Coffee Advent Calendar Day 21: El Salvador, SL28
Coffee Advent Calendar: Finca Argentina, SL28
NOTES: Honeydew melon, Honey, Jasmine
ROAST: Medium
Finca Argentina is our family’s 70-acre farm in the Apaneca region of El Salvador—historically the first area in the country where coffee was introduced more than 175 years ago. Today, Apaneca remains El Salvador’s most important coffee-growing region, defined by rich volcanic soil, ideal altitude, and a climate that produces delicate, complex, and beautifully balanced coffees.
Because we manage our own farm, we’re able to reserve some of our best nano-lots each year to share with our customers. This lot is from 1,200 trees of the SL28 cultivar. The story behind this lot goes back to 2010. I was debating with a fellow roaster and good friend from the UK about a cultivar found in El Salvador called "Kenya". We weren’t sure what it really was, so he sent me seeds of SL28 from Kenya and I got some seeds of this "Kenya" variety from El Salvador. We planted them side-by-side and after a few years we were able to ascertain that indeed this mysterious Kenya cultivar from El Salvador was SL28. SL28 is among the most well-known and well-regarded varieties of Africa. It spread from Kenya, where it was originally selected in the 1930s, to other parts of Africa and Latin America. Its presence in El Salvador is rare.
Over the years, our SL28 coffee has always tasted amazing and in fact, it was my favourite coffee in 2024. It has a low to medium acidity, wrapped in a velvety and delicate body that bring out notes of honeydew melon, honey and jasmine.
- Region: Apaneca, Ahuachapan
- Farm / Plot: Argentina, Guachipelin
- Producer: Mauricio Martinez (our dad!)
- Altitude: 1,250 masl
- Varietals: SL28
- Process: Natural
