Aquiares Ethiopian Heirloom Red Honey Process

During our recent visit to Costa Rica, we were introduced to Diego Robelo, who welcomed us to the Aqiares Estate. This 2283 acre farm is located high on the slopes of Costa Rica’s Turrialba Volcano. Amid this estate is the Aquiares community, where 1800 people live among the coffee and the farm. Once owned by the estate, the homes were offered up to the workers at a discounted price, which allowed the workers to live near their work. Today, 96% of Aquiares workers own their own home, and their children are all educated. Pickers, who are seasonal, can stay in housing on site, and mothers can place their children in day care centers on the estate so they may carry on their workday.

Coffee from Aquiares is produced with care for its employees, and with respect for the land and the natural forest which accounts for 20% of Aquiares land.

Aquiares was the first Costa Rican coffee farm to obtain Certification from the Rainforest Alliance Climate Module. Aquiares has now been certified Carbon Neutral, and is actually Carbon Negative!

Organic buffer zones protect over 30 streams and 50 springs on the property which are the source of drinking water for 3 surrounding communities. Aquiares manages the entire coffee production chain from seedling to the roast profile. This allows for a transparent and traceable chainé The on-site mill or Beneficio was the first to be registered with ICAFE and thus has the ID number #001.

We are proud to have made the connection with Diego and Aquiares, and have cooperated with our importers to begin a journey with Aquiares coffee and the Brulerie des Monts. As such we will be offering 3 different coffees from the past year.

We are priveledged to be able to offer our customers this rare gift from Aquiares, this has an extremely limited availability; the profile is complex and over the top for a Costa Rican  coffee.

A cross between Rume Sudan from Ethiopia and Sarchimor from Central America. This coffee enjoys the shaded conditions of Aquiares.

Red Honey Process

This Red-honey-processed coffee comes from selected high altitude lots in the farm, which are carefully hand-picked and brought in small batches of separate varieties to be de-pulped at the Beneficio. By leaving the mucilage attached, and allowing coffee to a slow (2-3 weeks) sun drying process, we have come to obtain a cup with a complexity that transcends borders, with unique caramel and fruity characteristics.

Region: Turrialba

Process: Red Honey

Botanical Variety: Ethiopian Heirloom

Processing: On-site Micro-mill

Grade: Heirloom

Altitude: 1100 to 1250 M

Harvest: October to January