Harbor Log #0001 — Ecuador Pichincha Sidra, Light Roast (300g)

Harbor Log #0001 opens the series with a coffee that earns the entry: a washed Sidra microlot grown at 2,450 metres in Ecuador's Pichincha province — the province where the variety itself is believed to have originated.

In the cup. Bright grapefruit up front, dried cranberry behind it, and a base of molasses and cocoa. The acidity is sparkling and phosphoric — think citrus soda rather than lemon juice — with a mild, candy-like sweetness that holds as the cup cools.

The producer. Pablo Ponce owns and manages Finca San Pablo in Pichincha. He came to specialty coffee sideways: he developed his palate for fine coffee while living in Milan, and brought that standard back to his own land. This is a traceable microlot — one farm, one variety, one harvest.

Why Sidra is worth knowing. Sidra is a rare Ecuadorian variety, widely believed to be a Bourbon–Typica cross, and it is still barely planted outside the country. At 2,450 metres the cherries mature slowly and the beans arrive dense, which is what gives this cup its clarity and its long, sweet finish.

Specs

• Origin: Finca San Pablo, Pichincha, Ecuador
• Producer: Pablo Ponce
• Variety: Sidra
• Process: Washed
• Elevation: 2,450 MASL
• Roast level: Light
• Cupping score: 86
• Format: 300g, whole bean
• Lot: B23728

Brewing it

Dense, high-grown, lightly roasted coffee asks a little more of you than a supermarket bag. Start at 1:16 — 20g coffee to 320g water — ground medium-fine, water at 205°F / 96°C. If the cup tastes thin or sour, grind finer. If it tastes dry or hollow, grind coarser. Give the beans a couple of days to rest after the roast date before you brew.

A 300g bag runs to roughly fifteen brews at that ratio. Whole bean only. We roast in batches, so every Harbor Log entry is a finite lot — when it's gone, the log moves on.