Finca Malacara B is a direct trade coffee from Chantuc, one of Bold Bean’s producing partners in El Salvador. During their visit with the Dumont family this past spring they cupped many great coffees and witnessed the detailed processes that go into creating this outstanding coffee.
The history of Malacara dates back to the year 1888, when Don Rafael Alvarez Lalinde inherited a property in the slopes of the Santa Ana volcano from Rosa Valle, wife to his late brother, Francisco Lalinde. He and his 13th son, Samuel, began cultivating coffee in 1925. Soon Malacara became known as one of the largest farms in the Santa Ana volcano region.
Originally it was called Medellin, but it acquired the peculiar name of Malacara, or Bad Face, from a legendary character that lived in the area with the same nickname. In 1995, the farm was divided in three lots, between Samuel, Emma and Arturo Alvarez Meza, Samuel’s children. Malacara “B” stayed in the hands of Emma Alvarez, now a property of Chantuc.*
Welcome to my Table, here in the corner of this cafe. Today we’re sipping the El Salvador Finca Malacara B, from Bold Bean Coffee Roasters in Jacksonville, Florida. Feel free to pull up a chair.
THEDETAILS:
region: Canton Montañita, Santa Ana, El Salvador
farm: Finca Malacara
producer: smallholder farmers
association: Roberto Dumont
elevation: 1500 – 1600 meters above sea level
cultivars: Red, Orange, Yellow Bourbon
process: fully washed, patio dried
certifications: standard
CUPPINGNOTES:
The aroma of this El Salvador Finca Malacara B is sweet, fragrant, and elegant; but it’s also pretty mellow. Beautiful scents of chocolate, white wine, and honeysuckle, but, as beautiful as they are, these scents are all subdued.
Taking my first few sips of the cup immediately post-brew, I am struck at how big this coffee is considering the grace and elegance of its aroma. These flavors up front aren’t graceful and elegant—they’re big and bawdy notes of chocolate ganache, cocoa powder, molasses, vanilla, and panela, and they contribute to a big, thick, sticky molasses-like texture that coats the tongue.
As the cup cools, though, the profile totally flips on itself. Those big flavors fade into the background, allowing beautifully light, bright, and lively fruit tones – cherry, peach, nectarine, apricot – to shine in the spotlight. Perhaps “shine” isn’t the appropriate verb, though; these notes absolutely sparkle in the limelight – this effervescent white grape acidity does, especially – and each sip finishes crisply and cleanly.
Medium body; molasses mouthfeel; tartaric acidity; clean finish.
FINALTHOUGHTS:
Bold Bean Coffee’s El Salvador Finca Malacara B is a coffee that takes its consumer on a fascinatingly tasty voyage from the very first caramelized sugary sip to the very last sparkling fruity sip. It is a complex coffee that shifts and evolves over its lifespan, but remains delicious throughout. While the cup starts out fairly full-bodied—with a thick, lazy molasses texture—it ends lightly, crisply, and with a sparkling effervescent finish.
*content provided by Bold Bean Coffee Roasters
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Andrew is a husband, father, dog lover, craft beverage enthusiast, content creator, and niche market Internet celebrity. Formerly of A Table in the Corner of the Cafe and The Pulitzer Project and contributor to Barista Magazine and Mental Floss, he’s been writing on the Internet for years.