Mexico Agua Escondida Comalcalco Direct Trade 2025
$ 14.50
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Country: Mexico
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State: Tabasco.
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Municipality: Comalcalco
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Historic region: La Chontalpa
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Type: Trinitario
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Certifications: Direct Trade
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Harvest Year: 2025
Flavor notes:
The aroma is bold out of the gate with heady florals, chocolate and dried fig. The immediate flavor is thick chocolate and molasses. It is earthy, rich and succulent. The acidity is present and melds delightfully with dried fruit leather notes (red fruit and fig) and this interesting tang that when coupled with that succulent note made one taster call out 'kelp'. I know that might sound odd but it fits and they are not wrong and I want to say, kelp is not fishy, it is umami. There is lots of chocolate to go around and the flavor is long and deep. I get dates, deep earth, this hint of resiny pine and toasted pecan. The acidity and bitterness accent each other perfectly and there is astringency enough for a lovely structure.
At the 75% we evaluate at the balance is right on the edge but fine. Slightly sweeter you might not be able to stop eating it. The bold chocolate makes an incredible milk chocolate.
Alejandro Zamorano Escriche is the head of Revival Cacao. Years ago Alejandro attended my Profile Roasting Seminar and that started a relationship that makes me feel blessed each time we get to interact and when I can offer his beautiful beans.
From Revival Cacao:
Agua Escondida means concealed or hidden water spring in English. It refers to the name of the farm where Revival Cacao started. This 2-ha cacao orchard is owned by a farmer named Malaquias, who now supervises the entire operation encompassing all neighboring farms. The name of the estate, in turn, refers to the important freshwater aquifers present throughout Tabasco. This is one of our most exclusive origins and the one with which we showed that, with proper fermentation, cacao from Tabasco can rank among the best in the world.
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Post-harvest: Centrally fermented by Revival Cacao.
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Fermentation style: Linear boxes made of Tabuleia Rosea wood.
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Fermentation days: 7
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Drying:Gas artificial drying (1-2 days), cement patios with mesh nets.
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Sorting: Mechanical complemented with hand sorting.
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Farm management:
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Complementary crops: Banana, plantain, pepper, hibiscus, lime.
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Shade-tree cover %: <40%.
Profile Drum Roasting: The profile I used for this is 12:30/14:30/17:20 @ 260 F. You are welcomed to take a strong hand on this roast. The abundant chocolate will benefit. 2 minutes in the development phase to bring out the chocolate and fruit flavors. After that, you want to turn the roast down a little, only slowing it as you note non-vinegar sharpness in the nose. Feel free to stretch out the Finishing phase to 5 minutes. If you are a fan of brightness, the upper 240s and lower 250s are really going to sing sing more as the sweetness will be lower.
