Salvador San Felipe

We try not to keep coffee on the shelves for long, so if we don't have a particular coffee in stock, we have to replenish the order after the roasting day. We roast on Tuesdays and Thursdays, pack the coffee and send it out on Wednesdays and Fridays.

The San Felipe beans are processed at the Beneficio Las Cruces mill, owned by José Antonio Salaverria and his sons, Andrés and José Antonio Junior. They are the sixth and seventh generation of coffee producers from Huachapán. In recent decades, the family has focused on the highest quality coffees - implementing programmes to select fields according to altitude, quality potential and growing conditions. Their main production areas are Santa Rita, San Francisco and El Molino, located around the Santa Ana volcano.

The Salaverri farms are dominated by traditional varieties such as Bourbon Elite and Híbrido San Francisco, a hybrid of Bourbon and Pacas. The family is known for its innovative approach to growing and processing coffee. They experiment inter alia. with different fermentation methods to optimise quality and create batches with a distinctive sensory profile. Each farm is divided into smaller plots of land, known as tablones, which allows precise crop management and the creation of very precisely described microlots.

Faced with challenges such as leaf disease (coffee leaf rust), the Salaverri have focused on regenerating the soil and strengthening plant resistance. They produce their own organic fertiliser called Huisil, which is made from organic waste - mainly coffee pulp and fish and animal waste. They currently use a 50% blend of Huisil with added minerals such as nitrogen, potassium, boron and zinc. They also carry out a variety of pruning methods, adapted to the height and variety of trees, to maintain the productivity and health of the plantation.

The Salaverri's place great importance on managing their staff and providing decent working conditions. Farm managers receive bonuses for the quality of the harvest, and many employees are hired on a permanent basis, which helps to build a committed and experienced team. They employ between 50 and 60 people living directly on the farms, and offer coffee pickers competitive wages and optimised working systems that allow them to finish their day earlier. This allows employees more time for their families.

The family also invests in local social infrastructure. They have built houses for seasonal workers near one of their farms in San Francisco and provided access to medical care - doctors regularly visit the plantations and the family supports local clinics, including two they built themselves in Ataco. In addition, they have donated plots of land for the construction of two government clinics and supported the development of a local school and a football pitch. The Salaverri's commitment goes beyond coffee production - their actions impact the development of the entire community.