Hits: 46
Bean: SL28, washed
Shop: Has Bean Coffee, United Kingdom
Finca Las Brumas: Background information.
Finca Las Brumas is a farm that has been in the Menéndez Argüello family for four generations. The farm is located an hours drive from the City of Santa Ana and has about 60 hectares on which they cultivate coffee. The farm is located at an altitude between 1,450 to 1,700 meters and is formed by multitude of volcanic eruptions of the Ilamatepec and Izalco. It is this location that makes Finca Las Brumas such a wonderful place. This farm has its own microclimate that is created by the surrounding Santa Ana Volcano, Cerro Verde Volcano and Izalco Volcano. The amount of daylight (and the fact that the farm didn’t destroy its original flora and fauna) creates a optimal environment for the coffee trees to grow. On the farm you will find trees such as the Ingas, zorrillo, cypress, cedrillo and belloto trees, a huge diversity that helps to produce a fertile terroir for the coffee.
Finca Las Brumas: Opening the package
I tear open the package and see that there is an airtight zip-lock mechanism inside the package. This is good since you don’t want your coffee to be exposed to oxygen after opening. I sniff in the scent and a sweet chocolate and cookie comes forth. It is pleasant on the nose. I bite down on the SL28 and notice how softly roasted it is. There is no sourness to this bean, just a mellow sweetness that keeps at a constant.
It is time to grind this coffee and so I take a solid 20 grams. Normally I waste about 40 grams of coffee to get the perfect grind-setting, but this time it’s closer to 70 grams. The reason was that I had to go in the coarser espresso-range for this bean. When the grinding was done I noticed a fruity sweet scent with a little cookie-like effect on the side. Time to brew!
Finca Las Brumas: The tasting
After pulling several shots, I found that my ideal dosage was 16.5 grams/25 seconds. When I smell the brew the first thing I notice is the citric smell; a chocolate/caramel sweetness and sour-orange kind of smell. This promises a complex coffee by the smell alone. I take a sip and let it rest on my tongue for a split second before swirling the coffee round in my mouth. This coffee brings a juicy body and a citric acidity that can’t be missed on the front of your tongue. While slurping the oxygen inside the chocolate and orange flavours come forth and washes over your pallet together with something incredibly good!
Finca Las Brumas: Special note
I already mentioned that this could be a complex coffee didn’t I? Well here it is! I will try to explain to you what it is that you are experiencing. Think of drinking a full bodied red wine such as a Shiraz or a Pinotage. (In my case a South African Cappuccino Pinotage, Barista Pinotage, The Grinder, Chocolate Block or Diemersfontein). The moment you swallow the wine, it will flow passed all your tasting-buds on your tongue. This will create a sensation that activates all the senses. You will taste coffee, wine, chocolate and vanilla all at once. It wont be there for a long period of time; it’s a second-long flash. Take another sip and focus on this sensation, savour it! It is as if you’re swallowing a mouthful of red wine. Just amazing! This is what coffee should do; surprise people. The aftertaste is magnificent as it keeps coming back each time you breathe back through your closed mouth: red wine and orange.
Finca Las Brumas: The verdict.
When I am enthusiastic about a coffee, you will notice it immediately. This is one of these coffee’s. Finca Las Brumas will surprise you in a way only few coffee’s can do. It’s not that the scent in the package or the scent of the brew is so unique, it’s the red wine sensation that makes you want to drink it over and over again. The acidity is spot-on together with the juicy texture of the acidity. The aftertaste is great and complex nature of the coffee will keep you occupied during the tasting. It’s too bad I did not get to taste Dale Harris’ winning coffee, but this is a coffee you don’t want to miss out on either. Thank you Has Bean Coffee!
Has Bean has told me that they ship their coffee internationally to Japan, the USA and Europe and also have a subscription-based coffee line. Click on this link to go to their website.