Beneficio San Vicente began its coffee journey in the 1950s under Mr. Cantalicio Paz, who later passed it to Fidel. Initially, they travelled between coffee communities buying cherries without a physical location, aiming to improve these communities' living conditions. They quickly became one of the region's major coffee buyers and have since elevated Beneficio San Vicente to become one of the world's most esteemed specialty coffee sources.

San Vicente has witnessed and shaped the evolution of Honduras's coffee production chain. In 2000, Don Fidel's son Fidel and nephew Arturo joined the business, bringing fresh expertise in agronomy, sales, and marketing to the already successful company. During this period, single-farmer "micro-lots" gained popularity as programs like the Cup of Excellence competition began showcasing coffees from the aldeas (villages) around Peña Blanca—El Cielito, El Cedral, and Las Flores—for the first time.

Today, Benjamin Paz leads the company, setting the standard for Honduran specialty coffee. Following his father's philosophy of excellence and hard work, Benjamin drives growth and innovation in his region through San Vicente's specialty coffee programs, which connect farmers with long-term buyers.

From Matt Randell at Langdon Coffee:

“I asked Benjamin [Paz] back in 2023 if he could access a natural volume lot from Santa Barbara. Profile I gave was “old school naturals, candy and fruit”. He came back with a cool project we’ve been running with. There’s an abundance of Parainema in Santa Barbara (it’s become popular partly due to BSV themselves) and the naturals work really well, but more over we use it as an opportunity to buy coffee from younger or first time speciality producers, guaranteeing we would buy it no matter what. We’re now up to roughly 200 bags per harvest, but even more excitingly, last year we started to pull single producers’ contributions out of the blend as a whole if we felt it reached something well above. Gerardo’s two bag lot was one of them we picked out!“

Gerardo has always worked alongside his father producing coffee. In 2017, he became independent and began managing his own coffee farm and dairy cattle operation. Initially selling conventional coffee, he decided to try specialty coffee production in 2018. The quality proved excellent, and he has since focused exclusively on specialty coffee.

Labour shortages present one of his biggest challenges, as many local young people emigrate. To address this, Gerardo transports coffee pickers from other villages.

Gerardo aims to expand his farm with an additional plot to increase production. He also hopes to compete in Cup of Excellence and achieve a significant ranking.

Parainema is a pedigree selection of T5296 developed by Instituto Hondureño del Café (IHCAFE). Pedigree selection is a breeding method that tracks a plant's ancestry, allowing breeders to trace its lineage through multiple generations.

Though T5296 shows important resistance to coffee leaf rust, farmers are advised against using it due to its genetic instability across generations.

Parainema thrives at medium altitudes and demonstrates resistance to both coffee leaf rust and certain nematodes.

The dry/natural process is the oldest and simplest method of preparing green coffee. Well-suited to environments with limited water access and hot climates, this process typically uses no water and requires no specialized equipment.

After harvesting, coffee cherries are dried until they reach about 20% moisture content. They're then usually rested for a few weeks in bags before being sent to a mill for hulling and export preparation.

The cherries can be dried on large patios or raised African beds—large trays with a mesh base that allow increased airflow for even drying. Best practices include keeping the drying coffee in shade during the hottest parts of the day and avoiding re-wetting by rain or condensation. Regular turning and good ventilation are also crucial to prevent mould formation.

To avoid defective seeds and sour fermentation off-flavours, it's best to sort the harvested cherries during the initial drying stage when under-ripe, over-ripe, and damaged cherries are easily spotted. After just a couple of days, the cherries turn a dark red-brown colour before becoming black, making it impossible to visually identify problem cherries.

Coffee begins fermenting from the moment it's picked and continues while there's enough moisture and high temperatures—conditions that favour microbial growth. This uncontrolled fermentation leads to the development of wild, fruity flavours and an increased perception of sweetness and body.