Salvadoran Specialty Coffee: Brewing Black Honey Process Pacamara - Flavor Characteristics and Profile

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Salvadoran coffee may seem relatively niche in the specialty coffee world, but many people don't know that during its peak, El Salvador was once the world's fourth-largest coffee-producing country. Due to decades of civil war, the entire coffee industry was devastated, with local farmers abandoning their fields. With the cessation of conflict, El Salvador's coffee industry has regained vitality in recent years. FrontStreet Coffee recently acquired a Pacamara coffee bean from El Salvador. The Pacamara coffee variety has essentially saved El Salvador's entire coffee industry, allowing Salvadoran coffee to reestablish itself in the specialty coffee market.

Origin: El Salvador

Region: Los Pozos, San Ignacio, Chalatenango Province

Estate: Bosque Lya Estate

Altitude: 1500 meters

Variety: Pacamara

Processing: Black Honey Process

Coffee Growing Region

El Salvador is one of the smaller countries in Central America with a very dense population, known as the "Land of Volcanoes." The characteristic flavor of its coffee is excellent balance. Like Guatemala and Costa Rica, Salvadoran coffee is graded by altitude—the higher the altitude, the better the coffee. Salvadoran specialty coffee is concentrated in the volcanic rock regions of Santa Ana in the west and Chalatenango in the northwest, with growing areas ranging from 900-1500m in altitude. In recent years, almost all top ten winners in cupping competitions have come from these two regions.

The Chalatenango region is located in north-central El Salvador, situated in inaccessible volcanic mountain ranges with fertile soil that is extremely suitable for coffee cultivation. Most coffee from this region is SHB (Strictly Hard Bean), which refers to coffee beans grown above 1400 MASL.

This mountainous country has almost no large plains, so coffee farmers can benefit greatly from the high mountain altitudes and volcanic soil. Coffee trees thrive in this mineral-rich soil. The Pacamara variety has become increasingly popular in this region, featuring vibrant acidity and rich aromas, with strong disease resistance and productivity.

Bosque Lya Estate

The owner of Bosque Lya Estate is the renowned three-time COE (Cup of Excellence) champion from El Salvador, Ignacio Gutiérrez. In 2011, his estate Finca La Roxanita first participated in COE, winning the Presidential Award for first place with a washed Pacamara, breaking the record for the highest score ever that year. In 2013, his Finca San Nicolas won first place and the Presidential Award at COE with a honey-processed Pacamara. In 2015, his Bosque Lya Estate's honey-processed Pacamara earned him his third COE first place and Presidential Award.

Coffee Variety

The Pacamara variety is a hybrid of Pacas and Maragogipe (also known as Elephant Bean), combining the excellent flavor profile of Pacas with the large bean size of Maragogipe. Its name is also a combination of the two: Paca + mara = Pacamara.

Pacas was first discovered in El Salvador in 1949 as a Bourbon variety, while Maragogipe is a Typica variant first discovered in northern Brazil in 1870. In 1958, Salvadoran researchers played matchmaker between these two coffee varieties, creating Pacamara, which has a body that surpasses both Pacas and Maragogipe, but with low yield and large bean size.

The Pacamara variety combines the advantages of both Bourbon and Typica lineages. Its most distinctive characteristic is lively and intricate acidity, sometimes with biscuit aromas, sometimes with fruit notes, and excellent body and mouthfeel. The best quality Pacamara comes from El Salvador and Guatemala.

Why is Pacamara Described as Unpredictable?

Pacamara has a very wide flavor spectrum, with different roast levels producing completely different aromatic profiles that are difficult to predict. What's most impressive is its deep, penetrating acidity, much more complex than the superficial acidity of Maragogipe. It also has a sweet aroma similar to licorice or almonds, but sometimes instead of herbal notes, you'll find citrus, jasmine floral notes, fresh melon and fruit flavors, berry aromas, and black pepper notes, with excellent body. The range of Pacamara's acidity, sweetness, aroma, and bitterness—including uplifting bright notes and deep, mellow flavors—offers a completely different taste experience from the bright profile of Geisha, providing a novel palate experience.

How Did Pacamara Save El Salvador?

In the 2004 Cup of Excellence competition, El Salvador's Pacamara bravely took seventh place; in 2005, it rapidly captured second, fifth, sixth, and seventh places; in 2006, it again took second and third places; and in 2007, it swept the top four positions. From then on, El Salvador entered the Pacamara era. In the same year, Guatemala's winning coffee was also Pacamara, rivaling the fame of Panama's Geisha coffee at the time.

Green Bean Processing

The coffee acquired by FrontStreet Coffee uses black honey processing. Gutiérrez is dedicated to developing honey processing techniques. First, freshly harvested coffee cherries are sorted, selecting qualified red cherries to be put through a depulper to remove the skin. This step preserves almost all the pulp and mucilage. Then, the coffee beans with pulp are placed on raised drying beds for sun drying, during which the fermentation degree and humidity must be frequently monitored. The coffee beans are dried to a moisture content of about 11%. The entire drying process takes approximately 18-25 days. FrontStreet Coffee believes that black honey processed coffee beans have superior flavor, with abundant sweetness and aroma.

FrontStreet Coffee Roasting Recommendations

To highlight the rich, soft fruit acidity of Pacamara coffee beans and the sweetness brought by black honey processing, FrontStreet Coffee's roasters used a medium-light roast for this bean.

FrontStreet Coffee Cupping Report

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Recommendations

Dripper: V60 #01

Water Temperature: 90-91°C

Coffee Dose: 15g

Coffee-to-Water Ratio: 1:15

Grind Size: Medium-fine (80% pass-through rate with China standard #20 sieve)

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Method: Three-stage extraction. Use 30g of water for a 30-second bloom, then continue pouring with a small circular motion to 125g for the first stage. When the water level drops to just before exposing the coffee bed, continue pouring to 225g and stop. Wait until the water level drops to just before exposing the coffee bed, then remove the dripper. (Timing starts from the bloom) Total extraction time: 1'50".

Brewing Flavor: Refreshing citrus and orange acidity, sweet and tart grape notes, honey-like aftertaste.

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee on WeChat: ID: kaixinguoguo0925

Important Notice :

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Tel:020 38364473