Mexico Veracruz Finca La Laja
Grown in the mountain cloud forests of Veracruz, this coffee is tailor made for cool fall mornings. It's gently bright with a full body, creamy texture and a buttery yet clean finish. Look for notes of brown sugar, toffee, cashew and lemon meringue. A real crowd pleaser!
High in the Central Mountains of Veracruz, you’ll find Finca La Laja nestled among the pine and oak cloud forests. I don’t know if it’s just that imagery or not, but this coffee really feels perfect as an early morning first cup of the day. It’s got me in the mood for foggy fall mornings! The front end of the cup has gentle citrus brightness and is slightly sweet. The body is nice and full with a creamy texture and a buttery finish that’s lingering yet clean. In our cups we noted brown sugar, toffee, cashew butter and lemon meringue with a subdued floral undertone. A lovely cup that’s sure to be a crowd pleaser!
Reminder! This coffee is raw, you must roast it before brewing
Arrival Date: August 23, 2024; Harvest year: 2024, Packed in Ecotact
Acidity & Brightness: Gentle brightness and fairly sweet
Balance & Finish: Fairly balanced with a buttery yet clean finish
Body & Texture: Full body and creamy texture
Flavors: Brown sugar, toffee, cashew butter and lemon meringue
Grade: HG-EP, grown at 1130 to 1250 masl
Processing: Fully washed
Grower: Finca La Laja
Region: Tlaltetela, Veracruz, Mexico
Varietals: Caturra & Garnica
Recommended Roast Range: City+ to Full City+ (light-medium to medium-dark)
We like this coffee best at Full City (Medium), or after 1st crack has trailed off but before 2nd crack begins. Lighter roasts (during the later part of 1st crack) will exhibit more pronounced florals and citrus. Taking the roast darker (the first snaps of 2nd crack) will give you a bit more body with a focus on toffee and brown sugar at the expense of brightness. Note this coffee, like most coffee from Mexico, is grown just a little lower than coffee from Central and South America. This makes the beans a little more heat sensitive, so if you find your roast taking off or going too dark, back off on the heat just a hair about midway through the roast. A small adjustment is usually all you’ll need if any at all. Don’t back off the heat too much or you’ll stall!
Café La Laja - “Finca La Laja is located in the La Laja community, municipality of Tlaltetela, Veracruz, Mexico, with an altitude of 1130 to 1250 meters above sea level. Found in the Central Mountainous area of the state of Veracruz, it’s irrigated by a network of small tributary rivers of the La Antigua River. The local vegetation stands out for having cloud forests of pine and oak mountains towards the upper parts and with the tropical deciduous forest towards the lower parts.
Finca La Laja is shade-grown with predominant varieties of caturra and garnica with plantations of 2000 to 2500 shrubs per hectare. Since 1980, when the "La Laja" property was acquired, a better production has been sought each harvest by implementing the traditional selective method (sowing, fertilization and pruning) and thus obtaining a cup of the highest quality as well as experimenting with different processes such as drying in its own honey, drying with its fruit, washing and semi-washing.
