87.06
Finca Miravalle is located in the fertile foothills of El Salvador ’s Santa Ana volcano, at an average altitude of 1,650 metres above sea level. Gracefully located “Palo de Campana”, Miravalle farm thrives amongst a breath-taking view, clim ate, rainfall and continued meticulous care from its owners. This small farm is owned and managed by Jaime Ernesto Riera Menendez, whose family has been producing coffee in El Salvador for several generations
Jaime initially inherited the farm from his mother, Marta Dolores MenéndezdeRieraafew years ago,and together they still supervise all the work.
Some 10 hectares of the farm are planted out with a mix of Bourbón and Pacas variety trees, which are grown in the shade of native Ingas, Cipres and Gravileo species. The coffee is selectively handpicked when fully ripe, then fully washed and dried in the sun.
Some of the cultural practices they develop at the farm are the continuous pruning of the coffee and shade trees, weed control, replanting and renewing the farm, all of this work using traditional methods. Due to its high altitude Miravalle’s coffee berries ripen slowly. This year’s harvest was not picked until February. Throughout the year only 2 people live at the farm,the manager,Luis Flores and his wife.During harvest Finca Miravalle employs around 70 selected pickers from the surrounding areas. Finding workers around this area is very difficult because many people migrated to the lower plains after Santa Ana’s eruption in 2005. As a result Miravalle pay their pickers almost 40% above the minimum wage.
Jaime thinks the reason why his farm was awarded 13th place in the Cup of Excellence this year is the excellent quality of the Bourbón variety, also its altitude and location. He is highly motivated to keep up with the optimum harvest and sorting processes to improve the quality each year. He thinks the key to this is motivating the people that work on the farm, teaching them the importance of their role, and improving the benefits for everyone involved.
Doctor Jaime Riera Menéndez is the owner of Miralvalle farm and is the person in charge of managing and working the farm. His coffee tradition comes from 3 generations: he is a gastroenterological M.D. whose parents made him feel the love for coffee cultura.
Miralvalle Farm is located at Ilamatec mountain range, at an altitude of 1650 masl, closet to Santa Ana volcano.
Gracefully located at “Palo de Campana” - almost at the top of the Santa Ana volcano - Miralvalle farm enjoys a breath-taking view, good climate, rainfall, and the care of her owner.
Jaime Riera is a gastroenterologist and also a coffee producer. He inherited this farm from his mother, Marta Dolores Menéndez de Riera, a few years ago, and together they still supervise all the work. This farm was bought by his late father, Amadeo Riera y Solsona, more than 20 years ago.
Some of the cultural practices they develop at the farm include the continuous pruning of the coffee and shade trees, weed control, and replanting and renewing the farm. They use traditional methods for all of this work. Also, the farm ripens slowly because of Miralvalle's high altitude. This year they had to wait until February, when the farm had evenly ripened, to harvest appropriately.
Finding workers around this area is very difficult because people migrated to the lower parts after the eruption of the Santa Ana volcano in 2005. Only 2 people live at the farm; the manager Luis Flores, and his wife. However, for the harvest they employ around 70 selected pickers from the surrounding areas and pay them almost 40% above the legal wage.
Jaime thinks the reason the farm got an award this year is the excellent quality of the Bourbón variety; also, its altitude and location. He is highly motivated to keep up with the optimum harvest and sorting processes to improve the quality each year.He thinks the key to this is motivating the people that work the farm, teaching them the importance of their role, and improving the benefits for everyone involved.
In the cup you get a rush of tropical fruit, and a super clean mouthfeel with floral notes and hints of jasmine. A beautiful cup with a lingering aftertaste.
Farm: Miravalle
Farmer: Jaime Ernesto Riera Menendez
City: Santa Ana
Region: Santa Ana
Country: El Salvador Altitude: 1650masl
Variety: Bourbón
Rank | 13 |
---|---|
Farm Name | Miravalle (2015) |
Farmer/Rep. | Jaime Ernesto Riera Menendez |
Country | El Salvador |
Year | 2015 |
Size (30kg boxes) | 28 |
City | Santa Ana |
Region | Santa Ana |
Program | El Salvador 2015 |
Month | - |
Aroma/Flavor | Caramel, honey, vanilla, pear, cranberry, rose, cinnamon, chocolate, sugar cane, cherry, cedar, spicy, pineapple, floral, perfume, dark chocolate, cedar, grand marnier, malt, grapefruit, mango, red currant, green apple, tobacco, spice |
Acidity | Citric, bright, crisp, complex, tartaric, orange, malic, lemon |
Other | Buttery, silky, velvety, round, creamy, smooth, transparent, just a great coffee with strong tropical fruit flavour, bright acidity and extremely clean |
Processing system | Washed |
Farm Size | - |
Auction Lot Size (lbs.) | 1852 |
High bid | 8.10 |
Total value | 15001.2 |
High bidders | 32cup (BELGIUM) // Cantata, Dutch Barista, Viva Sara, Kaffitar, 24GRAD, Balirny, Knopes, Food Service // Torr. Caffe Gourmet (ITALY) |