Are Costa Rican Organic Coffee Beans Expensive? How Do Costa Rican Coffee Beans Taste?

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The Origins of Costa Rican Coffee

Coffee beans produced in the high-altitude regions of Costa Rica are world-renowned for being rich, mild in flavor, yet extremely acidic. The coffee beans from Costa Rica are all carefully processed, which is precisely why they achieve such high quality. Costa Rica is located south of the capital San José and is one of the country's most valued coffee-growing regions.

Tarrazú in Costa Rica is one of the world's major coffee-producing areas, where the coffee produced has a light and pure flavor with a pleasant aroma. Costa Rica's volcanic soil is extremely fertile and has good drainage, making it the first country in Central America to grow coffee and bananas for commercial purposes. Coffee and bananas are the country's main export commodities. In 1729, coffee was introduced to Costa Rica from Cuba, and today, its coffee industry is one of the most well-organized in the world, with yields reaching up to 1,700 kilograms per hectare. With a population of only 3.5 million, Costa Rica has as many as 400 million coffee trees, and coffee exports account for 25% of the country's total export value. Costa Rica also benefits from the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) established in Tarrazú, which is an important international research center.

Strictly Hard Bean (S.H.B.)

Premium Costa Rican coffee beans are called "Strictly Hard Beans," which can grow at altitudes above 1,500 meters. Altitude has always been a challenge for coffee growers. The higher the altitude, the better the coffee beans—not only because higher altitudes increase the acidity of the beans, thereby enhancing flavor, but also because the lower nighttime temperatures at higher elevations slow tree growth, resulting in more intense coffee bean flavors. Additionally, the elevation differences create abundant rainfall, which is also very beneficial for coffee tree growth.

S.H.B. refers to Strictly Hard Beans grown at altitudes above 1,500 meters, signifying high-quality Costa Rican coffee beans. These particularly hard coffee beans, suitable for medium and dark roasting, have strong acidity and captivating aromas. Costa Rican SHG coffee typically has full-bodied beans, clear flavor, bright acidity, and ideal viscosity. The robust flavor creates a long-lasting aftertaste that lingers in the throat, making it unforgettable.

Notable Costa Rican Coffee Varieties

Other coffees worth mentioning include: Juan Viñas (PR), H. Tournon, Windmill (SHB), Montebello, and Santa Rosa. Premium coffee generally grows in Heredia and the Central Valley. Another notable coffee is Sarchí coffee (Sarchí is one of the five towns representing Costa Rica's "Coffee Route"), which grows on the slopes of the Poás Volcano, 53 kilometers from San José. The Sarchí company was founded in 1949, with a land area of 30,770 hectares planted with sugarcane and coffee. This region is also famous for handicrafts, attracting tourists from around the world.

Fire Phoenix Estate

Fire Phoenix Estate is located on the fertile hills of the Poás Volcano in Costa Rica's Central Valley. It is one of the earliest producers in Central and South America to start producing honey-processed and natural-processed coffees. It is a completely 100% organically grown coffee estate. The estate owner believes that organic farming methods are better choices for environmental protection and the health of family members, and despite facing many technical and organizational challenges, they persist in this belief.

The estate places great emphasis on environmental protection concepts, such as collecting rainwater to process coffee and using organic compost from vermiculture (worm composting) to ensure the growing process is completely free of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. The high-quality coffee produced by this estate is very unique, with its greatest feature being an amazingly sweet taste—100% organic coffee! It gained fame in 2009 when participating in the Specialty Coffee Competition.

During the harvest season, a refractometer (Brix meter) commonly used in the wine industry is used to measure the sugar content of the fruit. The optimal harvest time and processing method are determined based on brix sugar content, and only those exceeding 20% sweetness are processed as natural. The Brix values of general fruits are: apples at 14, lemons at 12, passion fruit at 18, but the coffee cherries at Fire Phoenix Estate can reach 21-22.

Honey Processing Method

Costa Rican coffee beans have a long history of cultivation, but in the past 10+ years, the innovative "dry" processing method has become popular, collectively known as the new "honey processing" method. Honey processing is a processing method that lies between natural and washed processing. It allows the coffee to retain the cleanliness of washed processing while significantly increasing the coffee's sweetness and caramel flavors due to sun-drying with the pulp mucilage (which has extremely high sugar content). Honey processing first appeared in Costa Rica in Central America, initially mainly because some high-altitude areas in Central America lacked water resources, so after using pulp removers, coffee cherries were sun-dried together with the pulp mucilage. Honey-processed Costa Rican coffee beans are graded into three levels based on the amount of pulp retained (from most to least): Yellow Honey (20%), Red Honey (50%), and Black Honey (100%). The drying time for red honey processed green coffee beans is 2-3 weeks, usually due to weather conditions or being placed in shaded areas. If the weather is sunny, growers will partially shade to reduce sunlight exposure. The benefit of this approach is to avoid the over-fermentation sensation caused by direct sun exposure, making the overall dried fruit flavor of the coffee obvious but not overly strong, with delicate fruit aroma and thick, lasting oily texture, and a long aftertaste!

Costa Rican Coffee Bean Brand Recommendations

FrontStreet Coffee's roasted Costa Rican coffee beans offer excellent guarantees in both brand and quality. More importantly, they provide exceptional value—a 227-gram package costs only 95 yuan. Calculating at 15 grams per cup, one package can make 15 cups of coffee, with each cup costing only about 6 yuan. Compared to cafés selling cups for dozens of yuan, this is truly a conscientious recommendation.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473