La Laguneta

About the Coffee

La Laguneta sits in the Acatenango region of Guatemala, a volcanic growing area known for its rich soils and high elevation. Héctor Ricardo Leal Pivaral bought the property in 2013 after it had been largely abandoned. Since then, he has replanted the land and rebuilt the farm from the ground up, introducing Bourbon, Catuai, and Caturra alongside newer varieties he is still trialing.

Pivaral has made steady investments in processing infrastructure, adding raised African drying beds and greenhouse drying to give each harvest more protection from the elements. These aren't just cosmetic upgrades. Controlling how coffee dries directly affects consistency from one bag to the next. The farm also has natural processing experiments underway, though this particular lot is washed, meaning the fruit is removed from the seed before drying, which tends to produce a cleaner, more straightforward cup.

La Laguneta is still a relatively young operation by farm standards, just over a decade into its current chapter. The infrastructure Pivaral has put in place points to a longer-term vision for the farm, and this lot reflects where things stand today: a well-managed washed coffee grown on volcanic soil at elevation.

About Monogram

Ben Put, Justin Eyford, and Jeremy Ho started Monogram after working together as baristas in Calgary. Their first setup was a hand-built coffee cart. They opened their first cafe in Altadore in 2014, and have been roasting out of Calgary since. Ben Put has won the Canadian Barista Championship seven times and placed third at the 2025 World Barista Championship.

Monogram builds long-term relationships with specific producers rather than buying on the open market. They work with farms like Finca Takesi in Bolivia and the Lamastus family at Elida Estate in Panama, returning to the same growers year after year. Their roasting approach aims for what they call a "Sweet Spot," a point where the coffee is neither underdeveloped nor overdone, which they dial in differently for each coffee they source.