The Salaverria family and San Francisco

La Independencia comes from the San Francisco farm in Santa Ana, in western El Salvador, where the Salaverria family grows Bourbon and Red Catuai at around 1,580 metres. Bourbon is the classic Salvadoran variety, known for sweetness and a soft, round body. Red Catuai is a sturdier, more productive plant that brings a bit of structure. Together they make a cup that is sweet first and fruity second.

What the natural process adds

For this lot the ripe cherries were dried whole, with the fruit still on the bean. That is where the plum and dark grape come from, and it pushes the caramel and panela sweetness that Salvadoran coffees already have even further. The herbal black tea note keeps it from getting heavy, and the finish is pure dark chocolate. (If you are the type who wants a filter coffee that tastes like dessert, this is your bag.)

About Lippe

Lippe is a family roastery in Oslo run by Alexander and Pia von der Lippe. The business started in 1998 selling espresso machines and has roasted coffee under the Lippe name since 2007, today from its roastery on Rosenholmveien in the south of the city. For years Lippe has bought most of its green coffee through Nordic Approach, a green coffee importer that works closely with producers at origin.

Brewing it

A sweet natural like this likes a slightly lower temperature, so start at 15 g of coffee to 250 g of water at 92 to 93 °C. It also works well in a French press or AeroPress if you want more body. Weighing coffee and water on a scale such as the Normcore Pocket Coffee Scale V3 makes a good cup easy to repeat. Rest the beans about a week off roast before the first brew.

Coffee details