Costa Rica Dota El Diosa Geisha

Origin: Costa Rica

Region: Tarrazu

Estate: Dota EI Diosa

Variety: Geisha

Altitude: 1800m

Processing: Anaerobic Enzyme Washed

Region Introduction

Costa Rica's coffee growing areas feature volcanic terrain with fertile volcanic ash, mild and suitable temperatures, and stable, abundant rainfall—all factors contributing to coffee becoming one of Costa Rica's main agricultural products. Coffee beans produced in the high-altitude regions of Costa Rica are world-renowned for being rich, mild in flavor, yet highly acidic. The coffee beans here are carefully processed, which is why they achieve such high quality.

Costa Rica's coffee harvest season can be divided into two periods annually. The dry season, from December to April, is when coffee harvesting takes place, while the wet (rainy) season occurs from May to November. In recent years, micro-mills have been established in increasing numbers. Since they require only 5% of the water consumption of traditional washed processing plants and don't need large water tanks or extensive drying grounds, the required investment is relatively small. "Honey-processed coffee," characterized by lower acidity, increased complexity, and sweet, rich aroma, has thus become a sought-after commodity in the coffee world in recent years.

Located south of Costa Rica's capital San José, Tarrazú is one of the country's valued coffee growing regions. Among Costa Rica's many excellent producing areas, one famous region stands out—Tarrazu. Tarrazu is extremely prestigious in the specialty coffee world and is one of the world's major coffee producing regions.

Tarrazú is situated in the fertile volcanic region of Central America, featuring a humid climate and fertile volcanic rock soil. With abundant rainfall throughout the year, high altitude, and dense natural forest shade, it provides an exceptionally advantageous growing environment for coffee. No pesticides or artificial fertilizers are used during cultivation. Nearly 95% of coffee beans produced in the high mountains of Tarrazu belong to the Strictly Hard Bean (SHB) category, typically grown at altitudes above 1,500 meters.

Diosa Estate

Diosa Estate is located in the Dota region within Costa Rica's most renowned Tarrazu area, known for producing micro-lots of the Geisha variety.

As early as 1865, the Dota region enjoyed a reputation for fine Costa Rican coffee. When highway construction extending from the capital reached the Dota Valley, it had to pass through the Tarrazu region. Consequently, when the Costa Rican Coffee Institute later designated producing regions, it became customary to label it as "Dota Tarrazu." This region is a typical highland terrain where both soil conditions and temperature/humidity are optimal for coffee cultivation.

Diosa Estate was established in the 1960s. The estate owner is very good friends with Pachi Serracin, who is now famous as the "Father of Panamanian Geisha." Pachi Serracin brought the Geisha variety back from CATIE, Costa Rica's world-leading scientific research station for coffee species and varieties. Diosa Estate grows coffee using organic methods, utilizing local native trees and fruit trees as shade for the coffee plants.

The fertilizers used are also organic, made from coffee cherry pulp mixed with molasses, combined with mineral-rich soil from nearby mountains, and fermented with microorganisms to create organic fertilizer that enhances the coffee plants' disease resistance. They also habitually use California earthworms for soil cultivation and directly use them as the main nutrient source for coffee trees during fertilization periods. Multiple coffee varieties are interplanted, with only fully ripe red-purple berries being harvested through selective picking. They tightly control the soaking and fermentation process, developing a very unique constant-temperature processing method. The precisely controlled fermentation degree—not too much, not too little—achieves an excellent balance between coffee clarity and complexity, resulting in more stable flavor profiles that are truly intoxicating.

Geisha Variety

Geisha is pronounced the same as the Japanese word "geisha," hence it is also known as "Geisha coffee." Because the tree variety is taller than typical coffee trees, it was originally planted in a small area within the estate and used as a windbreak.

The Geisha variety was discovered in the Geisha forest of Ethiopia in 1931 and then sent to the Coffee Research Institute in Kenya. In 1936, it was introduced to Uganda and Tanzania, and in 1953, it was brought to Costa Rica. For a long time, Geisha didn't receive much attention until one day when Don Pachi first brought it from the small town of GESHA in southwestern Ethiopia to Costa Rica. Later, Geisha entered Panama along the southern route. Panama's Hacienda La Esmeralda separated it from other varieties and it won the national coffee competition championship.

Processing Method

Anaerobic Enzyme Washed

Anaerobic enzyme washed processing refers to the method where, after harvesting fully ripe red cherries and removing the pulp and mucilage using mechanical washing equipment, enzymes are added to the fermentation tank to enhance the coffee's flavor and sweetness.

Green Bean Analysis

The green beans appear elongated and light green in color. Unlike the typical grassy smell of green beans, Diosa Estate's Geisha smells not only of grass but also carries clear aromas of bergamot and berries.

Roasting Analysis

Considering that Costa Rican beans are generally hard with medium moisture content, FrontStreet Coffee's roaster chose to use high-temperature roasting with rapid dehydration and a relatively fast roasting rhythm to express the fruit flavors and floral notes of this Diosa Estate Geisha.

Roasting machine: Yangjia 800N (300g batch size)

Drum temperature 170°C at entry, heat at 120, damper open to 3; Return to temperature at 1'36", when drum temperature reaches 140°C, open damper to 4, heat unchanged; When drum temperature reaches 149°C, bean surface turns yellow, grassy smell completely disappears, entering dehydration stage. When drum temperature reaches 166°C, adjust heat to 110°, damper unchanged;

At 7'09", ugly wrinkles and black spots appear on the bean surface, toast smell clearly transforms to coffee aroma, which can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this point, listen carefully for the sound of first crack. At 8'25", first crack begins, adjust damper to 5 (heat adjustment must be very careful, not so small as to eliminate cracking sounds). After first crack, develop for 1'30", discharge at 190°C.

Agtron bean color value 72.9 (above image), Agtron grounds color value 88.2 (below image), Roast Delta value 15.3.

Cupping Report

Flavor: Rose, lemon, honey, maple, fruit tea

Brewing

Recommended brewing method: Pour-over

Dripper: Hario V60

Water temperature: 90-92°C

Dose: 15g

Ratio: 1:15/1:16

Grind size: Medium-fine (BG 7T: 58% pass-through rate on China standard #20 sieve)

Brewing technique:分段式萃取 (Segmented extraction) - Use 30g of water for bloom for 30 seconds. When pouring with small水流 (water flow) in circles to 124g, segment. When water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 227g and stop pouring. When water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, remove the dripper. (Timing starts from bloom) Extraction time: 2'01".

Flavor: Overall, the floral notes are quite prominent, with lemon and fruit tea characteristics. The entry has citrus and cream flavors, with a relatively refreshing and sweet taste on the palate.

More Sharing

[FrontStreet Coffee's Bean Hunting Notes] Nicaragua·Los Congos Estate Villa Sarchi Variety Special Report

[FrontStreet Coffee's Bean Hunting Notes] After trying whiskey barrel processing, why not try some rum barrel processed coffee?

[FrontStreet Coffee's Bean Hunting Notes] Lactic natural process coffee from Colombia's star estate—Palms & Toucans Estate!

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473