There’s not much wrong with Costa Rican coffee. The government has instituted policies to help the coffee sector since the nation was founded in 1821, the country prohibits farmers from growing cheap commodity varietals, and Costa Rica has a thriving economy where most people thrive. Yet, Costa Rica isn’t typically one of the most sought after countries for coffee. That’s because the nation’s large mills buy cherries from small-farms and mix them together removing all of characteristics that would make the coffee special. As a result, Costa Rica sells lots of perfectly fine, well balanced coffee that nobody talks about. In response, the nation has become home to a number of highly specialized micro-mills, where unique coffees are the name of the game.
To celebrate our one-year anniversary, we wanted to find something really special and Costa Rica seemed the perfect place to look. We purchased this month’s coffee from Cup of Excellence winners Francisca and Oscar Chacon of Las Lajas micromill who specialize in natural and honey-processed coffees.
Las Lajas collects cherries from their family farms, finding the ripest cherries by measuring Brix content, just like wineries do. This particular lot had just the skin removed then was pre-dried, with the remaining fruit, on raised drying beds for a day, before being moved to a drying patio in a temperature controlled greenhouse where it stays for an entire month. The cherries are all turned over once daily. This extremely laborious process has resulted in an incredibly fruity, sweet, candy-like, winey quality than we love.
The coffee that resulted from this process is extremely well balanced and full of flavors. You may taste raspberry syrup, candied pineapple, nougat, milk chocolate, and even an aftertaste that reminds you of a bowl of fruity pebbles.
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Flavor profile
bold and fruity
candied pineapple, nougat,
zinfandel, raspberry syrup
Roast
medium
Process
black honey process
Altitude
1500 meters
Varietal/Cultivar
Villa Sarchi
Cup Score: 93.75
Producer
Oscar and Francisca Chacón
Los Pinitos, Cirri Sur,
Narnjo, West Valley
Relationship Established: 2021
Country
Costa Rica
Transparency
Green: $22.046/kg
Production: $8.973/kg
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