Costa Rica Western Valley | Laura/Elsita Processing Plant Helsar White Honey Caturra Flavor?

Costa Rica West Valley | Helsar Mill White Honey Caturra Flavor Profile

Helsar Mill is considered one of the first micro-mills to arrive with the micro-mill revolution in Costa Rica, appearing on the market as early as 2007. It stands alongside pioneers of that first wave such as Herbazu, Brumas, and La Hacas. The mill owner, Ricardo Perez Barrantes, has been growing coffee in Costa Rica for more than 40 years and is an experienced producer committed to innovation in processing. From early washed processing to honey processing in recent years, he has shown outstanding results. In the early days, like other small farmers, he delivered harvested coffee cherries to medium and large mills for production. Such high-quality green coffee was mixed with ordinary batches for export, leaving farmers with minimal profit in the chain. That not only failed to encourage farmers to pursue better green bean quality, but also could not lift their standard of living.

In view of this, in 2004 the Ricardo family joined the micro-mill revolution and established Helsar Mill. At first it mainly processed green coffee from their own Santa Lucia Estate in collaboration with his brother Marvin and Felipe Rodriguez. In recent years it has also begun handling high-quality cherries produced by small farmers from micro-regions such as Lourdes de Naranjo and Llano Bonito de Naranjo in the West Valley. It has since earned high praise on the international coffee market and a considerable record of awards.

Costa Rica is a model producing country for specialty and micro-lot coffee. More than a decade ago, many coffee farmers began setting up their own micro-mills; through steady annual improvement of bean quality, they kept themselves distinct from bulk commercial beans, enabling them to obtain better prices and offer more excellent green coffee. Helsar Mill is a standard medium-sized mill in Costa Rica, not only a model for local mills but also a remarkable success on international markets over the years. In 2007 it received a high score of 91.37 points in the Cup of Excellence (CoE), earning third place that year. In 2010, the internationally renowned Coffee Review awarded it 92 points for three consecutive months, August, September, and October. In 2011 it won the Canadian Coffee Masters Championship with 651 points, and the following year it represented the country at the Vienna World Competition, once again proving the extraordinary value of the green coffee produced at Helsar Mill.

Coffee Information

Region: West Valley

Producer: Rola Estate

Mill: Helsar

Altitude: 1700m

Variety: Caturra

Processing: White Honey

Flavor Notes: Floral, white wine, citrus gummy candy, delicate and bright, light and lively acidity

FrontStreet Coffee Recommended Brewing

Dripper: Hario V60

Water Temperature: 90°C

Grind Size: Fuji Royal grinder setting 3.5

Brewing Method: Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, 15g of coffee grounds. First pour 25g of water and bloom for 25 seconds. For the second pour, go to 120g, then pause and wait until the water level drops halfway before continuing a slow pour up to 225g total. Extraction time is approximately 2:00.

Analysis: The three-stage method clearly separates the front, middle, and back-end flavors of the coffee. Because the V60 has many ribs and drains quickly, pausing during the pour helps extend the extraction time.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Honey processing grew out of Brazil's semi-washed (pulped natural) method, which removes the skin before drying to shorten drying time and avoid off-flavors from poor fermentation. Costa Rica borrowed the approach and refined it into honey processing, dividing it further into black, red, yellow, and white honey depending on how much mucilage is retained and how long the coffee dries. If this white honey Caturra appeals to you, FrontStreet Coffee's Costa Rica Blackberry goes one step further with black honey processing, which removes almost no mucilage and dries for at least two weeks under cover to keep the sugar converting slowly. The result, roasted medium-light, is floral on the grind and offers grape, berry, and ripe blackberry in the cup.

For a brighter, tea-like take, FrontStreet Coffee's Strawberry Candy, a blend of Panama Geisha and honey-processed Costa Rican coffee, brings the floral-tea character of Geisha together with raisin and blueberry notes and a soft fruit acidity. And for the boldest honey expression, FrontStreet Coffee's Costa Rica Mozart uses raisin honey processing, pre-drying the cherries on raised beds for at least three days and keeping 100% of the mucilage, which demands stricter timing than even black honey. It delivers osmanthus, pineapple, and raisin aromas whether you brew it as pour-over, cold brew, or in a moka pot.