Pacamara Coffee: Flavor Profile, Origin & Growing Regions

Pacamara coffee is a distinctive Arabica variety developed in El Salvador, best known for its exceptionally large beans and its layered yet balanced flavor profile.
In the cup, Pacamara often delivers a complex aromatic range—floral notes, ripe fruit character, and chocolate-like sweetness—supported by a lively but well-integrated acidity.

Thanks to this combination of size, complexity, and cup clarity, Pacamara coffee has consistently earned high recognition in international competitions such as the Cup of Excellence.
In this guide, we take a closer look at Pacamara coffee’s origin, defining characteristics, flavor profile, and the brewing methods that best highlight its strengths.

What Is Pacamara Coffee?

Pacamara coffee is a hybrid Arabica variety developed through intentional breeding, created by crossing Pacas—a natural mutation of Bourbon—with Maragogipe, a natural mutation of Typica known for its exceptionally large beans.

The name Pacamara reflects this genetic lineage, combining “Paca” from Pacas and “Mara” from Maragogipe.

Pacamara is best known for its cup quality and distinctive physical traits. The plants are relatively short, with dense canopies and short internodes. Leaves are broad, typically green with occasional copper-toned hues, while the coffee cherries develop thick pulp and usually ripen to red, though yellow-fruited variants—known as Yellow Pacamara—also exist. One of Pacamara’s most defining characteristics is its notably large bean size.

Pacamara beans commonly fall within screen sizes 17–19, with certain lots reaching screen size 20 or larger. By comparison, most medium-sized Arabica coffee beans typically fall within the 14–16 screen range.

Despite its strong flavor potential, Pacamara is highly susceptible to coffee leaf rust, root-knot nematodes, and coffee berry disease (CBD). This vulnerability increases cultivation risk, which has also contributed to Pacamara’s relative rarity in the specialty coffee market.

Pacamara Coffee Origin and Breeding History

Although Pacamara coffee was developed through a formal breeding program led by El Salvador’s coffee research institute, Instituto Salvadoreño del Café (ISC), both of its parent varieties originated as natural mutations within Coffea arabica and each carries its own distinct historical background.

Pacas

Pacas is a natural mutation of Bourbon, first identified in 1949 on a coffee farm owned by the Pacas family in the Santa Ana region of El Salvador.

The Pacas family had been cultivating coffee in the country since 1905 and operated multiple farms across the Apaneca–Llamatepec mountain range.

Beginning in 1960, ISC initiated a pedigree-based selection program for Pacas, repeatedly selecting superior plants over multiple generations to establish a more stable and uniform cultivar.

Compared to its Bourbon parent, Pacas showed improved disease tolerance, greater environmental adaptability, and higher yields. Today, Pacas remains one of El Salvador’s primary coffee varieties, accounting for approximately 25% of the country’s total coffee production.

Maragogipe

Maragogipe is a natural mutation of Typica, first discovered in 1870 in the town of Maragogipe in Bahia, northeastern Brazil, from which it takes its name.

Due to its exceptionally large beans, Maragogipe is often informally referred to as “elephant bean”.

The Pacamara Breeding Program

In 1958, ISC launched a breeding program aimed at combining the strengths of both parent varieties. Pacas offered a compact plant structure suitable for higher-density planting and improved productivity, while Maragogipe contributed its signature large bean size and strong cup quality, despite its low overall yield.

Through multiple generations of selection, Pacamara was developed to retain a relatively compact growth habit along with improved productivity while preserving its large bean characteristics.

It is important to note that, according to coffee variety research, Pacamara has not yet achieved full genetic stability, and noticeable variation may still occur between individual plants across generations.

Pacamara Coffee Growing Conditions and Producing Regions

Pacamara thrives in cooler climates and is typically grown at elevations above 1,000 meters. Mid- to high-altitude environments—particularly between 1,300 and 1,800 meters—are considered especially favorable for flavor development. Well-drained soils rich in minerals and organic matter are also essential for healthy growth.

These conditions closely align with the climate and geography of many Central American coffee-growing regions. As a result, Pacamara is most commonly cultivated in El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Guatemala, where it expresses a wide range of flavor characteristics depending on local terroir.

In its country of origin, El Salvador, Pacamara is frequently grown in the Apaneca–Llamatepec mountain range. The region’s cool temperatures and mineral-rich volcanic soils often contribute to coffees with pronounced aromatics, layered flavor profiles, vibrant fruit character, and clearly defined sweetness and acidity.

Guatemala, with its high elevations and nutrient-rich volcanic soils, also produces high-quality Pacamara coffees.

Despite its strong flavor potential, Pacamara is highly susceptible to coffee leaf rust, pests, and coffee berry disease, making it a challenging variety to cultivate. This sensitivity requires careful farm management and has limited its widespread adoption, contributing to its relative scarcity in the specialty coffee market.

Pacamara Coffee Flavor Profile

Like other coffee varieties, Pacamara’s flavor profile is shaped by a wide range of factors, including growing environment and climate, soil composition and elevation, as well as cherry maturity, processing method, and roast level. These elements interact to define how Pacamara ultimately expresses itself in the cup.

Overall, Pacamara is known for its layered and expressive flavor profile. Aromatically, it often shows sweet-toned notes such as chocolate and caramel, alongside fruit-driven characteristics that may include berries, tropical fruit, or green apple. In high-quality lots, delicate floral notes—such as jasmine or orange blossom—may also appear.

Pacamara typically presents a lively acidity balanced by a clear sweetness, with a mouthfeel that can range from creamy and smooth to finely textured and soft.

Differences in cherry color can also influence flavor expression. Red Pacamara is often associated with more pronounced sweetness, a longer finish, and vibrant acidity, with flavor impressions that lean toward red berry notes and a fuller body. Yellow Pacamara, by contrast, tends to show softer citrus-like acidity, a lighter sweetness, and a cleaner, more balanced overall profile.

Under favorable growing conditions and with appropriate processing, Pacamara can deliver a highly distinctive and memorable cup. Lighter roast profiles tend to highlight its fruit-driven aromatics along with its bright acidity, while medium roasts often emphasize deeper sweetness and a more rounded mouthfeel.

Recommended Brewing Methods for Pacamara Coffee

Pour-Over Brewing

Pour-over brewing highlights a coffee’s intrinsic character and is well suited to showcasing Pacamara’s expressive aromatics and layered flavor profile. For those still refining their preferred parameters, the following can serve as a starting point:

• Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15 (for example, 20 g of coffee to 300 g of water)

• Water temperature: approximately 92–94 °C for light roasts; 90–92 °C for medium roasts

• Bloom time: around 30 seconds

Siphon Brewing

Siphon brewing is known for producing an intense aromatic profile and clear flavor separation. This method can emphasize Pacamara’s pronounced aromas while maintaining a smooth, rounded mouthfeel.

Espresso

When brewed as espresso, Pacamara’s flavors become bolder, often delivering a fuller body and richer texture through high-pressure extraction. For those who enjoy dense, expressive shots, Pacamara can also perform well as an espresso coffee.

Pacamara in Coffee Competitions (Cup of Excellence)

Pacamara’s complex yet balanced flavor profile has contributed to consistent recognition in international coffee competitions. One of the most prominent platforms highlighting this performance is the Cup of Excellence (COE), held annually across multiple producing countries and widely regarded for its rigorous evaluation standards.

El Salvador COE

As Pacamara’s country of origin, El Salvador represents its strongest competitive context. In the 2025 Cup of Excellence, Pacamara coffees dominated the Washed and Honey category, securing all three top positions, with each entry scoring above 90 points. These results underscore Pacamara’s strong alignment with local growing conditions and processing practices.

【Related】: Coffee Cupping Guide: Protocols, Gear & Scoring

Guatemala COE

Pacamara has also demonstrated notable performance in Guatemala. In the 2024 Cup of Excellence, a Pacamara lot scored 90.56 points to place second in the Exotic Washed category. Earlier, in 2022, another Pacamara entry achieved a score of 89.67 points, ranking fifth—reflecting consistent placement within the upper scoring range.

Nicaragua COE

Similarly, in the 2025 Nicaragua Cup of Excellence, a Pacamara coffee placed second in the Natural and Honey category with a score of 90.59 points. This result further highlights Pacamara’s adaptability across different processing styles and its continued competitiveness in high-level evaluations.

Grinding Considerations for Pacamara Coffee

Pacamara’s complex aromatic range and layered flavor profile—potentially including floral, fruit, chocolate, and caramel tones—make grind quality especially important. 

Grinding Pacamara fresh before brewing is an essential step for capturing its full aromatic expression and avoiding flavor loss. Minimizing grind retention and maintaining consistency help ensure that each brew reflects the coffee’s true character rather than residual flavors from previous sessions.

Electric grinders from Femobook are designed with a short grind path that allows coffee grounds to fall directly into the grounds container, helping reduce retention and minimize waste. This design also lowers the risk of old grounds influencing flavor clarity—an important consideration when working with high-quality coffees.

Magnetic quick-release components allow for easy cleaning and routine maintenance, supporting a clean grinding environment and consistent performance. A stable burr assembly and precise grind adjustment further help maintain uniform particle size across different brewing methods.

Available in both plug-in and rechargeable versions, Femobook’s A5 electric grinder accommodates a wide range of grind settings suitable for pour-over, espresso, moka pot, and AeroPress brewing. Its compact form and efficient performance make it a practical option for those looking to get the most out of distinctive coffees like Pacamara.