El Salvador - Santa Petrona

We're big fans of the honey process and the extra depth in body it gives speciality coffee, without sacrificing subtlety. Finca Santa Petrona is part of the Tuxpal group, one of the most famous farms in El Salvador, a stones throw from the Santa Ana volcano. In being so close to a volcanic site, the farm benefits hugely from the rich volcanic soil present.

The Tuxpal group has been a family business since Petrona Palacios de Diaz bought a small plot of land in 1927, passing it on to Daughter and in turn to the sons then on. The current lead farmer at Finca Santa Petrona is Federico Pacas Lopez, named after his grandmother. At Santa Petrona, there are eleven microlots of differing varietal and process - we've opted for a Red Bourbon, Black Honey Process.

Black Honey is an extra fermentation process, with a much longer fermentation than Red Honey, where in essence, the cherry and mucilage has fermented much longer, giving a lot of natural sweetness and gives more funky notes in the profile. The term 'Red Bourbon' defines the varietal, a natural mutation of coffea arabica, the name "Bourbon" hailing from the island now known as Reunion, a French colony off the coast of Madagascar. 

We taste sweeter notes through filter, such as Molasses and Raisin, but more heavy on notes like Dark Chocolate on espresso. A great all-rounder. 

Process: Black Honey

Location: La Montanita, Santa Ana

Altitude: 1400 - 1500 MASL

Flavour Notes: Dark Chocolate, Molasses and Raisin

SCA Score: 85

Varietal: Red Bourbon