Costa Rica Finca La Bella Bourbon Natural
This single estate, natural processed Bourbon is absolutely incredible. The first word that leaps to mind is "Fresh". It's like a cool afternoon rain shower on a hot Summer day. A delightfully zesty front end is balanced by a full body, intense sweetness and a refreshing finish. Look for HUGE notes of fresh strawberry along with milk chocolate, juicy tangerine and lavender.
It’s difficult to overstate how excited we’ve been for this coffee to arrive. Somehow it has managed to exceed our expectations and rocketed to the top of the Captain’s Gold! Not only is it insanely delicious, it’s also very special. Costa Rican coffee always manages to stand out, but the level of diligent cultivation and careful processing put into this coffee by Emilio Piedra at Finca La Bella puts it into a category all its own.
Bourbon is a legendary coffee variety but it’s very difficult to produce. Unlike modern hybrids, it’s vulnerable to disease such as coffee rust and yields much less than many other cultivars. That makes choosing a non-traditional processing method like Natural processing a risky choice. While many Central and South American farmers choose to make safer bets with their single variety coffees, Emilio has chosen the path less traveled and knocked it out of the park. This coffee has a delightfully zesty front end that’s balanced by intense sweetness, a full body and a refreshing finish. In fact, if we had to pick a single word to describe this coffee, it would have to be fresh. There’s HUGE notes of fresh strawberry (Costa Rican berry bomb?!) along with milk chocolate, ripe tangerine and lavender. To top it all off, for a natural processed coffee, it’s got a surprisingly clean cup!
Reminder! This coffee is raw, you must roast it before brewing
Arrival Date: July 1st, 2022. US Arrival June 2022
Acidity & Brightness: Zesty and bright, very sweet
Balance & Finish: Moderately balanced, refreshing finish
Body & Texture: Full bodied, smooth, silky texture
Flavors: Strawberry, milk chocolate, tangerine & lavender
Grade: SHB, grown at 1600 - 1800 masl
Processing: Natural (dry) processed and dried on raised beds
Grower: Emilio Marin Piedra | Finca La Bella
Region: Frailes district, Desamparados canton, San José, Costa Rica
Varieties: Bourbon
Recommended Roast Range: City to Full City (Light to medium)
We like this coffee best at City+ (light-medium) or near the end of 1st crack. However, it will perform well anywhere from City to Full Medium (light to medium). City roasts pulled early in 1st crack will have tons of zesty citrus acidity and the strawberry notes will lean towards tart while roasts medium roasts between 1st and 2nd crack will feature more ripe sweetness and tone down the acidity .
