Maple syrup and molasses form a dense and sweet base. Over this, classic SL-28 cherry cola stone fruit, grapefruit citrus, and the maple syrup from the processing add brightness and sweetness, each note sitting clean above the base. The acidity is more present than a West Valley yellow honey typically delivers, structured rather than sharp, and there is something recognisably SL-28 in the way this coffee tastes. The mouthfeel is full and the finish is long.

The Los Cercas lot is one expression of that experimentation. SL-28 is best known as a selection from Kenya. Back in the early 2000s it arrived at Cirri Sur, close to Cerro San Luis, and has spread across West Valley micro-mills since. At the same time Alexander started the family micromill from scratch with wooden stakes, zinc sheeting, a small loan, and a single depulper. People told him quality was fixed. Honey and natural processes proved otherwise: scores improved, and new markets opened that the cooperative had never reached. For the yellow honey, they depulp the cherry and leave the mucilage coat intact on the parchment. Yellow honey, at the lighter end of the honey range, leaves enough mucilage to build sweetness and body through the drying stage, less than a red or black, keeping fermentation lower and the profile cleaner. The care at Cerro San Luis shows. No fermented character, no roughness. Just the sweetness and creamy texture this process can deliver.

The altitude gives the cherries time to develop, and the Delgados' approach at the mill does the rest. The Los Cercas lot is not a coffee trying to make an impression. It simply delivers what it promises: clean, sweet, and carrying that mouthfeel from start to finish.