This is a special microlot from Matalapa that we have "cellared" in our special GrainPro bags until late in the season. Finca Matalapa is a classic estate coffee, long before there were mini-mills and micro-lots. It has a complete independent mill to service the farm, from the tree through wet-processing, patio drying, hulling and preparation, to loading the coffee in jute bags and packing the shipping container. The mill is filled with fantastic, classic coffee equipment painted in bold colors. And it's the passion of the owner, Vickie Ann Dalton de Diaz, and the mechanical love of the archaic on the part of her husband that keeps the mill running and the coffee tasting so wonderful! Finca Matalapa is in the Libertad area, not far from the capital of San Salvador, on a west-facing slop ranging from 1200 meters up to the ridge top at 1350 meters. It's a 4th generation coffee estate totalling 120 hectrares and was founded in the late 1800's by Fidelia Lima, great grandmother of the Vickie. She maintains 14 acres of virgin tropical forest and keeps her coffee plants shaded with over forty varieties of larger trees. The cup has the character I aspire to find in El Salvador Bourbon-type coffees, though because of the strong winds in the area they find the native Salvador Pacas varietal to fare better in this region. Pacas is a natural mutation of the Bourbon varietal. This lot has stored very well and cups so fresh, a testament to how well the coffee was processed, and to careful use of the special GrainPro bag liners. Interestingly, Puerta Zapa is a "bloque" of the farm, kept separate in processing, but is actually one of the lowest areas at Matalapa, not the highest! However, it was the lot they were going to enter into CoE on recommendation from George Howell, because of remarkable body and balance. I find it to have a big, rounded mouthfeel, resonant in bittersweetness, and to The dry fragrance has nutty tones in the light roast, toffee and raw sugar. The cup is very approachable, and you can seek out some sweet, mild fruit in the wet aroma, with syrupy malt sweetness (C+ roast). The cup has a buttery body, and as I already said, a striking balance between sweet and pleasant "coffee bittering" favors. As it cools my lighter roasts (City+) became more and more bright and dynamic. I preferred this roast level for brewed coffee; the finish is high-toned and sweet. But this coffee works with a huge range of roasts and Full City roast have a rounded, full-bodied cup (ideal as part of an espresso blend, SO espresso or as French Press type coffee). Really balanced, classic coffees like this might have very even numerical scores across the board, and not break into 87+ scoring, but they are the kind of coffee you want to drink every morning!

This coffee is part of our direct trade Farm Gate pricing transparency program.

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