Guatemala Finca La Bolsa

Tasting Notes: Milk chocolate, toasted almond, plum jam.

In the cup

This is a rich, sweet coffee.  At the forefront are milk chocolate and toasted almond, supported by a tongue-coating syrupy body.  As the cup cools, jammy fruit notes emerge, reminiscent of plum and Concord grape. What impresses us most about this coffee is how clean and clear the flavors are.  With honey process coffees, you often sacrifice clarity for body and sweetness.  That is not the case here and we're sure that you'll love every sip!

For espresso lovers, this coffee has a lot to offer.  We pulled really nice shots at standard parameters (17g dry coffee : 34g espresso : 26 seconds) on our lab setup (La Marzocco Linea Mini + Mahlkonig X54 grinder).  The plum jam note comes through really strongly on espresso, backed rich dark chocolate and sweet toffee tones.

Origin

Established in 1958 and cared for by the Vides family, Finca La Bolsa is located in Guatemala's most famous coffee-growing region, Huehuetenango.  The area's cool mountain temperatures and limestone-rich soils provide ideal conditions for slow cherry maturation.  Combined with generations of expertise, the terroir imparts depth, sweetness, and complexity.

This particular lot was produced using the black honey process, where much of the coffee's fruit pulp is intentionally left on the seed during the drying stage.  This processing technique tends to increase body and complexity in the cup as a result of some of the sugars and aromatic compounds from the pulp penetrating into the seed.

Producer

Finca La Bolsa was founded in 1958 by Dr. Jorge Vides.  The farm is now managed by 2nd and 3rd generation farmers Maria Elena and Renardo Ovalle Vides.