El Salvador - Finca El Carmen - Pacamara Natural

Cupping Notes: Juicy, grape, cherry, apricot, apple juice, brown sugar About This Coffee Finca El Carmen is a 70-hectare coffee estate in El Salvador’s Apaneca-Ilamatepec region near Ataco, situated at 1,300 meters above sea level. Founded in the mid-19th century and farmed by the Alfaro family for over 100 years, it is located within the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor, an important protected forest ecosystem. As a shade-grown coffee farm, El Carmen helps preserve biodiversity and provides habitat for numerous migratory and native bird species. The farm is recognized for its long history, family stewardship, and role in conserving one of El Salvador’s most important coffee-growing landscapes. Country of Origin: El Salvador Region: Ahuachapan Producer Type: Single Estate Farm Name: Finca El Carmen Processing: Natural/Dry Processed Processing; Sun Dried on Patios Growing Altitude: 1300 MASL Plant Species: Arabica Varietal: Pacamara History of El Salvador Coffee Coffee was first introduced to El Salvador from the Caribbean as a garden crop in the mid-18th century but did not gain a commercial production foothold until 1850’s because indigo, easier to grow and more profitable, was king. Coffee was first exported—695 bags—in 1856 and the government began to encourage coffee farming. Exponential growth coincided with the development of synthetic indigo near the end of the century. At one time, El Salvador was one of the largest producers of commercial coffees. Today, with a focus on quality over quantity, 70% of coffee from El Salvador sells for a premium above commodity prices. Growing Coffee in El Salvador In 1975 El Salvador was, remarkably for its size, one of the largest coffee producers in the world, exporting 3.8 million bags. Today, a good year is 600,000 bags. Today, 86% of producers are responsible for only 20% of the country’s production, having 7 hectares or less. This means, that 80% of coffee production is controlled by only 14% of producers. And yet, because peace in El Salvador and the opening of coffee farming to smallholders coincided with the emergence of the specialty coffee sector in consuming countries and the inevitable rise of new-thinking generations within old families, there is a pervasive focus on quality regardless of farm size. Most coffee from El Salvador was sold at a differential price above commodity prices.