Costa Rica Hacienda Sonora Centroamericano natural

Costa Rica Hacienda Sonora Centroamericano natural

Hacienda Sonora is located in Costa Rica’s Central Valley, at the foot of the Poás volcano. The farm covers 100 hectares, a significant portion of which is planted with coffee trees grown in the shade of exotic trees. Coffee from Hacienda Sonora is most often naturally processed (dry), which contributes to its richness and sweetness.

Rooted in a history that stretches back more than a century, Hacienda Sonora remains connected to the specialty coffee scene as a leader in innovative processing and intercropping coffee varieties. The current owner, Alberto Guardia, has run the farm since the 1970s. Together with his son Diego, he manages all 197 acres of Sonora, keeping each coffee variety strictly separated in its own growing plot. Nearly 50 acres of Sonora are entirely forest reserve! They generate their own power and can provide their own irrigation, using the river that flows through the property as a water source.

The farm and mill cover an area of approximately 100 hectares. Of this, 45 hectares are dedicated to shade-grown coffee. The coffee shrubs are surrounded by exotic trees and other native vegetation. This biodiversity benefits soil health and helps maintain nutrient-rich soil, supporting the growth of plump, flavorful coffee cherries. The remaining land consists of 35 hectares of wild forest and 20 hectares planted with sugarcane—a crop that has been grown on Hacienda Sonora’s land for more than 150 years.

Hacienda Sonora has its own micro mill, allowing it to separate coffee lots by variety and create unique microlots. The mill is located at the center of the farm, right next to the traditional sugarcane mill, which has remained unchanged for more than 150 years. This coffee lot was processed using the natural (dry) method. In fact, all coffees at Hacienda Sonora are processed using either the “honey” or natural method—this helps reduce wastewater and better protect the natural environment.

A first-generation hybrid (F1), created by crossing a variety resistant to coffee leaf rust (/varieties/t5296) with an Ethiopian landrace called Rume Sudan. The Centroamericano variety is resistant to coffee leaf rust and exceptionally high-yielding (breeding trials recorded yield increases of 22–47% compared with standard varieties grown in Central America). With proper care and cultivation at high altitudes, Centroamericano can also produce beans with excellent sensory qualities. The variety was introduced for cultivation in Central America in 2010. It was developed through collaboration between a consortium comprising the French research institute CIRAD, the regional network of Central American national coffee institutes (PROMECAFE), and Costa Rica’s coffee gene bank (CATIE). F1 hybrids are still relatively new in coffee cultivation; only a few such varieties have been made available to farmers over the past 15 years, and only in selected countries.