El Aguilar – Intibucá, Honduras – Spectrum Coffees

Spectrum Coffees is a roaster based in Brooklyn, New York, who has an incredible focus on transparency. On their site, they break down the cost they paid for each green coffee, as well as their production expenses to show a clear outline of costs for every coffee. That sort of transparency is something I appreciate as a consumer and one of the initial draws I had to Spectrum.

I recently tried their Thiuriri AB – Kiambu, Kenya and El Aguilar – Intibucá, Honduras. Both were excellent coffees, but I was drawn to El Aguilar because of the depth of the flavor and aroma.

The coffee begins with a rich, sweet-toned and slightly earth fragrance that transforms into a milk chocolate and cherry flavor profile that continued to get sweeter, deeper and richer as the coffee cooled. Many great coffees evolve and develop as they cool, but this one in particular seemed to really reach its full potential around 10 minutes after brewing. The sweetness carries through the finish, which ends on a sweet “crunch” that lingers just a few moments. The coffee is well-rounded, balanced and worked well in every brew method I tried. As decadent as their flavor profile description is with its “melted ice cream” and “sugar cone finish,” after trying the coffee, I completely understand how they landed on it.

The Bottom Line

El Aguilar carried a depth of flavor and aroma that made it fun to explore and come back to again and again. It is one of the better Honduras coffees I’ve tried this season and absolutely one worth trying.