RARE and UNIQUE Series | Candelaria Variety | Finca Chelín | Mexico
RARE and UNIQUE Series | Candelaria Variety | Finca Chelín | Mexico
Washed processed Candelaria hybrid variety developed by Enrique Lopez at Finca Chelin in Candelaria Loxicha, Sierra Sur, Mexico.
Full of floral, silky coating body, bright redcurrant-like and sweet lemonade citrus vibes! Absolute delight!
This coffee is great for filter brewing (drip/pourover, aeropress, cafetière). Best enjoyed just on its own to fully explore its complex character.
Special mention & thanks to Jessie May Peters aka Pedge for another incredible original label illustration for our Rare & Unique Series.
Key Origin Info:
Producer: Enrique López
Farm: Finca Chelín
Region: Candelaria Loxicha, Sierra Sur, Oaxaca
Altitude: Around 1600-1750 masl
Lot 2 of 2023 Season:
Variety: Candelaria - a hybrid of Gesha grafted onto Colombia rootstock
Process: Fully washed
Cup profile: Silky body, jasmine, redcurrant jelly, boiled sweets, lemonade
Exporter: Red Beetle Mexico | Importer: Raw Material
More about Finca Chelín and Enrique Lopez:
Enrique is a third generation coffee producers from Sierra Sur area of Oaxaca region, Mexico. Enrique’s farm Finca Chelín is renowned for his high-quality lots, ranging is multitudes of experimentational ferments of high value and quality varietals. Enrique is highly influential in Oaxaca, and delivers educational training, talks, and access to buyers for other producers in the region.
Enrique explains that the skill to be able to cup - taste and assess his coffees for positive and negative attributes has greatly improved his abilities as a coffee grower. He enjoys experimenting and designing new processing methods. He says that the growing conditions in the origin and the particular variety of the coffee plant is responsible for about 80% of the flavour in the cup. The remaining 20% he believes to be the producer’s input during harvest and post-harvest processing.
Enrique has a keen eye for detail and an incredible drive and passion to push boundaries and open up posibilities for coffee producers. And to do so in a way that is kind to the environment. Enrique is keen to produce coffee in a way that protects the environment for future generations. At Finca Chelín no pesticides are used however, in recent years some fertiliser had to be applied in the fields to promote good yields. The coffee trees are grown under a canopy of shade trees that provide a natural habitat for many native animals.
We are incredibly excited to be roasting and sharing coffee from Finca Chelín once again, for the third season running.
And even more so, to be able to share this particular lot which is a unique genetic hybrid developed by Enrique at Finca Chelín and very fitting to take its rightful place in our Rare & Unique Series.
It is a fully washed processed Candelaria hybrid variety - Enrique’s own cross of Gesha plants grafted onto Colombia variety rootstock, named after the Candelaria Loxicha town where Finca Chelin is located.
Enrique’s “Candelaria” variety:
This particular lot is, as Enrique explains a unique genetic material from the farm Chelin. The hybrid was created using the rootstock of Colombia variety, a hybrid bred in Colombia for resistance to leaf rust and increased productivity, and a the highly prized Gesha plants, known for their complex, sweet and floral character.
The Candelaria hybrid creation process:
10x Gesha seedlings were grated onto the rootstock of Colombia.
These 10 plants were then planted in the farm and after 3 years produced their first cherries from which the team were able to obtain seeds.
These seeds were then used to propagate the variety and plant further 150 plants and this lot is now the first harvest.
