El Salvador Cerro Las Ranas Honey

Cerro Las Ranas — Hill of Frogs, named for the lagoon on the property — sits in Apaneca at 1,450 to 1,780 meters on volcanic loam. Jose Antonio Salaverria and his sons run it. Ripe cherries are pulped and dried still wrapped in their own mucilage, turned by hand on clay patios until the sugars set. That honey process is where the syrupy sweetness comes from: tamarind soda and tropical fruit up front, peanut butter and chocolate underneath. Bright and heavy at once. You can even imagine the evening chorus of frogs from the lagoon while sipping on this gem.

Origin: Apaneca, Ahuachapán, El Salvador
Elevation: 1,450–1,780 MASL
Varietals: Bourbon, Pacamara, Sarchimor, Pacas, Catuai, Caturra
Process: Honey (pulped natural), clay patio dried