Las Nubes

Variety: Yellow Catuai

Processing: Black Honey

Origin: Ojos de Agua, El Salvador

Producers: Fernando Gutierrez

Altitude: 1400M

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We're stoked to have this 'black honey' lot roasting for the club! Honey processing is essentially a middle-ground between fully washed coffees and natural coffees. The skin of the coffee cherry is removed along with some degree of mucilage (the "fruit" part of the cherry that surrounds the coffee bean). The "color" of the honey refers to the amount of fermentation the cherries undergo. White honey means removing most of the mucilage and fermenting the coffee the least, working up through yellow and red to black, which removes the least mucilage and ferments the coffee the most. How often the coffees are turned during drying can also influence the overall fermentation - which is all to say that honey processing is a complicated method with tons of variables to monitor!

When honey processing goes well as it has here, you're in for a delicious cup of coffee. We're tasting juicy and tart cherry notes, along with a solid sugary sweetness and some peachy stone fruit qualities as well. The folks at Las Cruces mill in El Salvador are experts at honey processing, and it's lots like Las Nubes that show just how big the payoff for all the added effort can be. Cheers!