Nicaragua - Silvio Sánchez - Catuai Natural

Silvio's farm lies high up in the mountains of Cerro Mogotón, the highest peak of Nicaragua. Here an unique microclimate is created by the altitude of 1600 meters above sea level and a constant mist hovering through the coffee fields. The entire farm is covered in diverse shade trees, creating a deep green hue throughout. Here coffee matures slowly reaching high levels of sugar concentration in the cherries. At perfect ripeness the coffee is picked by Silvio's loyal team at the farm. 

The harvested cherries are carefully packed into plastic crates for the long journey to the valley of Ocotal. Silvio uses these crates instead of bags to ensure the cherry stay intact and do no burst open, exposing the developed sugar to oxygen. After a one and half hour journey the truck reaches the exceptionally dry valley. It is a stark contrast to the misty mountains, but exactly what coffee needs to be processed using the natural method.

Without removing the seeds from the cherry, they are lied out to dry. First, in thick layers to promote the fermentation. The high sugar content feeds the naturally present yeast and bacteria and allow a complex acidity and layered sweetness to develop. After this initial phase the coffee is transferred the shaded drying beds where they are expertly dried by Silvio to ensure consistency and a clean mouthfeel and flavour in the cup. 

We roasted this coffee to reach first crack relatively quickly, decreasing the gas before reaching first crack to allow for a longer development phase. The final temperature reached was 207 degrees in approximately twelve minutes. We enjoy this coffee as both espresso and filter using an 1:2.1 ration for espresso and 1:15 for filter. It has great synergy in it's flavours of chocolate cream and strawberry milk, creating an almost dessert like cup of coffee.