Medium/Dark Roast
From the Highlands of Chiapas
Our Mexico Chiapas El Jaguar Estate is a smooth, comforting single-origin coffee from the highlands of Chiapas, one of Mexico’s most important coffee-growing regions.
Grown at approximately 1,300 metres above sea level, this SHG Fancy grade coffee is produced from a blend of traditional Arabica varieties including Caturra, Catuai and Bourbon.
Mexico is well known for producing coffees with a naturally balanced character, often combining chocolate and caramel sweetness with gentle citrus and nutty qualities. This particular lot fits that style beautifully, while offering enough complexity to make it interesting as a single-origin coffee.
We roast it slightly deeper, at a medium/dark level, to bring out the coffee’s richer chocolate, caramel and brown sugar characteristics while retaining some of its lighter vanilla and citrus notes.
El Jaguar Estate
The coffee comes from El Jaguar Estate in Chiapas, in southern Mexico. Chiapas sits close to Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala and is home to some of the country’s highest coffee-growing areas. The region’s mountainous landscape and high-altitude growing conditions provide an environment well suited to Arabica coffee.
At around 1,300 metres above sea level, El Jaguar Estate sits within the high-altitude growing category reflected by its SHG – Strictly High Grown – classification.
The estate coffee is made up of Caturra, Catuai and Bourbon varieties, three classic Arabica cultivars commonly associated with Central American coffee production.
Strictly High Grown – SHG Fancy
The SHG Fancy grade tells us something about the physical characteristics and growing conditions of the coffee.
SHG, or Strictly High Grown, indicates coffee cultivated at higher elevations. Higher growing altitudes generally mean cooler temperatures and slower cherry development, which can contribute to greater flavour development within the bean.
The Fancy designation is part of the grading terminology used for the coffee rather than a flavour description.
For us, the important part is what happens after the green coffee arrives: careful roasting to bring those characteristics into the cup.
Washed & Sun-Dried
El Jaguar is processed using the washed method, followed by sun drying.
Washed coffees are mechanically processed to remove the fruit from the coffee seed before the beans are dried. This style of processing generally produces a cleaner, more defined cup, allowing the underlying characteristics of the coffee and its growing environment to come through.
For this coffee, the washed process works particularly well with the deeper roast profile, giving us a clean foundation for the chocolate, caramel and brown sugar sweetness.
Our Roast
We roast our Mexico Chiapas El Jaguar at a medium/dark level.
Rather than taking the coffee into an extremely dark roast, the aim is to develop the richer characteristics while keeping enough of the coffee’s natural sweetness and brightness intact.
The result is a fuller, rounded cup with dark chocolate and caramel at the forefront, supported by brown sugar sweetness and softer notes of vanilla, tangerine and warming spice.
It’s a style of coffee designed to be easy to enjoy every day, whether you’re drinking it black or adding milk.
What to Expect in the Cup
Dark Chocolate - Rich and familiar chocolate notes form the foundation of the cup, becoming more pronounced through our medium/dark roast.
Caramel & Brown Sugar - A rounded sweetness sits underneath the chocolate, giving the coffee a smooth and comforting character.
Vanilla - A softer vanilla character adds depth and helps balance the darker roasted flavours.
Tangerine - A subtle citrus note provides a little brightness and prevents the cup from becoming overly heavy.
Cinnamon & Spice - A gentle warming spice character rounds everything out, particularly as the coffee cools.
Tasting Notes
Cinnamon • Dark Chocolate • Vanilla • Tangerine • Brown Sugar • Caramel
Expect a smooth, rounded and chocolate-led coffee, with caramelised sweetness, subtle citrus and a gentle warming spice finish.
How We Recommend Brewing It
Espresso - A natural choice for this coffee.. The medium/dark roast produces a rich espresso with dark chocolate, caramel and brown sugar at the centre. It works particularly well for those who prefer a fuller, traditional-style espresso rather than a highly acidic or fruit-forward shot.
Milk-Based Drinks - This is where the coffee really comes into its own. The chocolate and caramel character provides enough depth to stand up to milk, making it well suited to flat whites, cappuccinos and lattes. Expect a smooth, sweet and comforting cup rather than a delicate or highly acidic milk drink.
Filter Brewing - Although roasted on the darker side, this coffee remains well suited to filter brewing. Using a slightly more controlled extraction will allow the vanilla, tangerine and subtle spice notes to show alongside the deeper chocolate and caramel flavours.
Batch Brew & Pour Over - Ideal when you’re looking for a fuller-bodied, sweeter filter coffee. Batch brew will emphasise the smooth chocolate and caramel character, while pour over can bring out more of the lighter citrus and vanilla notes.
The Cracking Bean – Mexico Chiapas El Jaguar
A classic Central American coffee with a little more depth.
We’ve taken a naturally balanced Mexican single origin and given it a medium/dark roast to create something rich, smooth and approachable without losing the character of the bean.
Chocolate-led. Caramel-sweet. Gently spiced. Easy drinking.
Perfect for espresso, excellent with milk and equally enjoyable as a richer filter coffee.
Origin at a glance
Country: Mexico
Region: Chiapas
Estate: El Jaguar Estate
Altitude: 1,300 masl
Varieties: Caturra, Catuai & Bourbon
Grade: SHG Fancy
Processing: Washed & sun-dried
Roast: Medium/Dark
Freshly roasted in small batches by The Cracking Bean.