Sound on for this one.

These sounds take me right back to my summers in Puerto Rico. Running around with my cousins, eating all my favorite foods, singing along to a parranda with the whole family, and lying at my grandfather’s finca listening to the coquís at night. It’s incredible how much of our childhood we remember through sound. Which of these brought back some memories for you?

Sounds, in order: Scraping pegao · Pounding garlic in a pilón · Shaving ice for piraguas · Shuffling dominoes · Güiro Playing • The Coquí.

Photo credits: Cover & Slide 3 (garlic): Joe Green, Slide 2 (rice): Curated Lifestyle, Slide 4 (shaved ice): Hiroshi Tsubono, Slide 5 (dominoes): Juan Pablo, Slide 6 (güiro): Samuel Ramos, - all via Unsplash. Slide 7: Personal photograph. Music credit (Slide 1): “Soñando con Puerto Rico,” composed by Bobby Capó. ...

My mom always made Guineítos en Escabeche for the holidays, and they were truly one of my favorite things she made. I can still remember exactly how they tasted, especially alongside her arroz con gandules and pernil. Even after all these years, I can vividly savor them, if only in memory. While it’s equal parts comforting and heartbreaking to get into the kitchen and make one of her recipes, I find myself wishing I could ask her just one more question as I cook. Nonetheless, I was finally able to recreate this recipe as close to hers as possible, even though I didn’t have her here to tell me the exact measurements. It serves as a painful reminder that I’m part of this sucky club no one wants to belong to, even though losing the people we love is an inevitable part of being human. All I can do is muster up the courage to think about what she would have said if I could have called her and told her I got it right. I imagine she would have said, “Esa es mi nena.” ❤️ ...

The more I research Puerto Rico’s coffee industry, the more I realize how complicated its history really is. And while the numbers may seem discouraging, I’ve also been discovering more local coffee farms and small businesses working to preserve and grow the industry. Case in point: one of my favorite Puerto Rican coffee brands, @wepacoffeecopr. Side note: if you haven’t tried their coffee, you must. You can order it online if you’re not local. Seeing businesses like theirs, alongside other local producers, makes me wonder if we’re already witnessing the beginnings of a resurgence. At least, I certainly hope so.

Sources/Further Reading:

César J. Ayala & Laird W. Bergad, Agrarian Puerto Rico: Reconsidering Rural Economy and Society, 1899–1940, Chapter 2, “The Coffee Economy” (Cambridge University Press, 2020).
Metro Puerto Rico, “Agricultura anticipa impacto al consumidor por alza en el café” (October 4, 2026).
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Coffee: Production, Trade, and Consumption by Countries, Statistics Bulletin No. 79.
Federal Highway Administration, Spanish-American War: General Roy Stone and The New York Times.
USDA Economic Research Service, The Rise and Decline of Puerto Rico’s Sugar Economy.
USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, 2022 Census of Agriculture: Puerto Rico, Table 44.
Puerto Rico Department of Agriculture, statement published by WIPR (October 2, 2026).
Puerto Rico, Law 232-2015, Ley de Denominación de Origen del Café Puertorriqueño, Articles 2 and 7.

Photo Credits: Eduardo Gorghett — Slide 1
Mike Kenneally — Slides 2, 4 & 6
All remaining photography is my own. ...