- Catalogue altitude
- 1,100–1,800 m · 1 of 5 catalogue coffees report altitude. Very small sample. This sample does not establish the full growing range.
- Climate
- Temperate climate shaped by winds from the Pacific and Atlantic; mean altitude of about 840 m plays a major role.
- Terrain
- Occupies Nicaragua's northern corner; borders the department of Madriz to the north, León and Matagalpa to the south, Jinotega to the east, and Chinandega to the west.
- Soil
- Mostly oxisols with low agricultural aptitude, under conifer/broadleaf forest (pine, oak, cedar, mahogany).
- Varieties
- Bourbon · Catimor · Caturra · Catuaí
- Base process
- Washed
Coffee-farming history: about 66 coffee farms in the department by 1910, growing to 369 by mid-century, then dropping to just 14 by 1958 — likely due to land consolidation into large properties.