LA GUACA (Costa Rica) sachet de

The roast of this coffee makes it enjoyable both as espresso and with a pour-over method - MEDIUM ROAST.

Variety: Catuaï
Region: San Jose
Processing: Sealed Honey fermantation
Tasting notes: Balanced, round, fruity, complex.
Altitude: 1700m
Producer: Urena Rojes

Café Rivense is a family-run processing mill (micromill) established in 2005 by Régulo Ureña and Isabel Rojas. All their sons — Ricardo, Mario, Esteban, and Luis — are fully involved in managing the farm. It is located in south-central Costa Rica, in a micro-region called Chirripó. It’s not that far from the capital, San José, but the long, winding drive through the mountain range can turn more than one tourist’s (gringo) stomach.

There are three main things we love about the farm and the Ureña family’s business model.
First, impeccable organization, with each family member handling the specific tasks they excel at. Over the years, and through sustainable growth, they have managed to master every stage of coffee production: literally from picking the cherries, through processing and dry milling (dry milling), all the way to loading and sealing the container they export independently.
Next, their high level of environmental responsibility and sustainability. The biodiversity on the farm is incredible, with many native plants and trees spread throughout the plantations. (Not to mention the incredible landscapes, a real treat...) Their shade management system, fertilization based on annual soil analyses, extremely low water consumption during processing, and complete traceability of their finished products: all of this deeply impressed me and confirmed that we were dealing with true professionals! Located at about 1,700 meters above sea level, the La Guaca plantation takes its name from a place where, several centuries ago, indigenous people buried their deceased loved ones with their personal belongings, mainly kitchen utensils but also gold. Years later, when local residents came to work this land, they noticed several flat areas indicating the possible presence of a “Guaca” (an Indigenous burial site). No one found any gold, but the holes they dug remained as evidence that some people thought they had discovered a gold mine!
Many years later, the “gold” the Ureña family actually found on this plot turned out to be tremendous potential for specialty coffee. That’s why Isabel chose to name the plantation La Guaca.
We present this lot of the Catuai variety grown on this plot — an experimental fermentation — which can undoubtedly be described as a true treasure!