El Salvador La Providencia Single Origin Coffee

The El Salvador single origin coffee is a high-quality roasted coffee that is sweet in taste and smell, grown and process on a farm known as Finca La Providencia, owned and managed by Carlos and Yanira Mendoza. They also run Café Pacas, which is a socially conscious company that has developed of series of programs and initiatives to aid the community, provide education and assist in violence prevention. 

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EL SALVADOR COFFEE BEANS

Coffee beans grown on La Providencia are from the Cantón Las Cruces, Municipio de Chalchuapa and Santa Ana regions. The varietals grown there include Bourbon, Pacas and Pacamara, at an altitude of approximately 1,500m above sea level.

Bourbon is a parent to a variety of Arabica varieties, named after Bourbon Island (now known as Reunion Island) where it is derived from. It’s a short tree with many secondary branches and on average produces 25% more coffee than the Typica variety. The Bourbon variety is renowned for its exceptional sweet/acid balance.

Pacas is a Bourbon mutation discovered on this estate in 1949 and named after the farm owners, the Pacas family. This varietal shares many similarities with Bourbon, but the Pacas variety tends to be less sweet while maintaining a medium-full body in the cup.

Pacamara is a purposely created hybrid, manufactured in 1958 by the El Salvador Institute for Coffee Research. It was created by crossing the Pacas mutation with Maragogipe. The cherry of the Pacamara is on par with the Maragogipe variety, but the flavour profile is unique with high acidity, floral tones and a more delicate body than either of its parent varietals.

The high altitude, temperature, adequate rainfall, humidity, and volcanic soils create the perfect conditions for producing highly complex coffees. In the cup, these coffees produce full-flavoured aromas and medium to full-bodied brews.

Tasting Notes: With medium body and acidity, this coffee has a sweet mandarin tone with a hint of strawberry.

Aroma: Sweet earth with a hint of lime peel

Flavour Strength: 6/10

Sweetness: 7/10

Body: 5/10 

Process: Natural

      

THE EL SALVADOR GROWING REGION

El Salvador is the smallest country in Central America. French colonizers planted the first coffee farms in America in the early 1700s. El Salvador is recognised as a keeper of heirloom varietals and it is produced mainly by small and medium-size growers who still follow distinctive traditions and farm practices.

The Apaneca-Ilamatepec region is home to the Biosphere Reserve located on the Central Volcanic Chain of El Salvador, which preserves the natural ecosystems. Approximately 70% of the reserve’s surface is covered in shade-grown coffee plants (The MAB Programme, UNESCO).

      

ABOUT FINCA LA PROVIDENCIA

Finca La Providencia consists of 52 hectares of coffee plants and 12 hectares of natural forest. Located between two small mountain ranges, it sits within a micro-climate that is perfect for the cultivation of coffee production.

The Pacas family have been coffee farming since 1905, spanning five generations. La Providencia is also where the Pacas variety was discovered in 1949, which was used to produce the Pacamara hybrid varietal.

The Pacas family also use their experience, history, and capital to promote social and economic programs in El Salvador, including:

-‘The Power to Transform’ program that addresses community violence in schools, providing two clinical psychologists per school to work with students, teachers and parents. Their objective is to give the community ways of resolving conflicts without violence and provide mental health assistance to those who need help.

-Coffee Certificate Program for students at the El Salvador National School of Agriculture. The focus of the program is on the production, processes and trade of specialty coffee. Staff members from La Providencia are involved directly in the program, teaching classes with a hands-on process, starting from seed planting to trade export.

The team at Finca La Providencia is focused on improving its sustainability as a business and a community sponsor.