Espirito Santo

The Montanhas do Espirito Santo coffee growing region lies in the western highlands of the state of Espirito Santo. Coffee farms here are distinct from those in the rest of Brazil in several ways. Production here more closely resembles that in other countries in South America, with small family-owned farms perched on steep mountainsides. The climate is rather cool due to the influence of the nearby Atlantic ocean, and the mountainous terrain creates many distinct microclimates, leading to perfect conditions for growing slow-maturing high quality Arabica coffees. Due to the steep terrain, most producers in Espirito Santo pick by hand, unlike much of Brazil. These conditions, alongside the varying techniques of many small scale farmers, result in distinct and characterful coffees, most of which are harvested 1-2 months later than the rest of the country. Coffees from Espirito Santo tend to have higher acidity and more distinct fresh fruit notes than many other Brazilian coffees.

About La Cabra

A focus on raw material

If we don’t feel that a coffee suits our style or what we like to present, we simply won’t buy it. Sometimes this leads to issues in green buying; we have to pay very close attention, to a level of green quality that will support this approach, and to how this will develop over the life of a coffee. We are required to focus heavily on the freshness of coffee, both green and roasted, to avoid introducing taints into our cups. We always use clean and fresh water, of an ideal mineral content to present the coffee in its best possible light. Once we have the correct roasting profile, water, and coffee age, the act of brewing is much more simple. A wide variance in brewing parameters can still produce delicious and transparent cups. It is also important to note that this is not always the most consistent approach. The coffee is laid completely bare, so any flaw with the raw material is clearly on show. We could often develop some coffees slightly more, to make them more approachable or easy to work with, but wavering from our philosophy like this would compromise our commitment to complete transparency in coffee.