We sourced this honey processed Costa Rican San Francisco via Falcon Specialty.
Costa Rica
Costa Rica has been producing coffee since the early 1800s. The first coffee exported was to Panama in 1820, although that coffee was bound of England. In 1825 government exempted coffee production from certain taxes, in an effort to promote the crop. As a result from 1846 to 1890 it was almost the sole export from Costa Rican.
This gave Costa Rica an advantage in the area, since coffee production infrastructure was well established by the early 1900s. Assisting with the growth of coffee production throughout Costa Rican, and adding more cultivars and processes.
In the early 2000s there was an increase in micro mills, that helped promote specialty coffees.
San Francisco
In 1990, Emilio Jimenez Castro inherited 6 hectares of land from his father. Originally used for cattle, Emilio decided to invest in coffee. He purchased a further 7 hectares and established Finca San Francisco. Alongside coffee, the farm also produces avocado, citrus and other fruits. The coffee from San Francisco is processed at ASOPROAAA – The Association of Agricultural Producers of Acosta and AsserÃ.
ASOPROAAA was established in September 1998, following the devastating destruction in the region by Hurricane Mitch. The association consists of more than 1,100 families producing coffee, citrus and farming cattle in the areas of Acosta, Jorco and Palmichal. ASOPROAAA offers financial, commercial and technical assistance to members, and employs dedicated programs to improve the livelihoods of members of the community.
More than 2000 houses were built for people with limited resources as part of a special program initiated by the association. ASOPROAAA has been influential in the revival of agricultural production in the area following Hurricane Mitch, and a pioneer in the processing of micro lots by its members. Lots from ASOPROAAA have won numerous quality awards in addition to regularly placing in the finals of the Cup of Excellence competition.
Costa Rican San Francisco
Details of the coffee are below:
| Region | Tarrazu (near Leon Cortes) Costa Rica | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farm | San Francisco | |||||||||||||
| Farmer | Emilio Jimenez Castro | |||||||||||||
| Harvest | 2017 | |||||||||||||
| Altitude | 1700 – 1750 masl | |||||||||||||
| Cultivar | Arabica Caturra & Catuai | |||||||||||||
| Processing | Honey (dried with outside skin removed) with dry milling | |||||||||||||
| Packaging | Grain Pro with Hessian | |||||||||||||
| Characteristics | Nutmeg and mango with a medium body and hint of cocoa to finish | |||||||||||||
| Roast used | What we call a bump and kick with a decrease of flame after first crack to 50% | |||||||||||||
| Other notes | Falcon listed this coffee as a microlot and with a SCA score of 85 | |||||||||||||
| Our brews: |
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louis.van (verified owner) –
Absolutely gorgeous! No bitterness, not too dark, not too sweet, slightly earthy, some chocolatey nutty goodness on the aftertaste. This one may just be my new favourite (especially if I can’t get Los Idolos again)
Warren Machanik –
Thanks. We only got this lot so enjoy while it is available. PS.We try and always have Los Idolos – only logistics is against us sometimes :).