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About Guatemala El Socorro Pacamara Honey
Arrived October 2022 in Grainpro. This is the first time we are offering El Socorro's Pacamara Honey process.
We have offered several coffees from the El
Socorro y Anexos in past years, and are fortunate enough to have procured it once again as a result of our Direct Trade relationship with them. The multi award winning
farm
is located within a half hour of Guatemala City, in the town of Palencia. The
land was bought by Mario de la Cerda in 1960 as part of Hacienda San Guayaba,
and later split off to become a separately identified property. Today, both
farms are owned and operated by a father and son team, Juan and Juan Diego de la
Cerda. The El Socorro farm is certified by Rainforest Alliance, and all
wetmill, drying and milling is done on site. The farm is a total of 700
hectares, but only 85 are used for coffee production. A like amount of land is
used for dairy farming, and the balance is a nature reserve for wild regional
species and migratory birds.
Of note is the farm's unusual and highly effective processing technique for all of their coffee. The farm is at a high altitude, and can get very hot during the day. By contrast, the natural springs on the farm used in the wetmill provide very cold water. Juan and Juan Diego came to feel that plunging the hot, freshly harvested cherries into the cold spring water was causing two problems: shock and extended fermentation time, both of which they felt to be injurious to the final cup. Instead, they experimented with washing the harvested coffee in warm water, settling on a temperature nearly the same as the cherries' internal temperature (about 100�F). This eased the cherries into a gradual cooling period and reduced the fermentation cycle to a 24-48 hour time span. The result is a striking, intensely fruity and floral profile.
This thoughtful approach to coffee preparation has not gone unnoticed. El Socorro y Anexos has won an award in the Cup of Excellence Competition 8 times in the past 12 years, and placed first in 2007, 2011 and 2020. While this specific offering has not won an award, we think this coffee still shows the care and attention common to the award winners.
Pacamara is a hybrid of two coffee varietals: Pacas, which is a Bourbon mutation, and Maragogipe, which is a Typica mutation. It was developed in the late 50's by the Salvadoran Coffee Research Institute (ISIC). The mixture at its best produces very deep, brothy flavors that always seem reminiscent of dark fruit like plums, raisins and prunes. This coffee is honey processed, meaning the outer skin and a partial amount of pulp is removed during milling before being dried. The remaining pulp dries on the seed and imparts some fruit flavor, not as much as a full natural and not as absent as with washed processing.
- Department: Guatemala
- Municipality: Palencia
- Altitude: 5050-6100 Feet above sea level (1540-1860 masl)
- Coffee Variety: Pacamara
- Processing: Honey, partial pulp removal
- Harvest: January-April
Cup Characteristics: Flavors of cola, black cherry, chestnut and graham cracker. Very clean, clear cup with a silky, slightly chewy finish.
Vanilla and peanut aromas. Extremely sweet cup, some lychee. Not typical Pacamara dark fruit flavors but rather big fleshy fruit like pear and peach. The flavors deepened as the coffee cooled. Juicy and vibrant.
Roasting Notes: This very delicate, complex coffee will shine at City+. Roasting to Full City or beyond will mask some of the intense fruitiness of this coffee so we recommend keeping it on the lighter, though fully developed side. Depending on your roaster, take beyond 1st Crack but avoid the approach of 2nd Crack.
