El Salvador Atiquizaya Tabi
Cupping Notes
(Credit Sweet Maria's)
Lighter roasts have a fragrance of unrefined sugar in the dry grounds, with hints of tree nut, pleasant roast bittering, and sweet nougat accent note. Sweetness is intensified in the wet aroma, and gives off buttery caramel appeal, along with hints of roasted barley and rice syrup. We found that this Tabí lot from Miravalles farm showed a slightly brighter cup than some of the other variety separations from the farm. To be fair, none of the coffees are "bright", per se, but rather, Atiquizaya Tabí has a tea-like snap that's well-integrated into the cup sweetness. Core flavors are well balanced, and have impressions of semi-refined sugars, cinnamon-sugar topped toast, and an aftertaste that goes from caramely sweet, to cocoa powdery bittersweet. Body is developed in the darker roasts, and our Full City+ roast brought syrupy mouthfeel, and compact bittersweet chocolate notes, with lasting smokey roast flavors. This coffee is a no-brainer for espresso use too, promising a dense bittersweet flavor profile that tastes great solo, and also a great base for milk drinks.