Central American
Guatemala Santa Rosa
Guatemala Santa Rosa
Guatemala has many coffee producing regions that have gained a positive and well known reputation in the industry. This region known as the Santa Rosa valley is located in the South Central area of Guatemala. It is ideal for coffee cultivation due to rich soil from surrounding volcanoes. The climate allows the coffee to mature slowly, which is said to concentrate the coffee beans flavors. The coffee grown in the Santa Rosa region often boasts a balanced cup with chocolate notes.
This lot was processed at the Sabanetas Estate mill, but the coffee was grown by surrounding villagers and brought in to the mill. When I roast it 10 seconds past the first snap of the 2nd cracks, I get a really smooth, sweet, cherry, chocolate flavor, and it is very pleasant to drink. There's a little bit of a tangy fruit note that I'm not usually expecting from Guatemala, but it's really good coffee. Nice body, nice aroma, nice aftertaste, good chocolate notes. I wouldn't roast it much darker than this as it starts to turn bitter, but you can get away with roasting it a few degrees lighter and pulling out more flavors that start to taste fruity and less chocolatey (cherry, citrus).
US Arrival March 2023