El Salvador Santa Ana Washed HG/EP

This coffee was grown in what has become the premier coffee producing region of El Salvador. Santa Anna is consistently producing the best El Salvadoran coffee. Rich, fertile soil, high elevations, and climate all come together to provide the perfect high-quality specialty coffee-growing conditions.

When I had my first cup of this origin, I caught myself looking down at the cup and saying “wow, this is really good coffee.” I got to thinking about it and of all the coffees we have brought you over the year I have said the same thing about 6 or 7 of them.

The reason we have an Origin of the Month is because we are chasing the perfect cup of coffee. I have to say that this coffee is up there among the tops on the list. This coffee was grown at elevations between 3600 and 5250 feet above sea level, making it a High Grown (HG) coffee. One of the reasons high-grown coffees can be so good is that at those elevations, the coffee cherries and the beans inside them, develop more slowly. This makes them more nutrient-dense and flavorful. Another reason HG coffee is so good has to do with the challenges associated with
farming at such high elevations; getting equipment up to those elevations is tricky and so is getting trucks to take the harvest to a washing and processing station.

Farmers whose coffee farms are at these high elevations really streamline harvest processes and logistics. High-grown coffees also result in a
lower yield for the farmers. By streamlining harvest processes and logistics, and the lower yields, farmers must take great care of the trees so that the harvest is of a much higher quality. Many farmers contributed to this lot, all of them having very small farms. These coffee farms dot the slopes of Santa Ana. The farmers here grow Bourbon and Pacas varietals. This coffee is medium-bodied with a smooth, well-balanced flavor profile. If you pay attention while drinking it, you may detect notes of cocoa powder, dried fruit, nuts, and raisins.