Mexican HG Chipas organic 'El Chorro'

My first Mexican coffee – and most interesting it is!

Background
This coffee is produced on a single estate named ‘El Chorro’, located in the far south of Mexico in the Chiappas region, by the border of Guatemala (and it does have characteristics similar to Guatemalan coffee). The name of the estate comes from the number of streams running through the farm. This estate is situated on the mountain range Sierra Madre Chiapas at an altitude of 1000 meters.
The estate has been planted out since the start of the 20th century and so rich in history as well as taste.
The crop is grown under heavy shade, and is certified Shade Grown since 2002. During the crop cycle 2003-04 the plantation was certified as Bird Friendly Coffee by the Smithonian Migratory Bird Center, due to the presence of more than one hundred bird varieties on the farm.
The total output of the farm is only about 2000 bags per year.

The coffee is wet processed, and once the parchment has reached the ideal moisture content, it will be bagged and trucked to the company’s own mill in Tapachula, about 60 kilometres away. The coffee is carefully stored in certified warehouses, still in parchment until it is sold. When the order is processed, the parchment is carefully milled, sorted and classified for export.

Character
I’ve only done a quick sample roast at time of writing (lightish – ‘city’ roast level), and tasted twice, a day apart since that roast.
There is a delicacy that I find hard to pin down (my lack of cupping expertise, not a fault of the bean!). But here’s what I have found so far:

Dry Aroma: Sweet, maybe malty, and some mild nuttiness (not sure what nut!)
Wet Aroma: Dark choc or cocoa and citrus.

In the cup:
Medium acidity, some tingling on the front palate (but maybe just very fresh?)
Body is light, but still very much present.
Flavours: Lovely sweet, delicate lemon tones. Maybe some other citrus hints too.
Mouthfeel is warm, almost buttery but not quite the right term. Love the tingle on the front!
Aftertaste lingers nicely, but quite delicate.

The surprise to me was that I was expecting a fairly bland bean, but this has enough flavour and character to hold up very nicely.

It isn’t an (RFA)Rainforest Alliance) coffee, but it does tick some very good boxes: certified organic, certified bird-friendly, family-owned estate, their own milling facility, good control over the processing right up to the shipping.

Very good coffee.

Posted: 17 November 08
Filed under: |

Now It's Your Turn

Textile Help
HTML not permitted

Coffea Arabica