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About
Coffee Expression This Anaerobic Geisha is an excellent example of Roberto’s work, maintaining the floral aromatic character of the varietal, while the process creating a juicy and wild character in the cup, reminiscent of tropical fruit.
Producer Roberto Ulloa is one of the most genuine, driven and passionate people we have come across on our travels. He has twice hosted us at La Divina Providencia.
Whole Bean Coffee / Both for filter and espresso
Brewing Advice
Water is one of the most critical components of an excellent coffee experience. We recommend using mineral water of a soft Total Dissolved Solids count, ideally below 150 ppm.
Rested coffee During the resting process, harsh and astringent flavors, which can even be perceived as a ‘roast’ character, soften out, allowing a clearer and brighter expression of the coffee’s character to shine.
We recommend resting our coffees for at least 10 days after the roast date, and we often find excellent results, especially for particularly dense coffees, beyond 6 weeks.
Brewing Our straightforward approach to coffee carries over into brewing. We recommend our roasted coffee for all brew methods, regardless of whether it is immersion, percolation or espresso. We believe that there is one correct way to roast a single coffee, roasting lightly, in such a way as to release its innate qualities and showcase its quality. Learn more about different brewing techniques and specific brew guides here.
Technical Data
Producer Roberto Ulloa
Region Santa Ana
Altitude 1700 masl
Varietal Geisha
Process Anaerobic
Harvest February 2024
Taste Expression Wild & Floral
Shipping & Delivery
· Free shipping on US orders above $79 and on orders above $99 to Mexico and Canada
· Ships within 1-3 days from Brooklyn, New York
· Coffee is roasted to order
Roberto Ulloa
Roberto Ulloa is one of the most genuine, driven and passionate people we have come across on our coffee travels. He has twice hosted us at La Divina Providencia, making the early drive out of San Salvador to the Apaneca Ilamatepec mountain range in the west of El Salvador.
The valley in which La Divina sits is mainly of volcanic origin, and is strikingly beautiful. Lago de Coatepeque, a natural lake formed in the crater of a former volcano, looms in the distance as the road climbs up to the farm, becoming rougher and less defined as it winds its way up the steep slopes of the Santa Ana volcano. Arriving in the deep forest cover of La Divina is calm and tranquil compared to the drama and noise of the journey, and allows a chance to survey and absorb the surroundings.
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La Divina Providencia
Roberto is a fifth generation coffee farmer; his family has been working with coffee since the late 19th century, when the Salvadoran industry boomed. His son, Bobby Jr., is also heavily involved, and Roberto works each day to pass on a sustainable business to him. Much of the family’s land lies at lower altitude, but Roberto made the decision to diversify over fifteen years ago, when he purchased the first of the plots that became La Divina Providencia.
The land, high on the fertile volcanic slopes of Santa Ana, was initially planted in the late 19th century, by a colonial Spanish family. After El Salvador’s civil war, the lands were left abandoned by their original owners, becoming overgrown and uncontrolled. Years of work from Roberto have resulted in a beautifully lush coffee forest.
Using natural and manual methods of weed control, disease control and fertilisation, Roberto works with nature in order to create a functional eco-system on the farm. Varietals are planted alongside each other in the forest, rather than in monocultural plots, meaning skilled pickers are required to distinguish between Red Bourbon, Orange Bourbon, SL28, Pacamara and Geisha trees in order to keep each varietal separate throughout processing.
Some very old techniques are used, such as the Parra system, where coffee trees are bent to one side in order to encourage new growth directly upwards, an alternative to stumping and heavy pruning.
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Roberto also carries out processing with a careful touch. As many steps as possible are carried out manually, without using mechanical equipment that may damage the fragile germ inside the seed. This intimate level of knowledge and care in each stage of production leads to some of the most characterful coffees we have tried from this part of El Salvador.
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Anaerobic Geisha
The farm has expanded over the intervening years, mainly planting extra SL28 and Red Bourbon trees, while Roberto was excited to show us expanded numbers of Geisha and Pacamara trees last year compared to our previous visit. This is the first year we’ve been able to purchase Geisha from Roberto, a welcome expansion of our relationship. This anaerobic lot, fermented in plastic sacks for 2 days, is an excellent example of Roberto’s work, maintaining the floral aromatic character of the varietal, while the process creating a juicy and wild character in the cup, reminiscent of tropical fruit.
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