Costa Rica Black Honey Flavor Profile and Characteristics

For professional barista exchanges, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style)

Coffee Origin Information

Country: Costa Rica

Grade: SHB

Region: Tarrazu

Roast Level: Medium Roast

Processing Method: Black Honey Process

Variety: Catuai

Estate: La Minita Estate

Flavor Notes: Preserved plum, honey, brown sugar

About Catuai Variety

Catuai is a coffee variety that is an artificial hybrid of Caturra and Mondu Novo. Catuai has relatively good resistance to natural disasters, particularly wind and rain.

The Catuai tree is relatively short. Compared to other coffee trees, Catuai fruits grow more compactly and are not easy to harvest. The fruits come in both red and yellow varieties. To date, no superior taste has been found in yellow fruits compared to red fruits. In fact, some people have discovered in cupping that although coffee processed from some yellow fruits has good acidity, the cleanliness of the coffee's mouthfeel is inferior to that of red fruits.

Catuai was cultivated in Brazil and is now widely planted throughout Central America.

Brewing Parameters

Pour-over black honey: 15g of coffee grounds, medium grind (Fujima Fujiyama ghost tooth grinder #4), V60 dripper, water temperature 88-89°C. First pour 30g of water, let bloom for 27 seconds. Pour to 105g and stop pouring, wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to halfway, then slowly pour until reaching 225g. Avoid the tail section. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Tarrazu Region

The country's most famous growing region is Tarrazu, near the capital San José. The Tarrazu region has the highest average latitude, excellent climate, and soil conditions, making it Costa Rica's most famous and generally recognized best major coffee-producing region. Tres Rios is a famous sub-region within the Tarrazu region. The most famous Costa Rican single-estate coffee in the specialty coffee world is La Minita Estate in the Tarrazu region, with an annual production of only 160,000 pounds.

Its three most famous origins are Tarrazu, located south of Costa Rica's capital San José, as well as the Central Valley and Western Valley regions. Among these are distributed many excellent independent estates, all carefully cultivating more refined washed and honey-processed coffee beans. Let us look forward to more honey-processed coffee surprises from Costa Rica.

Honey Processing Methods

The honey processing methods we commonly see include: Yellow Honey, Red Honey, and Black Honey.

Yellow Honey: About 40% of mucilage is removed; drying requires the most direct heat absorption, receiving maximum sunlight for drying, taking about 8 days to reach stable moisture content.

Red Honey: About 25% of mucilage is removed; compared to yellow honey, drying time is longer, and direct sunlight exposure time is reduced, even using shade nets, taking about 12 days.

Black Honey: Almost no mucilage is removed; drying takes the longest time, at least 2 weeks, using coverings to avoid too much intense sunlight, preventing too rapid drying and allowing more complete sugar conversion.

Costa Rican Coffee Quality

Although Costa Rica has gained recognition from coffee connoisseurs through honey-processed coffee beans, this is inseparable from Costa Rica's superior geographical and climatic conditions, and the fact that all cultivated coffee varieties are Arabica. Costa Rica's high-quality coffee beans are called "Strictly Hard Bean" (SHB), followed by Hard Bean (HB) and Semi-Hard Bean (SH), with quality decreasing in order. This is also its grading system. Strictly Hard Bean grows at altitudes above 1500 meters, and altitude has always represented coffee quality - higher altitude means better quality. Additionally, the high altitude drop creates abundant rainfall, which is very beneficial for coffee tree growth. Moreover, the low temperatures at high altitudes at night slow down tree growth, allowing coffee fruits to absorb more nutrients, resulting in richer coffee flavors.

Tasting Notes

Flavor: Preserved plum, honey, brown sugar, orange blossom, white chocolate

Mouthfeel: Excellent sweetness, gentle fruit acidity, round and full-bodied, persistent aftertaste

This batch from La Minita Estate's black honey processing comes from the famous Tarrazu region of Costa Rica. Although the development of specialty coffee started relatively late, Costa Rica's specialty coffee development is now rapid. With its mild fruit acidity from honey processing, smooth mouthfeel, and sweet, high-quality berry flavors, it cannot be underestimated. Black honey retains about 80% of the mucilage pulp. Their most obvious difference is that from yellow, red, to black, each is progressively sweeter than the last. Combined with richer fruit notes, they are deeply loved by coffee connoisseurs.

Product Information

Manufacturer: Coffee Workshop
Address: No. 10 Bao'an Front Street, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou City
Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 227g
Packaging: Bulk coffee beans
Roast Level: Raw/Cooked Degree: Roasted coffee beans
Sugar Content: Sugar-free
Origin: Costa Rica
Roast Level: Medium Roast

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473