Nicaragua Finca La Bendicion Java

About Nicaragua Finca La Bendicion Java

Arrived August 2021 from Nicaragua in Grain Pro.

This particular coffee made its first impressions on our head coffee roaster when he visited Nicaragua in early 2020. After cupping many coffees over 4 days, the Java ended up being the favorite. Grown on two of Luis Alberto’'s farms, Finca La Bendicion and Lo Prometido, and dry processed at Beneficio Las Segovias in Ocotal. Luis Alberto took first place in the Cup of Excellence in 2020 and 1st and 5th place in 2018. Each of Luis' farms are split into "plantios" (plantations) based on altitude, and coffees are further separated based on varietal. Even multiple lots from the same plantio harvested and processed on the same day may have subtle variations that make them better suited to pulped natural or full natural processing rather than conventional washing. The washed and honey processed coffee from this farm is dried for 20-25 days, but the natural processed coffee is dried for 30-35 days - natural coffees are dried with the coffee cherry on the beans, which imparts an inherent fruitiness to the coffee bean.

Although Nicaragua lies in the heart of the Central American coffee growing countries, and has been growing coffee commercially for over a century, the success of the coffee industry has been plagued by political strife. During the Reagan administration, all Nicaraguan products were banned from import to the United States. In recent years, coffee plantations once taken over by Sandinistas have been returned to local families, and the industry is making great strides towards producing some very high quality coffees. As improvements in cultivation, traceability and quality occur, long-term production is steadily increasing, and farmers are offering a surprising range of cup profiles based on distinctive varietals and unique micro-climates.

The Java varietal was originally thought to be a Typica until genetic testing revealed it to be a selection from an Ethiopian Landrace population called Abyssinia (World Coffee Research) the variety was introduced to the island of Java directly from Ethiopia by the Dutch in the early 19th century. The Java variety is becoming a good growing option for smallholder farms, who use fewer inputs, as it is resistant to coffee leaf rust and coffee berry disease. In the mid-20th century, it was brought to Cameroon from Java and then, in 1991, it was brought and planted in Costa Rica, its introduction into Central America. There are some flavor characteristics found in Geisha, also of Ethiopia origin, but Java is not as delicate nor as floral. It is an easily accessible exotic variety with a deeply rooted history.

• Country: Nicaragua
• Farm: Finca La Bendicion and Lo Prometido
• Producer: Luis Alberto Balladarez
• Region: Nueva Segovia
• Municipality: Mozonte
• Altitude: 1300-1650 meters
• Varietal: Java
• Process: Natural/Dry Process
• Harvest Season: December-March

Cup Characteristics:  Aromas of dried fruit and flowers. Flavors of black cherry, raisin, chocolate, and honeysuckle. A delicately sweet, earthy, fruity, and complex cup.  This is a  floral coffee that displays some flavors in common with geisha.

Roasting Notes: This coffee need to be roasted on the light side if you want to preserve its floral nature. But it is feasible to roast it a little further to increase body, albeit at the expense of the florality.  Let the coffee get fully past first crack, and if your roaster allows it, kick the heat down to nearly zero once first crack gets going and allow the coffee to slowly develop. A longer development time, 1.5 to 2 minutes, depending on your roaster might let you achieve both.