What is the Maracaturra coffee varietal?

Maracaturra is a hybrid of Maragogype and Caturra, first identified in Nicaragua in the late 1990s. It inherits Maragogype's strikingly large bean size alongside Caturra's more compact, manageable plant structure - a combination that makes it more viable to farm than the towering Maragogype parent.

The large beans roast attractively and stand out visually. At high-altitude Central American farms, Maracaturra is capable of producing complex, nuanced cups that have performed well in competition. It's not a common variety but appears occasionally in specialty offerings as a named single-variety lot from Nicaragua and Honduras.

One practical note for roasting: the large bean size means heat transfer is different compared to standard beans. Maracaturra may develop at a different rate than a medium-sized variety in the same drum - worth accounting for when profiling a new lot.