Finca La Bolsa

Roaster notes

We’re delighted to have coffee from María Elena Vides de Ovalle and her team at Finca La Bolsa back on the counter. The harvest day starts in the cool of the early morning at La Bolsa where around 90 seasonal workers hand pick the coffee cherry. Most pickers can select between one and two quintals of cherry a day, with some people picking up to three a day. A quintal is a local weight measurement used in many crops in Central America and equal to 46kg. Once the cherry is picked, it is transferred to the processing mill where it is left in bags for an average of 36 hours depending on the weather. If it’s a bit cooler, this can be extended to 48 hours, and if it’s warmer (which it tends to be a bit later in the season) it can be shortened to 12 hours. From bag storage, it is sent through the de-pulper where the skin is removed before going to traditional fermentation tanks. The timing of traditional fermentation is also temperature dependent, but once the desired pH and brix levels are reached the coffee is spread out onto patios to dry. We have written extensively about this farm in three newsletters (‘ The Crop Cycle at La Bolsa ‘, ‘ The Plant Cycle at La Bolsa ‘ and ‘ Longer Term Planning at La Bolsa ‘) in 2025.

Tasting notes