OUR OFFERINGS - FINCA MATALAPA, EL SALVADOR

Location:  La Libertad
Varietal:  Bourbon, Pacas
Altitude:  1250 m
Harvest:  December - March

Characteristics

Acidity:  Gentle, lime
Flavor:  Apples, green figs
Finish:  Clean, soft

Tasting Notes

Distinct notes of fresh apple start off the cup, just before slipping into a soft fudge body dotted with gentle lime acidity. Reflective, clean, and articulate, this coffee finishes as delicately as it begins with candied caramel and green fig.

Geoff Watts' Notes

Victoria Dalton-Diaz at the entrance to Finca Matalapa.

Matalapa is a farm that has always held a bit of a fascination for me. Located in the La Cumbre mountain ranges just south of the capital, it enjoys a distinctly different climate than the more well-known coffee region of Santa Ana. The farm faces the Pacific Ocean and receives a good deal of moisture and occasionally powerful winds that surely influence the character of the coffee.

Its name is from the Nahuat language (of Aztec origin, still spoken in El Salvador and Central Mexico) and could be loosely translated as “land where rivers are born”. A trip to the farm makes it clear where this came from: there are twenty-one fresh water springs on the land that feed into the El Zote River.

The farm was originally planted in 1913 by Doña Fidelia Lima. Today it is owned and operated by her great-granddaughter, Victoria Dalton-Diaz. It is a place of great beauty, lush with vegetation and more than forty species of shade trees bordered by tropical forest that is home to a variety of flora, fauna, and birds.

Nearby, just outside of the town of Jayaque, is a wet mill called Beneficio El Paraiso, which was constructed by Doña Fidelia in the early 1900’s. It is here that all of the coffees from Matalapa are de-pulped, fermented, washed, and dried.  El Paraiso exudes history and tradition and the original milling equipment is still there, powered by a steam engine with belt-driven gears. The boiler is heated with coffee seed parchment and prunings from the coffee trees, conserving energy by dramatically reducing the need for other fuels.

Over the last couple of years Vickie has done a lot of work restoring the mill and augmenting the original systems with some newer equipment to increase efficiency and reduce the already low environmental footprint. It is a gorgeous place to visit, and walking around there one cannot help but be transported to a time long past.

I originally met Vickie after purchasing a coffee (Finca Marina) in the first ever Cup of Excellence in El Salvador. The coffee had been milled at El Paraiso, and it was the first time I’d ever been to that part of the country. Today, the coffee continues to move forward in quality as a result of the renewed enthusiasm and vigor that Vickie and her husband Francisco have been injecting into both the farm and the mill.

I asked Vickie to recall her impression of how we got acquainted, and this is what she had to say:

“I first met Geoff in January of 2004 in Jayaque. We had been in contact by phone after the 2003 COE in El Salvador after Geoff purchased a lot from a farm neighboring Matalapa. Our first encounter was eagerly anticipated and proved to be the beginning of a productive and instructive relationship… in addition to finding a friend in Geoff!

Our first stop was at the Matalapa farm at 1250 meters, where we inspected the area from which the COE winner had been produced. We reviewed the rest of the farm, noting the need to separate and evaluate lots by day of harvesting so as to identify each area’s particular characteristics. From there we moved back down to Beneficio el Paraiso to cup some coffee from the new crop, which also proved to be a fascinating lesson on the subtleties and flavors of the various coffees.

I remember hearing Geoff describing the different sensations: notes of jasmine, sweet, chocolate flavor, brilliant citrus acidity. This level of perception was new and it encouraged us to produce truly remarkable coffee, an aim shared by Intelligentsia. Over the years we have built up a solid business relationship. Innovations in processing and renovating the beneficio, selective harvesting and sustainable agricultural practices have been inspired by Intelligentsia’s superior standards.”

Although Matalapa has appeared in our Los Inmortales in past years, this marks the first time we are featuring the farm on its own… and it won’t be the last. I am hoping to reincorporate the coffees of Matalapa into the Los Inmortales mark in future years and there are rumors of an extraordinary Matalapa Micro-Lot making an appearance on our offering sheet later this year.

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This coffee is no longer available.