El Salvador Finca el Gobiado Orange Bourbon Natural

This is a rare find: a single farm, single varietal coffee! This lot is entirely of the Orange Bourbon varietal and natural processed to show the best it has to offer. Medium to full bodied with a silky texture, look for complex notes of white peach, vanilla, dried orange and dark chocolate with an herbaceous undertone.

Arrival Date: November 12th, 2021

Acidity & Brightness: Fairly mild acidity, gently sweet

Balance & Finish: Complex, lingering savory finish

Body & Texture: Medium to full bodied with a silky texture

Flavor Traits: White peach, vanilla, dark chocolate and dried orange

Grade: SHG (Strictly high Grown), grown at 1300 masl

Processing: Natural (Dry) processed

Grower: Finca el Gobiado

Region: Concepción de Ataco, Ahuachapán

Variety: Orange Bourbon

Roasting: As with most natural processed coffees, we prefer this one in the light to medium range (City to Full City). Start around City+ by pulling the roast about 1 to 1.5 minutes after first crack. Avoid roasts darker than Full City+ (the very beginning of 2nd crack) or you'll lose all the sweetness this coffee has to offer.

Reminder: This is raw coffee. You have to roast it before brewing.

Review: "The Alfaro family has been cultivating coffee for four generations on the 30-acre farm. This bourbon varietal is meticulously picked and sorted, and then placed on raised beds and turned regularly for more than 20 days to ensure even drying. The Alfaro family has discovered through years of experience that their bourbon varietal responds exceptionally well to being processed naturally and the method also saves a tremendous amount of water resources, which is good for the environment." - Royal Coffee

It's really rare for us to get single varietals like a bourbon only, but to get an orange bourbon only is exceptionally rare. For a quick overview: Bourbon is perhaps the most famous coffee cultivar, having been imported from Yemen to Bourbon Island (now called La Réunion, located east of Madagascar) and eventually landing in the Americas in the mid 1800s. It's revered for it's consistent quality and has fathered other famous varieties including caturra and catuai. Bourbon has several genetic offshoots characterized by the color of the ripe coffee cherries with red being the most well known.

As the name implies, orange bourbon coffee cherries are bright orange when fully ripe and are grown almost exclusively in El Salvador. The Alfaro family prides themselves on their cultivation of this storied varietal. As mentioned previously, they natural processing brings out the best orange bourbon has to offer and we couldn't agree more! Maybe it's purely the power of suggestion, but I'd swear I get hints of dried orange in the cup...what's definitely there is a complex blend of flavors including white peach, vanilla and dark chocolate with a savory, herbaceous undertone. Sun dried tomatoes? It sounds wrong but it's oh so right. The body is medium to full with a fairly mild acidity and a lingering savory finish. You're gonna wanna try this one.