This week, a friend hit me with a very unexpected but very welcome gift...a pound of single-estate Puerto Rican coffee. The estate is Hacienda San Pedro, a fourth-generation plantation in the town of Jayuya, just outside of San Juan. It's ironic, most people just don't think to give me the gift of coffee, probably because they think they might not buy the 'right kind'. But anytime you are walking the streets this close to the source, you are getting single-estate coffee at its best. To bring that kind of product home avoids all the steps of the supply chain that each take some measure of freshness out of the coffee, whether it's on its way to a reputable cafe or worse still, into a grocery store.
Connaisseurs like their blends because they know that no single estate can produce a coffee with a range of flavor covering enough of the spectrum. But we also know that there's no finer way to isolate a coffee accent than from a single estate. And that is how you get to know the individual accents that make up a great blend. It might be in such a coffee that you find the accent in coffee you like most and many single-estate coffees today are regarded as far ahead in quality and experience over the blends that comprise them.Puerto Rico has an interesting coffee history. Up until the 20th century, it was one of the world's largest producers of coffee (sixth). In the transition from Spanish colony to American commonwealth, something was lost in both the quality and institutional management of cultivation and exportation, and it has yet to reach its previous grandeur. Which is unfortunate, because at elevations above 3,000 feet, Puerto Rico has the potential to grow and export a premium coffee. It's admirable to see a family-run plantation like Hacienda San Pedro persist and with good fortune, the family will reap the rewards if the region's overall quality management improves.This pound of coffee came pre-ground, which isn't ideal but it was vacuum-sealed. I couldn't smell the coffee before opening the bag so I am satisfied with it being fresh as though I bought it from the source myself. If it was going to sit in my kitchen over a long enough period, it would lose its freshness. Fortunately not a concern for me, I'll get through it in about three weeks. Interestingly, it was ground fine so no chance I can brew any in my Bodum french press or it would come out like mud. At that grind level, I decided to dust off the espresso machine and make myself a double.Unless it was in a blend, I've never had Puerto Rican coffee before. Hacienda San Pedro advertises a robust "yet velvety taste that surprises the palate". This is a match for how coffee from that region should taste, and actually in line with most Caribbean-grown coffee. That is, smooth, fragrant, and with a surprisingly powerful taste. This coffee delivered. The first sip of my double espresso indeed surprised the palate, enough that I gave it a double-take. There was definitely a bittersweet accent that is 'crowded out' of a blend, and again, this is the very benefit of trying the occasional single-estate coffee. Of course, that accent might be more pronounced for me drinking mostly Peets Major Dickason and Starbucks Espresso Blend for the last several weeks. I'll be juggling the three coffees this month, and this one will be excellent for balance in what I have on the shelf right now.This morning, I drip-brewed a pot and the coffee was definitely milder in flavor than when Italian-brewed. Likely due to the fine grind, it also had a lighter body. Like Starbucks Breakfast Blend though, that's not a bad thing for my first cup of the day. As the day goes on however, I'll be looking for something with a thicker consistency so my plan will be to save this coffee for espressos or else the occasional red eye coffee. What's a red eye? That's what many people call a Caffe Americano - a shot of espresso in your drip-brewed coffee. As an aside, the Americano is technically a shot of espresso in hot water to dilute it.
This is not a coffee you will find even in your cafe, which doesn't likely carry a Puerto Rican coffee at all. Because of that and before internet commerce, you would have missed your chance to try this excellent example of Caribbean coffee taste. The internet now puts you directly in touch with the source, and you can learn more and order directly from this plantation's website, Hacienda San Pedro.I am pleased with my first single-estate Puerto Rican coffee.
