History of Coffee in El Salvador
Coffee was first introduced to El Salvador from the Caribbean as a garden crop in the mid-18th century but did not gain a commercial production foothold until 1850’s because indigo, was easier to grow and more profitable.
At one time, El Salvador was one of the largest producers of commercial coffees in the Americas. Today, with a focus on quality over quantity, 70% of coffee from El Salvador is sold at a premium.
Supporting Small Farmers
The Santa Leticia farm has been in the family of the owner Ricardo since 1865.
As a young man, Ricardo studied in New York and then enlisted in the army. When he came back to El Salvador he fell in love with coffee and has dedicated his life to producing specialty coffees ever since.
While working on the farm in 1964, he discovered an Archeological site that dates to 600 B.C. and includes a multitude of indigenous artefacts which have been carefully excavated and preserved.
Santa Leticia is surrounded by such beautiful views of volcanoes, that he decided to expand into agro-tourism, and to build and run a boutique hotel which is right in the middle of the farm.
The Art of Production
Santa Leticia is located in a beautiful valley, at an altitude that ranges from 1,200 to 1,750 masl. It is surrounded by colourful towns that form part of the Ilamatepec mountain chain, which is considered to be one of the country’s best areas for cultivating coffee.
This lot was naturally processed. Selectively handpicked cherries are floated to sort by density. The prime cherries are then dried on a combination of patio and raised bed for an average of 20 days. Its flavour profile is: citrus, blackcurrant candy, and toffee.
We hope you will enjoy this fine coffee as much as we do. Click here to order yours.