GCS | Guatemala Coban San Lorenzo
Balanced Profile | Light-medium roast
Tasting Notes: Ginger, Pineapple, Brown Sugar
IT ALL STARTS AT THE COFFEE FARM
This coffee was grown on Finca San Lorenzo, owned by the Valdés family - Luis Valdés II and his son Luis III (who goes by Wincho) are pictured above. Located near the town of San Cristobal Verapaz in the Cobán region of central Guatemala, this region gets pretty much constant rain. This causes the flowering of the coffee trees to be very staggered: there are as many as nine flowerings per year! After the tree flowers, the fruit grows - and inside, the coffee seeds (what we know as "beans") develop!
When Finca San Lorenzo was first purchased, there was only one small plot of land dedicated to coffee coffee. Today, the family has developed 20 different lots of coffee, covering 110 hectares (272 acres) of the farm. The remaining 35 hectares (86 acres) are under forest cover.
By improving cultivation, processing cherries at their on-site mill, and perfecting drying methods, Don Luis and Wincho are producing coffee that has twice placed in international competitions.
TRACEABILITY
PRODUCER
Valdés family
MILL / WASHING STATION
PROCESSING
Washed
ALTITUDE
1550 meters
DID YOU KNOW
On Finca San Lorenzo, pickers have to take up to 10 passes, with breaks of up to 14 days between each pass, to ensure they are picking only the ripest fruit.
PRICE TRANSPARENCY
$3.63
Price paid by Driftaway
Not available
Free on Board price
Not available
Farm Gate price
$2.04
Fair Trade price per pound
June 16: $1.84
Coffee C-Market price per pound
$0.05
Driftaway's World Coffee Research contribution per pound
This coffee travelled 3,187 miles to the Driftaway Coffee roastery in Queens.
Love the coffee? You can share your compliments & tasting observations with the farmers.
WHY DID WE SELECT THIS COFFEE?
This year's harvest of San Lorenzo is winey, mellow and rich in flavor which is a great for the Balanced profile.
AVERAGE CUPPING SCORE
86.25
/100
86.25
SCAA Cupping Score
15 x 70 kg
Bags purchased
1 year
Length of producer relationship
100% (in 2022)
Transparent coffees purchased
HOW DID WE ROAST THIS COFFEE?
This coffee is being roasted by Ian T. from July 17 to August 16 in Brooklyn. We use the Loring Kestrel roaster for this profile. We have strict guidelines for each of the coffee profiles, and this roast has to pass the development time ratio test as measured in real-time by the roasting software, Cropster. Once it does, it is approved for production.
QUALITY CONTROL
We perform Quality Control via a process of coffee tasting called cupping on all of our production roasts once a week from home as per our Covid-19 shelter in place guidelines. Each cupping is conducted by our roasting staff Kieran D. and Ian T. using standard equipment, and is logged by our Q-certified cupper Ian T. All coffees are evaluated on a scoring scale of 0 to 3.
- 3.0 = exceptional roast - exceeds expectations
- 2.5 = on par with profile - matches expectations
- 2.0 = good roast, but 1 or 2 elements could be improved - needs improvement
- 1.5 or lower = failed - do not ship
PRODUCTION AND SHIPPING
Less than 24 hours after roasting, we bag your coffee in our production facility in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Our production team is led by Anthony and Torie, and supported by a rotating cast of local artists, musicians and independent professionals.
AT YOUR HOME
Brew this coffee with your favorite home brewer and enjoy the taste of incredible coffee! Here are a few tips on how to make the best coffee on each brewer.
View other posts about how to make better coffee at home on our blog Coffeecademy.
