Costa Rica Pacamara Natural - Finca Las Mercedes

Pacamara Natural is a small-lot coffee from Mela's Garden at Finca Las Mercedes in Tarrazú, grown by Mela Gamboa at 1,800 meters. Pacamara is coffee's boldest varietal. Its oversized beans come from decades of Salvadoran breeding that crossed sweet, compact Pacas with the giant Maragogipe. This natural-processed lot is sun-dried slowly on raised beds to bring out its layered character: zesty lemon citrus, ripe strawberry, and a clean grapefruit finish. There's nothing subtle about it, and that's the point.

• Certifications: Direct-Trade Partnership
• Flavor Notes: Lemon Citrus, Strawberry, and Grapefruit
• Varietal: Pacamara (Pacas × Maragogipe)
• Processing: Natural Process
• Roast: Light Roast
• Drying: Sun-Dried on African Raised Beds
• Farm: Finca Las Mercedes (Mela Gamboa), San Marcos, Tarrazú
• Altitude: 5,900 Feet (1,800 m)

Pacamara: Thirty Years in the Making

In 1958, scientists at El Salvador's Salvadoran Institute for Coffee Research (ISIC) began crossing Pacas, a sweet, compact Bourbon mutation, with Maragogipe, the famously giant-beaned Typica mutation. They were after size and character in the same cup, and the work took around 30 years. Family line: Pacas × Maragogipe → Pacamara. Today Pacamara is known for its large beans and complex, layered cup.

A Varietal Garden Built for Microlots

Mela's Garden is Finca Las Mercedes' varietal program, developed specifically for microlots. The goal is exclusive varieties with high cup-quality potential and a wider range of flavor for coffee lovers. Because each lot is small, Mela's team manages it closely and puts cup profile ahead of volume. The coffee grows at 1,800 meters under a regenerative, shade-grown canopy of avocado, citrus, guava, plantain and banana trees.

Natural Process, Carefully Managed

Mela chooses natural processing for her microlot varieties. It lets each small lot be handled separately and gives her more control over drying. The cherries dry slowly and completely in the sun on African raised beds, where air circulates around every cherry. Managed carefully, Mela says, natural processing highlights a coffee's "inherent fruit character, sweetness, and complexity," which is exactly what Pacamara's bright citrus and berry notes need.