Introduction to El Socorro Cola Estate, Guatemala | Guatemala Coffee Flavor Guide

Coke Estate:

Located 50 kilometers from Guatemala City, the farm covers a total area of 500 hectares. Its main features are as follows:

• It maintains a 55% natural reserve area, the most extensive conservation park in the surrounding region, and a natural habitat for many wild animals and migratory birds. The main tree species conserved are pine and oak. Most of the conserved plants and animals are included in the conservation program.
• 25% of the area is dedicated to coffee cultivation (approximately 126 hectares).

Achievements:

In 2007, El Socorro won the COE Overall Championship with a score of 93.6 and was awarded the Presidential Medal.

In 2008, it placed fourth nationally in the COE with a score of 89.6.

In 2009, it took tenth place nationally in the COE with a score of 88.08.

In 2011, it won the SCAA COTY Guatemala's Finest Coffee. That same year, it claimed the COE Overall Championship with a score of 91.53 and received the Presidential Medal once again.

In 2013, El Socorro y Anexos again placed third nationally in the COE with a score of 90.19. Every year it wins awards with cupping scores above 90 points.

FrontStreet Coffee's Recommended Brewing Parameters:

• Pour-over: V60 dripper, Fuji R440 grinder setting 3.5, water temperature around 90°C
• French press: Recommended grinder setting 4, water temperature 90°C
• Siphon: Recommended grinder setting 4, water temperature between 90°C-91°C
• AeroPress: Recommended grinder setting 3.5, water temperature 90°C

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Since the parameters above include the French press, it is worth pairing this Guatemalan cup with the right technique and the right bean. The French press is a full-immersion brewer with a metal filter: because water soaks the grounds directly, the resulting coffee keeps more oils and therefore a heavier, fuller body - though anyone who dislikes sediment or fines may prefer another brewer. As immersion extends contact time, the French press is theoretically better suited to medium or dark roasts, which express sweetness and caramel-like flavors more fully, while a light roast tends to pull out high acidity and mask its floral and fruity lift.

If you like a fragrant, lighter style, FrontStreet's Strawberry Candy is a good match: a Geisha blend built from a Costa Rican honey-processed coffee and a washed Panama Geisha, it releases rose, citrus, grape, and dried-blueberry aromas in the press and shows a strawberry soft-candy note with milk. For a low-acid, oil-rich black coffee, FrontStreet's PWN Gold Mandheling is the first choice - one of Asia's best-known specialty coffees, selected three times by hand plus once by machine, with large, uniform, translucent beans. Medium-dark roasted, it shows rich spice, caramel, cedar, and dark-chocolate aromas and a mellow, oily body in the French press.

On grind and brew: FrontStreet suggests a coarse-sugar setting - EK43s setting 10.5, or 26 on a hand grinder - closer to small gravel than fine sand; too fine a grind can let fines slip through the metal mesh and leave a lot of sediment in the cup. Use a 1:15 ratio (15 g coffee to 225 g water), which lands the strength around 1.1-1.2%, giving a fuller, richer cup; start there and adjust the coffee or water to taste. For water temperature, if you have no thermometer, boil and let the water rest 2-3 minutes to reach about 90°C, or set a temperature-controlled kettle; because a French press pours all the water at once and has no stirring to raise extraction, raising the water 1-2°C above a normal pour-over temperature compensates. Steep for 3 to 5 minutes - darker roasts can turn bitter and astringent past 5 minutes, while a light roast may need at least 3 - so FrontStreet suggests starting with 4 minutes. To brew: remove the filter assembly, add the ground coffee, pour in 15 times its weight in hot water, stir gently a few times, and set the plunger on top without pressing down; after 4 minutes, press the plunger slowly to the bottom and carefully pour off the coffee without disturbing the grounds at the base.