El Salvador | Santa Ana Volcanic Region Los Andes Estate Honey Process SL28

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What are the flavor characteristics of El Salvador's Santa Ana volcanic region Los Andes estate honey-processed SL28?

Los Andes Farm is located not far from Santa Ana city. If weather conditions are favorable, it takes about an hour to reach. In fact, Santa Ana city is situated at the foot of the Santa Ana volcanic region. Since 2002, we have frequently visited this area and have discovered many outstanding estates in the Santa Ana volcanic region, including the legendary figure Neto, who takes pride in his four estates—Milán, Blumas, Alaska, and Los Andes—all located around the volcano. These are all exceptional Cup of Excellence award-winning estates, having won two championships and four Top 10 placements. Neto's award-winning achievements have become too numerous for me to count. All four of Neto's estates belong to Orsir Direct Trade Coffee (abbreviated as Orsir DT).

Los Andes has an average altitude of over 1,720 meters and is located in the Palo Campana town of the Santa Ana volcano. The estate's name comes from the Los Andes National Park. The estate is not far from the national park entrance, and I often have sandwiches with Neto at the pavilion inside the national park. The area near Los Andes Volcanic National Park features dense, towering pine and cypress trees. The surrounding soil types are diverse, with varying compositions. Combined with changing temperatures and wind directions, and especially being located in a high-altitude area, this mountainous region is filled with both opportunities and challenges. Neto considers this place paradise for growing premium coffee. In 2007, Neto acquired Los Andes. The moment he stepped into this estate, he saw coffee trees aged 45 years and older, with 35% being Kenya's SL-28 variety and 65% being Red Bourbon.

The ability of Kenya's SL28 variety to thrive in El Salvador has attracted significant attention. In terms of flavor, Salvadoran-grown Kenyan varieties have stronger bright berry flavors characteristic of Kenyan coffee compared to traditional Bourbon, which is rarely found in Salvadoran Bourbon beans. Additionally, the typical apple and chocolate flavors of Bourbon are maintained, giving Salvadoran Kenyan varieties a new style. However, the acidity is not as bright as Kenyan coffee, while the sweetness is immediately apparent, rich, and complex, maintaining consistency with coffee trees grown in their ancestral home—Kenya. The introduction of Kenyan varieties to El Salvador's Santa Ana volcanic region dates back 50 years when the De Sola family brought back a large bag of coffee cherries from a hunting trip to Kenya, beginning the history of Kenyan varieties' cultivation in El Salvador. This didn't attract much attention at the time, until several nearby estates gained recognition from specialty coffee circles for their unique Kenyan-style profiles. Including Neto, other renowned estates successively won Cup of Excellence competitions with Kenyan varieties, sparking a Kenyan trend that even influenced champion estates in Guatemala, including Injerto, to begin planting Kenya's SL28 variety.

Estate Information

Location: Santa Ana Volcanic Region, Santa Ana

Estate Name: Los Andes

Owner: Juan José Ernesto Menéndez Argüello

Altitude: 1,720 meters

Variety: Kenya SL28

Processing Method: Honey processing

Shade Trees: Pepeto Peludo, Pinos y Cipres

Annual Rainfall: 2,200 millimeters

Annual Temperature: 15°C

Soil: Sandy Loam

Cupping Notes

Dry Aroma: Honey, bittersweet chocolate, caramel, plum, blackberry

Wet Aroma: Distinct aroma, orange chocolate, spicy sweetness, berry fragrance

Taste: Very clean and delicate, strawberry, juicy sensation, green apple, peach, white grape, estate chocolate, caramel sweetness. The lingering Kenyan dark berry flavor is very persistent, with excellent sweet almond aroma.

FrontStreet Coffee's Recommended Brewing Method:

Dripper: Hario V60

Water Temperature: 90°C

Grind Size: Fuji Royal grinder setting 3.5

Brewing Technique: Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, using 15g of coffee grounds. First pour 25g of water for a 25-second bloom. Second pour to 120g and stop the pour. Wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to half, then continue pouring slowly until reaching 225g total. Extraction time around 2:00.

Analysis: Using a three-stage brewing method to clearly define the flavors in the front, middle, and finish. Because the V60 has many ribs and drains quickly, stopping the pour helps extend the extraction time.

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