88.32
GENERAL INFORMATION:
Region: Alotepec Mountain Range – Metapan, close to Cayahuanca on the slopes of the hill El Pital (highest peak in El Salvador ), Department of Chalatenango, jurisdiction of San Ignacio, Canton of Santa Rosa.
Year of Harvest:2013/2014
Month of Harvest: February
Name of the Farm: Finca Santa Rosa Lot 1 (Natural Process)
Elevation: 1,500.00 meters
Coordinates:
Coffee Mill Type: Own micro wet-mill in Finca La Esperanza (J. Raul Rivera S.A. de C.V.)
Blooms: A single bloom in the early days of April
CROP INFORMATION
Type of Soil: fertile alluvial clay loam
Temperature / average climate: Temperature between 10 and 23 °C
Average rainfall: 2,000 to 2,500 mm per year
Typesofshade: Coniferous Forest
Shade density: 30 - 40%
Crop Conditions: Traditional semi organic.
Flora and Fauna Types Present: Vegetation: coniferous native to the area and other; Animals: rabbits, deer, armadillos, reptiles, squirrels and others.
Fertilization Methods: Primarily using compost and bocashi as organic fertilizer, both produced on the farm, complemented with complete fertilizer applied to soil and foliar.
Applications of herbicides: The farm does NOT use herbicides or pesticides of any kind.
Environmental conservation practices: The entire property was reforested 6 years before establishing the coffee farm.
Processing Type: Honey
CULTURAL INFORMATION
Owner's Description:
J. Raul Rivera S.A. de C.V.
www.riveracoffee.com
History of the Farm:
It is a property of fifty-six hectares of extension that were reforested in the year 2000 with coniferous forest. Of the total extension twenty hectares were planted with coffee (This area is composed of four lots of five hectares each). The planted forest was used as shade for coffee, and this is its fourth year of production. The plantation was established with the mindset of producing a coffee that could win the first place in the Cup of Excellence. For this reason a genetically improved Pacamara variety was selected to start this farm, and only the plants that showed dominace of Maragogype were planted.
Location of the farm:
Department of Chalatenango, jurisdiction of San Ignacio, Canton Santa Rosa.
Work Practices:
Activities and cultural practices related to coffee, but oriented towards achieving the highest quality, among which may be indicated especially fertilization and harvesting.
Benefits or Social Projects:
The farm is the most important source of work in the sorroundings of Canton Santa Rosa and has prompted many residents to begin in the cultivation of coffee, thus contributing to the generation of work in the area. We also engage in social activities with those who surround the farm by celebrating Christmas with all the children taking them toys, piñatas, and sweets.
GENERAL INFORMATION:
Santa Rosa Coffee Farm Lot 1
Jorge Raul Rivera, President of J. Raul Rivera (1979-2013), started growing coffee in La Palma in 1979 at the beginning of El Salvador ’s civil war. The area of La Palma in Chalatenango was severely affected by the country's armed conflict and Jorge Raul struggled to start the first farm at that time.
Santa Rosa Farm was bought 24 years ago when coffee prices where at their prime. At that time it was just land with a few naturally grown pine trees, and there was no access to the actual farm. Jorge Raul envisioned the transformation of this plot of land into a coffee farm. Once the infrastructure to gain access was finished, coffee prices hit a major crisis, which made him and his brother, Jose Roberto Rivera, rethink what to do with the farm. At that time, the government was promoting forestry plantations and so the Rivera brothers decided it would be more feasible to establish a pine tree plantation rather than a coffee plantation due to the coffee's current pricing at that time.
In the year 2002, Jorge Raul and his brother Jose Roberto became aware of the Cup of Excellence. Jorge Raul and his brother agreed that Santa Rosa would be planted with Pacamara variety in 2003 utilizing the previously planted pine tree as shade, their only purpose: winning the Cup of Excellence. Unfortunately, Jorge Raul Rivera passed away in May 2013; ironically the month when the coffee flower normally opens induced by the country's first rains. It was until The Cup of Excellence of 2014 that Santa Rosa lot 2 won first place in the Cup of Excellence, with a honey process. It was the first time lot number 2(Located at 1500 meter over sea level) competed in the cup of excellence because lot number 1 had always been the best lot within the farm (Located at the highest point of the farm 1600 meters above sea level and the most abundant sun hours). This lot along with the rest of the farm was fertilized and harvested following the guidelines to produce a Gourmet coffee. The milling process was carried out in a nearby farm owned by the same company. It was also the first time the honey process was utilized in any of the lots in Santa Rosa; Jorge Raul Rivera’s son insisted that this method would improve all the qualitative attributes of the coffee. This year was the first time we compete with naturals and the lot made it to 8th place. We hope to continue delivering good coffees for COE.
This farm is the legacy in coffee knowledge of a Jorge Raul Rivera one of the owners (1938-2013). He was not only a professor at the University of El Salvador , and taught for 10 years coffee cultivation and processing, but has worked in the area since 1978. He also pioneered the establishment of the crop in the north of the country (Chalatenango).
In the future our goal is to continue working closely as currently done, especially focusing in improving the fertilization programs and milling process until the quality of our coffee becomes the standard for the fist place of the Cup of Excellence.
MILLING INFORMATION:
Milling: Mechanic
Type of Process: Natural
Dry Type: Sun dried in African Beds
Water treatment: No Water utilized in this process
| Rank | 8 |
|---|---|
| Farm Name | Santa Rosa 1 |
| Farmer/Rep. | J. Raul Rivera S.A. de C.V. |
| Country | El Salvador |
| Year | 2015 |
| Size (30kg boxes) | 11 |
| City | Chalatenango |
| Region | La Palma |
| Program | El Salvador 2015 |
| Month | - |
| Aroma/Flavor | Honey, floral, cherry, vanilla, chocolate, orange, honey, bitter sweet dark chocolate, vanilla, spice, jasmine, perfume, strawberry, sugar cane, caramel, cedar, tobacco, mango, pineapple, praline, orange blossom, lemon, passion fruit, grape, apricot, pinot noir |
| Acidity | Citric, bright, complex, transparent, malic |
| Other | Super creamy, silky, smooth, velvety, buttery, juicy, delicate, elegant light body, balanced |
| Processing system | Natural |
| Variety | Pacamara |
| Farm Size | - |
| Auction Lot Size (lbs.) | 760 |
| High bid | 14.95 |
| Total value | 11362 |
| High bidders | WATARU for coffee beans ROCOCO |