El Salvador Monte Leon "Miel"

Sweet Maria's Coffee

Okay, I am taking partial credit for the existence of this coffee, even though I didn't import it. The fact is, Sweet Maria's is too small to take on some projects, but that doesn't mean that, like a little mosquito, I can't buzz around the cupping rooms of the Bay Area and plant a few seeds. That happened here, and the seed grew into a full container lot of great, unique Salvadoran coffee. Here's the short history; we had a mix of pleasure and disappointment from a coffee processed at Santa Elena farm in Costa Rica using a Brazil-style method called Pulped Natural. In Costa Rica they called it "Miel" (honey), and while it's ubiquitous in Brazil, it is considered unheard of (and risky) in Central America. When it was good, this coffee had great body, a husky sweet "wild-honey" cup with moderate acidity. It is great as a brewed/press coffee, it is great as straight espresso, it is great in espresso blends, especially with top quality Brazils. To do this method, you pulp the skin off the coffee cherry, and without removing the fruity mucilage layer, sun-dry the remaining seed. The long contact the fruit has with the parchment layer changes the character of the green coffee inside the parchment, and has this unique effect on the cup. It's not for purists, who consider this a flavor due to process, and never quite repeatable (ie, George Howell would hate it). And in fact, that was the problem in Costa Rica - a little rain or high humidity while the coffee is drying, a little damage to the protective parchment allowing fruit to contact green seed, and the lot is ruined. I gave up on the Santa Elena Miel after bad experiences, but I didn't give up on the notion that this, done right, done to a good dense Bourbon cultivar, done on raised beds to promote quick even natural drying, it would work. In El Salvador last year, a place loaded with old-world Bourbon trees, I tried to find someone willing to do this on a small scale, but no takers. I brought up the idea with other roasters, trying to put together a pool so we could buy a larger lot, but nobody really went for it. I planted the seed with a couple brokers who have great contacts in Salvador, and lo and behold, it stuck. Or maybe I am deluding myself, but I don't care. José Antonio Salaverria with an excellent mill in Ahuachapán (Western district near Santa Ana and Sonsonate) produced 2 incredible lots of Bourbon "Miel" coffees, and of the 2 I had a preference for this, the Monte Leon. It's just as a Miel should be... thick body, sweet malty raw honey, big rounded mouthfeel - it's like a Central American coffee with more meat on the bones- a thick coffee. Straight espresso with this can have more acidity than some prefer (I love it at Full City+ roast, straight) but if it's too much than blend it 50-50 with a low-toned Brazil.

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For more information on this product, visit Sweet Maria's Coffee's website.

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