Central America

Geisha & Pacamara

Normally, we would expect to see fresh arrivals from countries like Brazil and Burundi by this point in the year, but for now, we patiently await their arrival in Europe, confident that we’ve made delicious decisions over the past few months, in constant conversation with our valued partners. We’re also beginning our preparations for summer arrivals, through calls with Ethiopian partners, and an upcoming trip to Kenya, spending time at Long Miles’ Thunguri station during its first full harvest.

So for this month’s subscription, we continue with a final release from Central America. This, however, is no disappointment for us. As much as we feel almost hard-wired to crave fresh coffees and new experiences, Central America is one of our favourite parts of the world to work in as coffee buyers. This month, we’re featuring coffees from two of our favourite countries, and favourite producers. True trailblazers, boundary pushers, and importantly, talented and warm individuals. Raul Rivera is a 3 time Cup of Excellence winner, and is legendary throughout the coffee world for his mastery of the Pacamara varietal. His natural Pacamara brings a heavier, richer expression of the varietal than the honey processed version many of you enjoyed a few weeks ago. Daisy and Pepe Fallas have been able to take advantage of the knowledge pool of Exclusive Coffees’ producers, and their dedication and meticulous approach from years of breeding pedigree dogs, to become an instant success in the speciality coffee market. A very limited lot, we’re excited to share this delicate and floral honey-processed Geisha with you this month.

Raul Rivera

The Cup of Excellence

Years of work have resulted in three overall wins, in 2014, 2017 and 2019, all with their honey-processed Pacamara. The pine from the old timber plantations has been retained as shade for the coffee, always reminding us of a Danish pine forest during our visits. Visiting Raul is always a treat, he’s a genuinely passionate and professional coffee producer who’s enthusiasm is rather infectious, in fact it’s sometimes difficult to leave Finca Santa Rosa, as Raul is always keen to share his knowledge and experience. The pride he takes in every single detail of the farm and step of the process is obvious, and this translates into the incredibly high quality lots of coffee he is able to produce. During our most recent visit in March 2020, we were also able to visit Raul’s small cupping lab in San Salvador and taste some of the truly special lots he was considering entering into the Cup of Excellence. This naturally processed Pacamara brings an extra dimension of ripe fruit to the cup compared to the honey version you enjoyed last month, with rich stewed berries joining the fresh and floral character of the varietal.

Costa Rica

The Talamanca Sierra spine

We buy coffees from a long spine of Costa Rica, running through the country’s capital San Jose. This spine is famous for high quality coffee production the world over, resulting in high prices for farmers. One of the reasons for this is plentiful high altitude, the Talamanca Sierra runs through the region, with peaks of above 3000 masl. This spine is split into 3 regions, the West Valley and Central Valley to the north of San Jose, and Tarrazu to the south. In all of these areas, but especially in Tarrazu, agriculture and coffee growing is a main employer, vital to the economy. In fact, the population of Tarrazu is multiplied by three during harvest season, when workers flock to the region for the high wages paid to skilled pickers. The entire spine is mainly of volcanic origin, helping to provide fertile soils conducive to the production of consistently high scoring coffees, which we keep going back for.