Hundred House Coffee - Costa Rica - Co-Op Tarrazu - Honey

There are a lot of things to love about Costa Rica. The landscape is gorgeous. The beaches are clean, and the weather is warm year round. What we love most, however, is the coffee. Costa Rica is regarded as one of the world’s premiere coffee growing regions due to its volcanic soil and ideal drainage. As a result, this light roasted coffee is delightfully smooth with a sweet, fruity aroma. Its flavor profile is marked by subtle chocolate nuances paired beautifully with the delicate hint of citrus. The cup finishes with a dry, lemon-like citrus nuance. Without a doubt, this stuff is the definition of ‘pura vida.’

Costa Rica’s speciality coffee industry is well established, with coffees are well cared for, washed and processed accordingly. A number of Fairtrade cooperatives have flourished in recent years, and individual communities as well as estates and cooperatives have made a name for themselves in the wider specialty coffee sector. Individual regions such as Tarrazu also have critical acclaim. Costa Rican flavours invoke chocolate undertones and full bodied, rich mouthfeel. Notes of lemon, sherbet, honey and caramel are also present – making Costa Rican coffee great for espresso based coffees, but also, given the right fruit components, a perfect pour over too.

Tarrazú coffee is referred to as a classically complete coffee – a sweet aroma, aromatic complexity, full body, pleasant acidity and a delicate clean aftertaste with rich chocolate and nutty undertones. The small Tarrazu region is in the high mountains and located in southern pacific region south of the capital of Costa Rica – the most densely planted high altitude region. Tarrazú coffee grows at high altitudes and on volcanic soil, consequently the cherries ripen more slowly, giving it a rich and hearty flavour.

The farmers are the heart of the operation in Costa Rica, honouring the land they have lived all of their lives honing their trade coming from families that have been involved in farming and exporting Costa Rica coffees for three generations or more. This coffee comes from a Co-op in Tarrazu made up of small independent farms.