Costa Rica Black Honey Flavor Profile and Characteristics

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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 the Catuai Variety

Catuai is a coffee variety created by artificially hybridizing Caturra and Mundo Novo. It has relatively good resistance to natural disasters, especially wind and rain.

The Catuai tree is fairly short. Compared with other coffee trees, Catuai fruit grows more compactly and is harder to harvest. The fruit comes in both red and yellow varieties. To date, no superior flavor has been found in yellow fruit compared with red. In fact, some cuppers have found that although coffee processed from certain yellow fruit has good acidity, its flavor cleanliness is inferior to that of red fruit.

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

Brewing Parameters

Pour-over black honey: 15g of coffee ground to a medium consistency (Fujima Fujiyama ghost-tooth grinder setting #4) in a V60 dripper, with water at 88-89°C. First pour 30g of water and let it bloom for 27 seconds. Pour to 105g and stop, then wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops halfway before slowly pouring to 225g. Avoid the tail end. 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. Tarrazu has the highest average altitude in Costa Rica along with excellent climate and soil conditions, making it the country's most famous and generally recognized best major coffee-producing region. Tres Rios is a well-known sub-region within Tarrazu. The most famous Costa Rican single-estate coffee in the specialty coffee world is La Minita Estate in Tarrazu, with an annual production of only 160,000 pounds.

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

Honey Processing Methods

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

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

Red Honey: About 25% of the mucilage is removed; compared with yellow honey, drying takes longer and direct sunlight exposure is reduced, sometimes with shade nets, taking about 12 days.

Black Honey: Almost no mucilage is removed; drying takes the longest, at least 2 weeks, using coverings to avoid overly intense sunlight so the coffee does not dry too quickly and sugar conversion is more complete.

Costa Rican Coffee Quality

Although Costa Rica has earned the recognition of coffee connoisseurs through its honey-processed beans, this is inseparable from its superior geography and climate, and from the fact that every cultivated variety is Arabica. Costa Rica's highest-quality coffee beans are graded "Strictly Hard Bean" (SHB), followed by Hard Bean (HB) and Semi-Hard Bean (SH), in decreasing order of quality — this is also its grading system. Strictly Hard Bean grows above 1,500 meters, and altitude has always stood in for coffee quality: the higher the altitude, the better. The high-altitude drop also brings abundant rainfall, which greatly benefits coffee tree growth. In addition, the low nighttime temperatures at high altitude slow the trees' growth, allowing the fruit to absorb more nutrients and producing 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, with a 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 here, Costa Rica's specialty coffee scene is now growing quickly. 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. The most obvious difference between these processes is that from yellow through 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: FrontStreet Coffee
Address: No. 10 Bao'an Front Street, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou City
Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 227g
Packaging: Bulk coffee beans
Bean State: Roasted coffee beans
Sugar Content: Sugar-free
Origin: Costa Rica
Roast Level: Medium Roast

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If the honey-processed sweetness of this Costa Rican cup appeals to you, FrontStreet Coffee's Brazil Cerrado Red Bourbon is a close cousin worth trying. It is pulped-natural processed — a technique that leaves some mucilage on the bean, much like honey processing — and medium roasted to bring out creamy peanut, toasted bread, caramel and hazelnut aromas with a round, plump body and almost no acidity. It works equally well as a pour-over or in a moka pot, espresso machine or siphon.

For an even sweeter, more fruit-forward Brazilian profile, FrontStreet Coffee's Queen's Farm Yellow Bourbon delivers a clean sugarcane sweetness with fruit and chocolate notes; it is also a favorite base for FrontStreet Coffee's espresso blends, where its gentle acidity and balance help keep extraction steady in milk drinks.