After a week in El SalvadorEl Salvador coffee had an undeservingly poor reputation for years, marred mostly by the inability to deliver coffee of high quality in an unstable political climate. Unfortunately, agriculture... ...more, I flew over to Costa RicaCosta Rican coffee is typically very clean, sweet, with lots of floral accents. hey are prized for their high notes: bright citrus or berry-like flavors in the acidity,... ...more to meet up with Maria and Ben – a rare family coffee trip in one of the best countries for such a thing! We are headed to PanamaPanama coffee ranges from medium quality lower altitude farms to those at 1600 - 1800 meters centered in the area of Boquete in the Chirqui district near the... ...more in the morning, and I will be cuppingCupping is a method of tasting coffee by steeping grounds in separate cups for discrete amounts of ground coffee, to reveal good flavors and defects to their fullest.... ...more in the competition.
The 4 Barrel-ers are here too, Jeremy, his wife, Laura and son, Rogan, along with Phil Anacker, and we will all head to Panama, with our friend Francisco Mena. The past few days here have been nice. The rains have definitely started which helps trigger the coffee flowers to bloom.
And by the looks of the flowering, next year should be a much bigger (and easier to harvest) crop than the one being processed now.
But on the cupping table the shipping samples of our lots have been really stellar. And with the special packaging we are doing they should arrive in great condition (about 3 weeks or so from this writing).
