Mexican Organic Oaxaca - Finca El Olivo

Sweet Maria's Coffee

Oaxaca Pluma are the essential Mexican coffees in my book, better than the Coatepec coffees to the North, than the Veracruz, and distinct from the fine Chiapas coffees to the South. They have great balance, medium-light body, and wonderful flavor of soft chocolate tones and moderate acidity lingering through to the aftertaste. Grown with a Pacific weather influence, it is no wonder that many can be cupped beside (and outcup) a Kona coffee. The El Olivo is a true Oaxaca Pluma estate coffee and this year that in itself is remarkable (Due to years of low coffee prices, many fine Estate farms went under or were subsumed by large mills where the coffee is all pooled together, resulting in the lowest common denominator in the cup. Coffee prices are now quite healthy again, but with agricultural products the successive bad years really hurt, and better prices don't mean instant recovery). The man behind El Olivo is Arturo Lutan Cruz, and the farm is now a rare sight in Oaxaca, certified Organic Estate coffee with healthy trees and sustainable farm practices. The El Olivo coffee has an excellent preparation, almost blue-green in color, with only an very occasional aberration. You can see quite clearly from the long oval seed for that is is Typica cultivar. It works fine with a heavier roast treatment since it is grown at higher altitude and has great density: it won't turn ashy in flavor. This cup has great balance between creamy body, and moderate brightness. It's not as impressive when hot, but as it cools the cup sweetens a lot, and flavor nuances of vanilla and caramel are revealed. The floral aspect of the cup is reminicent of Hibiscus tea with a raspberry hint; keep the roast in the City or City+ range to highlight this quality.

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