Coffee cultivation in El Salvador is mostly smallholder, with farmers following traditional methods: almost 100 per cent shade cultivation. The coffee harvest lasts from November to March. All are hand-picked to harvest fresh coffee.
Generally speaking, Salvadoran coffee inherits the mild quality of Central American coffee, which is soft, slightly sour and has a good sweetness. At the same time, it has its own characteristics: aromatic taste slightly sour, very soft; pure without impurities, taste balance is excellent; smooth feeling like cream chocolate is impressive; coffee in the mouth that kind of dense feeling makes coffee have a deep taste, long aftertaste.
Salvadoran coffee is graded according to the altitude at which it is grown, with the highest grade being SHG:
SHG: Strictly High Grown-1200 meters above;
HG: High Grown-900 meters above;
CS: Central Standard-600 meters above.
