Lot El Perezoso was grown on three friendly farms in the West Valley region which is located in the heart of Costa Rica. Let’s have a little introduction to the farms.
1st The ‘El Tanque’ farm is the pride of siblings Johana and Alonso Porras Cabezas. Despite their professional careers they inherited their parents’ passion for coffee production. They carefully maintain the farm and grow the Caturra and Catuaí varieties that their father cultivated and restored for many years. The proof of their efforts is a steady quality harvest every year.
2nd The farm ‘El Sol Del Este’ belongs to Gabriela Rojas Calvo. Her passion for producing excellent coffee goes beyond farming. She is passionate about tasting coffee and enjoys teaching other producers associated with Coopronaranjo R.L.
Gerardo Enrique Salazar Gonzales is the owner of the 3rd beautiful estate called “Don Chano”. His coffee farm could easily be mistaken for a botanical garden with natural, organic farming practices and a wide selection of productive and high quality coffee varieties.
All three estates together produce approximately 550 fanegas per year equivalent to 250 bags of 69 kg each after processing.
The ‘Perezoso Honey’ lot takes its name from the iconic Costa Rican sloth a popular animal known for its distinctive long-haired appearance and tree-dwelling habits. The sloth embodies calmness and slowness as well as the careful and methodical process of growing coffee on these farms.
Throughout the year, the Porras siblings employ three people but during the harvest season the number of employees increases to 20 to 30. Gabriela similarly employs three maintenance workers but needs a team of up to 50 people at harvest time. Gerardo who usually works alone but occasionally needs a few extra hands needs the least number of people and hires eight people for the harvest.
The local soil is rich in nutrients ideal for growing coffee and the farms are at an optimum altitude. In response to disease and climate change new varieties have been bred over the last 20 years that are disease and drought resistant have higher productivity and excellent cup quality. These varieties require greater plant spacing ripen faster and produce higher yields. They also require more chemical or natural fertiliser based on soil analysis. Farms are emphasising shade cultivation, especially in view of the current climatic problems. All fertilizers used are approved by the Costa Rican Ministry of Agriculture and there is a strong trend towards the use of microorganisms and natural soil and foliar amendments to maintain soil perfection.
Coopronaranjo R.L., to which our farmers belong, provides ongoing and free support to affiliated producers who also follow a schedule of agricultural activities to monitor costs and production activities. Among other things it also helps them to process the coffee. The processing of the coffee follows specific steps from the removal of the pulp and the first separation of the parchment to drying in the sun on African beds for 12 to 20 days depending on the weather. When the ideal moisture level is approached laboratory tests are carried out for moisture, density and cupping. Once these have been completed, the coffee is bagged and stored.
The microlots are stored in parchment in nylon bags in silo 11 for 2 to 4 months before shipping.
Notes from our baristas:
Espresso:
Coffee behaves beautifully stable on espresso. The body is dominated by a pleasant citric acidity reminiscent of sweet tangerine, which gradually transforms in the mouth into sweet notes reminiscent of chocolate or perhaps snickers. The coffee is beautifully round and sweet. The recipe worked best for us with a ratio of 1 : 2.26 at a time of just over thirty seconds.
