca El Puente has had great success with Kenyan varieties, especially their SL28, which is the best we have tasted outside of Kenya. Unfortunately, climate change has made SL28 increasingly difficult to grow in Marcala so when they got the chance to try Batian, they eagerly planted it. After three years of anticipating the first full harvest, the wait is over, The results are nothing short of excellent. The coffee delights with a vibrant burst of clementine and currant, rounded out by a smooth, toffee sweetness that lingers on the palate.
Why this coffee is a GEM
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Batian is a unique coffee variety developed by Kenya's Coffee Research Institute. It was selectively bred from parent plants with desirable traits, including Ruiru 11, a variety created in Kenya and released in 1987 after 15 years of development. While Ruiru 11 was known for its productivity and disease resistance, it didn’t achieve widespread success due to concerns about its cup quality.
Image: Marysabel Caballero tending to seedlings at Finca el Puente.
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To address this, Kenyan coffee breeders set out to create a variety that combined high productivity with exceptional flavor. They crossed Ruiru 11 with several pure line varieties, including SL28, SL34, Rume Sudan, N39, K7, SL4, and Timor Hybrid. The Ruiru 11 used in this process had undergone selective breeding for five generations, refining desirable traits while minimizing unwanted characteristics. The result was Batian, released in 2010.
Image: Coffee seedlings at the Finca el Puente variety nursery.
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We share these details not just to be nerds, but because it highlights the immense dedication and time required to develop new coffee varieties. We can sometimes take these advances for granted, when they are the just first step in a lengthy process aimed at improving coffee and coffee production.
New varieties are rare and usually kept within their home country, so when the opportunity arose to taste Batian grown at Finca El Puente in Honduras, we couldn’t resist. Now, we’re thrilled to introduce this exceptional coffee in GEM 008.
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Moises and Marysabel, the owners of Finca El Puente, are true innovators in variety experimentation. They were the first Honduran coffee farmers to grow Gesha and SL28, both of which had excellent quality results, but have struggled in production amidst a changing climate. The GEM series highlights the dedication required to drive innovation and we are honored to be among the first to offer this special coffee.
