Costa Rica Black Honey Coffee Flavor Profile and Characteristics

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FrontStreet Coffee's Costa Rican Giant Stone Black Honey Flavor Introduction

Although Costa Rica has gained recognition from coffee connoisseurs through its honey-processed coffee beans, this is also inseparable from Costa Rica's superior geographical and climatic conditions, and the fact that all cultivated coffee varieties are Arabica species. Costa Rica's premium coffee beans are known as "Strictly Hard Beans" (SHB), followed by Hard Beans (HB) and Semi-Hard Beans (SH) with progressively decreasing quality, which also serves as its grading system. Strictly Hard Beans grow at elevations above 1500 meters, and altitude has always represented the quality of coffee—higher altitude means better quality. Additionally, the significant elevation drop creates abundant rainfall, which is very beneficial for coffee tree growth. Moreover, the low temperatures at high altitudes at night cause slow tree growth, allowing coffee cherries to better absorb more nutrients, resulting in richer coffee flavors.

Black Honey Processing

Black honey processing retains approximately 80% of the mucilage; it requires the longest drying time, taking at least 2 weeks, using covers to avoid excessive sunlight and prevent drying too quickly, allowing for more thorough sugar conversion.

The advantage of honey processing lies in its ability to best preserve the original sweet flavor of ripe coffee cherries, presenting the coffee with delicate brown sugar flavors and fruity sweetness, while berry flavors also support a red wine-based aroma, considered to be a very elegant product.

The biggest difference between honey processing and Brazilian semi-washed processing is that the former avoids any water contact, as flawless red cherries must be selected to ensure sweet mucilage. Honey processing requires higher standards for mucilage removal machines, which must precisely control the thickness of mucilage removal, much like a grinder.

Basically, the production process of [Red Honey] is much more difficult than [Yellow Honey], but its flavor profile has more depth. At first sip, it has a slightly wild taste, but instantly transforms into rich fruity sweetness, resembling the refined fermentation aroma of famous Yirgacheffe sun-dried beans Biloya and Aricha, which is truly impressive.

Costa Rican Giant Stone Estate

Country: Costa Rica

Estate: Giant Stone Estate

Grade: SHB (Strictly Hard Bean)

Processing Method: Black Honey Processing

Altitude: 1700-1800m

Varieties: Caturra, Catuai

Flavor Notes: Strawberry, fermentation aroma, raisin, citrus, nuts, almond, dark plum; the mouthfeel is quite prominent with rich layers, and the aftertaste has a distinct fermentation aroma.

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