Clifton Coffee - Costa Rica - Aquiares Estate - Washed

Another great coffee from the famous Aquiares Estate in the volcanic region of Turrialba, Costa Rica.

With notes of walnuts, dried apple and prailine, this Costa Rican is a perfect all rounder. It’s smooth body and light brown sugar sweetness makes it an ideal brew for any time of day.

This Aquaries estate washed coffee is grown on the Aquiares Farm and is one of Costa Rica’s largest and most historic coffee farms. It sits high on the fertile slopes of the Turrialba Volcano. Producing coffee continuously for over a century, the farm has developed an enduring model for growing high quality Arabica coffee, protecting a stunning natural setting, and supporting a thriving local community of 1,800 people.

Nestled between the Aquiares and Turrialba Rivers, “Aquiares” means “land between rivers” in Costa Rica’s Huetar indigenous language. The region where the farm is located used to be the centre for this pre-Columbian civilization, Guayabo National Monument, Costa Rica’s most important indigenous settlement, is just 5 km (3.1 miles) away.

The land of Aquiares is blessed with infinite sources of clean water, and even provides drinking water to three communities downstream.

Coffee plots are interlaced with natural springs and countless streams and rivers,all of which are protected with forested buffer zones. The network of natural corridors throughout the farm connects the large preserved forests in the two river valleys, providing a healthy environment for the local animals, birds, and plants.

This special ‘Don Alfonso’ coffee represents the very best of the harvest from the famous Aquiares Estate in Turrialba, Costa Rica. ‘Don Alfonso’ coffees bear the name of Don Alfonso Robelo, patriarch of one of the owning families of the estate who took over farm management in 1992 and made the social welfare of farm workers and the wider community one of his main priorities. Don Alfonso is a true visionary;his son, Diego, follows in his Father’s footsteps by taking the farm to new heights.

All Aquiares coffee is picked by hand to ensure consistent high quality. Cherries are picked by a special team of skilled harvesters who are paid well above the daily rate for their exceptional skill in picking the ripest cherries at each pass.

Each tree is visited up to seven times during the harvest to ensure that only fully red ripe cherries are picked. The skilled hands of the pickers represent the farm’s most valuable asset. Pickers hail from the community of Aquiares, nearby towns, and even from the neighbouring country of Nicaragua. The farm ensures that all workers have a safe work environment and a comfortable place to live.