Costa Rica Black Honey Flavor Description Which Brand of Black Honey Coffee is Best

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Costa Rica's Premier Coffee Regions

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

Exceptional Growing Areas

Its three most famous growing areas include Tarrazu, located south of Costa Rica's capital San José, as well as the Central Valley and Western Valley regions. Many excellent independent estates are distributed throughout these areas, all dedicated to cultivating more refined washed and honey-processed coffee beans. Let's look forward to Costa Rica bringing us more surprises with honey-processed coffees.

Honey Processing Methods

We typically see three main honey processing methods: Yellow Honey, Red Honey, and Black Honey.

Yellow Honey

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

Red Honey

About 25% of the mucilage is removed; compared to Yellow Honey, the drying time is longer, and direct sunlight exposure is reduced, even using shade structures, taking about 12 days.

Black Honey

Almost no mucilage is removed; the drying time is the longest, taking at least 2 weeks, using coverings to avoid excessive sunlight, preventing too-rapid drying and allowing more complete sugar conversion.

Brewing Method

Pour-over Black Honey: 15g of coffee, medium grind (using Fuji's ghost tooth grinder #4), V60 dripper, water temperature 88-89°C. First pour 30g of water for a 27-second bloom, then pour to 105g and stop. Wait until the water level drops to half before pouring again, slowly pouring until reaching 225g. Discard the tail end. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Quality and Growing Conditions

Although Costa Rica has gained recognition from coffee connoisseurs through its honey-processed coffee beans, this is inseparable from Costa Rica's superior geographical and climate conditions, as well as the exclusive cultivation of Arabica varieties. Costa Rica's premium coffee beans are called "Strictly Hard Bean" (SHB), followed by Hard Bean (HB) and Semi-Hard (SH), with quality decreasing respectively. This also serves as their grading system. SHB grows at elevations above 1,500 meters, and altitude has always represented coffee quality - higher altitude means better quality. Additionally, the significant elevation drop creates abundant rainfall, which is very beneficial for coffee tree growth. Moreover, the cool night temperatures at high altitudes slow tree growth, allowing coffee cherries to absorb more nutrients, resulting in richer coffee flavors.

Flavor Profile

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

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

This batch of Black Honey processed coffee from the Fara Mí estate comes from Costa Rica's famous Tarrazú region. Although Costa Rica started developing specialty coffee relatively late, its specialty coffee industry has grown rapidly. With honey processing offering mild fruit acidity, smooth mouthfeel, and sweet, premium berry flavors, it has become a force to be reckoned with. Black Honey retains about 80% of the mucilage, with their most obvious difference being progressively sweeter from yellow to red to black. Combined with richer fruit notes, it's deeply loved by coffee connoisseurs.

Product Information

Manufacturer: Cafe Style
Address: No. 10 Bao'an Qianjie, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou
Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 227g
Packaging: Bulk coffee beans
Roast Level: Roasted coffee beans
Sugar Content: Sugar-free
Origin: Costa Rica
Roast Degree: Medium roast

Technical Specifications

Country: Costa Rica

Grade: SHB

Region: Tarrazu

Roast Level: Medium roast

Processing Method: Black Honey

Variety: Catuai

Estate: Fara Mí Estate

Flavor: Preserved plum, honey, brown sugar

Catuai Variety

Catuai is a man-made hybrid coffee variety of Caturra and Mundo Novo. Catuai has good resistance to natural disasters, particularly wind and rain.

Catuai trees are relatively low-growing compared to other coffee trees. Catuai's fruits grow more firmly 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 ones. In fact, some people have discovered in cupping tests that although coffee processed from yellow fruits has good acidity, the cleanliness of the coffee's mouthfeel is inferior to that from red fruits.

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

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