Tasting Notes: Tangerine, Nougat, Brown Sugar
Contents: 100% El Salvador Finca Las Mercedes
Roast Level: Light/Medium, roasted to highlight the coffee’s terroir characteristics
Region: Tacuba, El Salvador, Central America
Growing Elevation: 1,350 Meters
Producer: Dumont Family
Variety: Pacamara
Process: Washed
We roasted this coffee to highlight the sweetest, most complex notes within it. We taste apple, nougat, and brown sugar.
The Pacamara coffee varietal originated in El Salvador and is a cross between the Maragogype and Pacas coffee varieties. Pacamara beans are noticeably elongated and oval in shape.
Finca Las Mercedes is operated by the Dumont family who also owns Finca Malacara. Las Mercedes has been devoted to coffee growing since the late 1940s. The farm itself is located in Tacuba right next to Parque Nacional El Imposible. The coffee trees at Las Mercedes grow at 1,350 meters above sea level, and are on average 27 years old. The shade trees on the farm are native to the region, so the farm blends seamlessly into El Imposible.
In the early 20th century, coffee growers in Tacuba transported their coffee by mule, from the farms in the north to the seaport city Acajutla. The trip itself was harsh due to the topography of the region, but a bigger challenge was crossing a precipice that was on their path. The people built single rope bridges to get across, but on many occasions it did not hold their weight, resulting in the loss of the people, their animals, and their cargo. Since then, transportation methods have been greatly approved. The farm’s inaccessibility also rewards it with beautiful views of the Apaneca-IIamatepec mountain range and the Pacific Ocean.
