Coffee of the Month

February’s Coffee of the Month: El Salvador (Natural Process)  

Region: Quezaltepeque, La Libertad Department, El Salvador  
Grower: The Belismelis-Alvarez Family | Finca La Esperanza  
Elevation: 1,000–1,450 MASL  
Soil: Volcanic loam  
Varieties: Bourbon, Catimor hybrids  
Process: Natural  
Roast Level: Medium  
Cupping Notes: Cherry juice, raspberry, chocolate  

Finca La Esperanza is part of a rich legacy managed by the Belismelis-Alvarez family, whose roots in coffee farming stretch back six generations to Spanish settlers in the mid-1800s. The family oversees 15 estates across nearly 900 hectares in El Salvador, cultivating coffee with a deep respect for the land, their workers, and the craft itself.  

Don Emilio Belismelis, one of the family's forebears, settled in Santa Ana in the 19th century, embracing coffee farming during El Salvador’s coffee boom. By the 1930s, coffee had become the country's dominant export, fueling economic growth and earning a cherished spot in US coffee culture.  

Today, the family’s operations center around the San Miguel mill in Ahuachapán. Each day’s cherry harvest from La Esperanza is sun-dried on the mill’s patios and meticulously cupped in their Antigua lab. These profiles are combined into export-ready lots that showcase the exceptional quality of their crop.  

This natural process coffee is a vibrant cup with a sweet berry profile, a pleasant body, and bright, juicy notes of cherry and raspberry layered with rich chocolate. It’s more than just a cup—it’s a taste of history and tradition.