El Retiro - El Salvador 2006 Verified listing

Overview

This farm was acquired in 1927 by the Pacas family. Nowadays is in the hands of a 4th generation of coffee growers who believe that winning COE this year is due to the dedication of everyone involved in carrying out every cultural practices in the farm throughout this year. For this year’s competition, they selected after cupping a specific lot of 4 hectares called “Loma China” or “Chinese Hill” which has a density of 2,680 coffee tree/manzana and 100 shade trees/manzana. They performed a 2 day harvest in January paying 40% more than the legal wage. The ending result was 99.7% fully ripen cherries. Their farm is certified with ISO 9001-2000 allowing them to keep traceability, control points and perform effective actions in order to improve quality. These farmers employ 24 people permanently and 105 during picking season. They also provide medical care for their workers. The average rain falls is 2,600 mm. Part of the shade canopy include tree varieties such as: Balsam, Ingas, etc. The farm is home to many different types of animals and flowers such as. Squirrels, armadillos, wild cats and quails. This coffee lot was processed under the semi-washed method which is a process that has been mastered at the Vivagua Mill for many years. By keeping part of the mucilage after depulping the coffee and spreading immediately for drying into the clay patios they create a different flavour profile for this wonderful coffee.

Other Statistics

Average Annual Rainfall: 2,600 mm
Average Temperature: 20ºC
Type of Soil: Sandy Loam
Type of Shade: Mainly Ingas, Balsam, liquidambar, cedar, ceiba, etc.
Annual Production: 660 bags (60kg)
Mill and company where lot was process: Beneficio Vivagua, Export Pacas S.A. de C.V.
Latitude: N13° 53 53.2
Longitude: W89° 38 47.9