Processing Methods for El Salvador Bourbon Coffee | Introduction to El Salvador Coffee Bean Flavor Profile

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FrontStreet Coffee Introduction - El Salvador Coffee

Flavor: Balanced taste, excellent texture

Recommended roasting method: Medium to dark, versatile

Premium beans: El Salvador SHB

Taste characteristics: Moderate acidity, bitterness, and sweetness

El Salvador coffee, alongside Mexico and Guatemala, ranks among the production countries of the Aztec-Mayan region and is competing with other countries for the top one or two positions in Central America. High-altitude varieties produce uniformly large, full-bodied coffee beans with rich, mild flavor. Like Guatemala and Costa Rica, El Salvador's coffee is graded by altitude - the higher the altitude, the better the coffee. It is divided into three grades by elevation: SHB (Strictly High Grown) = highland, HEC (High Grown Central) = mid-highland, CS (Central Standard) = lowland. The best brand is Pipil, which is the Aztec-Mayan name for coffee. It has been certified by the Organic Certified Institute of America.

FrontStreet Coffee Introduction - El Salvador Red Bourbon Processing Method

Overall, El Salvador coffee inherits the mild quality of Central American coffees, being overall soft, slightly acidic, with pleasant sweetness. At the same time, it has its own characteristics: aromatic flavor with slight acidity, very gentle; pure without off-flavors, excellent balance; impressive smoothness like cream chocolate; the dense mouthfeel gives the coffee deep flavor with a long aftertaste.

Brazilian Pulped Natural

Coffee fields stretch endlessly, mostly mechanically harvested for economic efficiency. When 75% of the coffee cherries in the plantation turn red, mechanical harvesting begins, followed by the same preliminary processing as washed processing: moving to water tanks to remove floating beans, screening out sinking beans, then using large pulp removers to scrape off the pulp and extract beans coated with mucilage. The next stage diverges from the washed method: instead of moving the sticky beans to water tanks for fermentation, they are moved to outdoor drying patios. Due to Brazil's dry climate, the sticky mucilage on the beans hardens in about a day. Large manpower is then employed to turn the beans up and down for even drying inside and out to prevent moisture absorption and odor. About two to three days of natural force from sunlight and dry climate allow the beans to reach a certain dehydration level. They are then further dried with dryers until moisture content drops to 10.5-12%, then stored in special containers for about ten days for further maturation to ensure quality stability. Before export, the parchment (bean pods) is removed, coffee beans are extracted, graded, and packaged.

This Yellow Bourbon is produced by the Shangri-La Estate. El Salvador Bourbon typically has strong caramel flavor with fruity acidity. After red honey processing, the acidity becomes lower and more elegant, with enhanced flavor. (Red honey processing: removes about 25% of mucilage; compared to yellow honey, drying time is longer and direct sun exposure is reduced, sometimes using shade nets for about 12 days.)

Flavor Profile:

Dry aroma: Roasted almonds, rum, cream chocolate

Wet aroma: Raisins, honey, cream chocolate

Taste: Elegant fruit acidity, high sweetness, with juice-like sensation; after cooling slightly, fruit tea notes appear, with honey and cream chocolate aroma in the aftertaste

Important Notice :

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