El Injerto took the top score at the 2026 Guatemala Cup of Excellence with a Natural Geisha from their La Libertad farm in Huehuetenango, scoring 91.86 points to top the Natural and Honey category. The lot is grown by Arturo Aguirre Escobar, whose family has farmed El Injerto since 1874 and built it into one of Guatemala’s most decorated specialty producers over four generations. Geisha is a rare variety from Ethiopia, prized in competition for its floral jasmine and stone-fruit notes; processed as a Natural, meaning the whole cherry is dried around the seed before milling, which concentrates sweetness and adds fruit intensity. The 2026 auction lot is currently being allocated to international buyers; the farm sells roasted coffees directly at fincaelinjerto.com, including past competition lots, and is the most direct route to their work while the 2026 CoE lot makes its way to roasters.
A direct link to the 2026 winning lot will be added once a roaster lists it for sale.
The Winner
El Injerto is one of Guatemala’s most celebrated specialty farms, situated in La Libertad, Huehuetenango at high altitude in the western highland region that consistently produces some of the country’s highest-scoring competition coffees. The farm was established in 1874 and has been in the Aguirre family for four generations. Arturo Aguirre Escobar manages the current operation with the same philosophy that has defined the farm for decades: El Injerto processes only coffee grown on its own land, a deliberate choice that maintains full control over quality from tree to bag. The farm was named Best Coffee of Guatemala in 2021 and reached second place at the Cup of Excellence in 2022, making the 2026 win a high point in a sustained run at the top of Guatemalan specialty production.
The Guatemala Cup of Excellence has been organized by the Alliance for Coffee Excellence (ACE) since 2001, and is widely regarded as one of the most rigorous national coffee competitions in the world. Submitted lots are scored blind by panels of national and international Q Graders across six criteria: aroma, flavor, aftertaste, acidity, body, and balance. Only coffees scoring above 87 points qualify for the public auction, which draws roasters from Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the United States, and Europe. El Injerto’s 91.86 led the Natural and Honey category; the Washed category was topped by Las Macadamias, also from Huehuetenango, at 90.77.
For more on the Guatemala Cup of Excellence and past winning lots, visit our Cup of Excellence page.