Description

Mauricio Escalón comes from a coffee-growing family with roots dating back to the 1870s, when his great-grandfather Pedro José Escalón planted coffee in Santa Ana and founded El Molino, the first industrial mill in El Salvador. After the coffee-price crisis, Mauricio revived the family tradition in 2003 with the creation of CAFESCAL (Cafés Escalón Calderón), focused on specialty coffee.

Today, CAFESCAL manages 10 farms and 2 mills. Although he trained as an architect, Mauricio leads the agricultural operations with a modern approach.

Finca San José, located in the Ilamatepeq mountain range near Lake Coatepeque, has clay-rich volcanic soils and elevations between 1,400 and 1,600 meters—ideal conditions for varieties such as Bourbon, Pacas, Parainema, Marsellesa, and Yellow Icatu, grown under the shade of orange trees. The San José Mill is also located there, where the farm’s coffees are processed.

The microclimate and fertile soil give this coffee bright acidity, complex flavors, and a clean finish, reflecting both tradition and innovation in Salvadoran coffee production.