Restrained complexity, brown sugar, hazelnut, roasted barley, apple-like acidity, and a clean, disappearing aftertaste. Chocolate at the front of the cup in darker roasts.
This lot was produced at a family run micro-mill, “Don Oscar”, in the Tarrazu valley. This area is part of the Talamanca Sierra highlands, with peaks reaching as high as 3000 meters. It’s an ideal micro-region and climate for growing coffee with rich volcanic soil, great altitude, and is shaded from the hot afternoon suns by mountain peaks. The farm is run by brothers Horacio and Alejandro Solis, and the name “Don Oscar” is in honor of their late father, Oscar Solis, who began farming on this land.
Their farm is broken into 40 different lots (this lot being “La Vuelta”), and is planted in a mix of Red Catuai and Caturra. They produce mechanically washed coffee, which is fairly standard in Costa Rica. In this case, they are running a Penagos brand mechanical demucilager that uses very little water to remove most of the coffee cherry fruit, forgoing the fermentation stage altogether. The coffee is then laid to dry outside in the sun on raised beds, often finished off in a mechanical dryer that they use the parchment that is removed from green coffee to fuel.
Bean Spec:
- Origin: Costa Rica
- Region: Tarazzu
- Farm: Don Oscar
- Producer: Horacio and Alejandro Solis
- Altitude: 1670-1900m
- Cultivar: Catuaí
- Processing: mechanical washed