Green Coffee Offerings : Central America : El Salvador |
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View Our Current Salvadorian Coffees
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Upcoming Crop CommentsWe are down to the larger lots we had in the current crop and they are cupping strong. With new crop arrivals in May, these are a great option for Central America coffee right now. |
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About Salvadorian Coffee
![]() Unripe green coffee cherry, Pacas cultivar, El Salvador 2004. ![]() Ripe red coffee cherry in the receiving bin at the the mill. |
I am a believer: El Salvador has great coffee. Bourbon varietal coffees are one end of the spectrum, balanced, classic "Central" profile and also a good alternative to Brazil as a base for espresso; Pacamara varietal coffees are their opposite, quirky and full of character. High altitudes and good, dense, traditional varietals are a large part of it. El Salvador coffee had an undeservingly poor reputation for years, marred mostly by the inability to deliver coffee of high quality in an unstable social climate. Unfortunately, agriculture is the first to suffer in revolution and civil insecurity, since it requires years to rebuild a farm if it is neglected. In El Salvador the coffee trade, like the government in general, was controlled by a ruling elite, a handful of wealthy families that operated many farms. El Salvador had tended towards the right politically, and the smaller coffee farmer and coffee workers fared poorly in this climate. But the democratic movements and decades of civil war have changed many things. It shows in the quality of coffee, and the availibility of small lots from exceptional small-scale farms. Instead of low grade commercial blending coffees, we now see an eruption of farm-specific regional offerings from small co-ops or estates. El Salvador always had the right ingredients ---soil, altitude, climate ---to produce coffee on par with Guatemala. Most of all, it has the cultivars; Bourbon, the classic old-world coffee; Pacamara, the full-character, odd-ball varietal. For the past 7 years I have been able to buy incredible Salvadors --drop dead quality, great acidity, refinement and depth. Last year it was the incredible Organic Los Naranjos. Then we had the Santa Ritas and Salaverrias. Good stuff. Then the real bombshell coffee: the Cup of Excellence lot from the San Francisco farm. After that, our Organic Santa Adelaida lots, and our Pacamara Cup of Excellence coffees. This truly represents the pinnacle of high grown Salvadors. If you like, you can read about my earliest trip there, and role as a judge in the competition. I visited some of our important coffee sources, such as Aida Batlle's Kilimanjaro farm, and Vickie Dalton's Finca Matalapa. All the travelogues are collected in the travelogue section of the Coffee Library .
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Our Unroasted Salvadoran Coffee Offerings:
Please refer to our Reference Page for definitions of terms and cupping numbers used below. Check out the Sweet Maria's Coffee Home Roasting Forum for more conversation about home roasting this and other coffees.We are currently out of stock. The review below is provided for your reference.
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Malacara is a farm I have admired for their fine Cup of Excellence lots in the past 3 years. And I must admit I like the name a lot: Bad Face. The farm is at 1550 meters near the town of Cantón La Montañita on the Santa Ana volcano. The farm has been in one family, handed down and divided since the early 1900's, and the average age of the trees is 49 years old! the coffee is grown under a shade canopy of trees, mainly made up of Ingas and mountain trees such as cedar, walnut, gravileo and avocado among others. Bourbon coffee is a classic cultivar, named for the island of Bourbon (now called Reunion) where it was originally cultivated. When we call it classic, we mean not just the fact that it is a lower-yield, heirloom plant, and that it has a very dense seed that roasts well, but also the cup character. Bourbon coffees, especially those from El Salvador, are neotypical Central American coffees. They are bright, aromatic, balanced, semisweet or bittersweet, chocolaty and have a creamy mouthfeel. In a competition like Cup of Excellence, these characteristics might seem mundane next to the exotic flavors of the Pacamara cultivar, but Bourbon should be appreciate for more than it's sturdiness, versatility (they make great espresso blend components), and the way they take a wide range of roasts. Each has unique accent notes too. This lot was one of my favorite Bourbon lots in the competition. The dry fragrance has strong nut and toffee roasty scents, but behind that there are soft floral tones, and suggestions of starfruit. The wet aromatics are a little citrusy and spicy with a bit of anise and sassafras. In the cup, the coffee is extremely sweet and bright. I immediately found bright strawberry flavors and sweet mandarin-orange citrus brightness. As it cools, the sweetness become more caramelly, and the sharper notes from the aromatics soften a lot. It has a very clean finish, articulate. It's simply outstanding, high-grown Bourbon coffee, a real flawless gem.
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We are currently out of stock. The review above is provided for your reference.
Archived Reviews
To view reviews for out of stock coffees, visit our El Salvador Coffee Archives.
2005-2006 | 2004 -2003 | 2001-2002 | Pre-2000 Tom's Sample Cupping Log | Moisture Content Readings This page is authored
by Thompson Owen and Sweet Maria's Coffee, Inc. and is not to be
copied or reproduced without permission
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