A trip to Hacienda Buena Vista is a rare experience in more ways than one. Located in the mountains between Ponce and Adjuntas, this is one of only five working coffee plantations in the world that works to this day using the energy of water.
In addition to the natural beauty and picturesque structures, the engineering marvel on display at Hacienda Vista recalls a simpler time, when the power of water transformed this plantation into one of the most prosperous in Puerto Rico.
General information
Hacienda Buena Vista is located north of the city of Ponce, along Highway 123 in the Corral Viejo neighborhood. There are tours in English from Wednesday to Sunday, or by appointment. The hacienda is a protected natural area of the Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico.
An engineering marvel of the 19th century
Hacienda Buena Vista, or Hacienda Vives, as it was also called, was founded in 1833 by Salvador Vives. Originally intended to supply food to the slaves who worked in the nearby lands, the hacienda began as a corn mill. He migrated to coffee when the third generation of the Vives family (Salvador Vives Navarro) acquired the machinery and structures necessary to plant the lucrative grain. In addition, the plantation produces cacao and annatto , or annatto seed.
But it took a lot of work for the Hacienda. The Vives family wanted to use hydraulic energy, but could only do so on the condition that the water was returned, clean, to the Cañas River. To address this, the family built a 1,121-foot brick canal (later covered in cement to protect it) and a small aqueduct that funneled water from the river to the mills. The ingenious design was curved to facilitate the flow of water, and used a settling tank to filter the water before it reached the buildings.
The tour takes you from the home of the Vives family from the 19th century, which still preserves original period furniture, to the subtropical forest where the water is channeled. Along the way, our teacher, Zamira, explained how the dense canopy of cacao trees protected the coffee beans, pointed out some of the local flora and fauna, and then took us into the heart of the plantation to show us how corn and coffee , were produced.
At each stage, we learned how water, moisture, and shade were used to make cornmeal and coffee. We saw the water spin in a mill using a massive and unique two-arm turbine, a technological innovation of its time. Along the way, I discovered that 28 pounds of coffee beans in a bushel , or coffee container, produces 3 pounds of coffee, giving me a new appreciation for my morning cup.
In October, you can participate in the process from start to finish, from picking the beans to grilling and drinking Joe’s final glass. And by the way, Puerto Rico produces pretty good coffee. But even if you can’t do it during the season, Hacienda Buena Vista is a wonderfully restored, maintained, and interactive experience in the mountains of Puerto Rico’s interior.
