Costa Rica
Tarrazú
Alfonso Solis Porras
El Cedral
Red Catuai
Red Honey
February–March
Brown Sugar, Caramel, Peach, Clementine
2000 meters
N/A
69 kg w/ GrainPro
USA - Oakland, CA - Annex - CTI
La Toboba Micromill is located in the Tarrazú region of Costa Rica and is operated by Alfonso Solis Porras and the Solis Ureña family. The family has a tradition in coffee production stretching back more than 70 years. Each generation of the family has worked to build on the knowledge and techniques passed on to them in order to achieve even higher quality each harvest.
This lot of Catuai Red Honey coffee was grown at the family’s El Cedral farm. El Cedral is located 2000 meters above sea level and is surrounded by the Los Santos Forest Reserve, providing ideal growing conditions for the coffee trees cultivated there.
Alfonso and the family prioritize both quality and sustainability in their work, informing their practices at the farm and mill. Processing is completed with the least amount of water possible and all coffees are fully sun dried. Each step of production is monitored closely, as they recognize that each step plays an important role in the quality of the final product.
This lot of Catuai underwent Red Honey processing at La Toboba Micromill. Pulped coffee was dried on raised beds for 18–20 days.
The Tarrazú region lies in the high mountains of the southern Pacific region south of Costa Rica’s capital city of San Jose and is one of the most densely planted high altitude regions in Central America, with many farms at or above 2000 meters above sea level. It is locally known as “Zona de Los Santos” for the number of towns with “San” or “Santa” in their names.
Tarrazú’s climate is characterized by two well-defined seasons; a rainy season lasting seven months (May through November) and a dry season (December through April). This encourages uniform coffee blossoming. On average, precipitation is between 2,400 millimeters (94.5 inches) per year, with an average annual temperature of 19°C (66.2°F).
The fertile, volcanic soils and rolling mountainsides of Tarrazu are well-suited for agriculture, and smallholders grow bananas, avocado, and citrus as well as coffee on properties passed between generations. The spirit of community and family is strong in Tarrazu, with producers caring for their land with pride. Many farms in Tarrazú include primary forest and some degree of shade trees interspersed with coffee and producers take care to protect the natural water sources that spring up from the mountainsides.
