Region: Tarrazu

Municipality: Rosario

Producer Type: Single Estate

Altitude: 1250-1650 masl

Genetic Varieties: 90% Caturra; 10% Typica

Processing: Washed, Pulped Natural (Honey), Natural

Drying Method: Sun Dried on Patio at Mill

Notes: Apple, Honey, Plum, Prune, Bright Plum-Like Acidity, Satiny Body

Origin Description:
Coffee plants were first brought to Costa Rica from Cuba in 1779, commercial cultivation began in 1808, and the first coffee exports from Costa Rica were in 1820. Costa Rica is credited with being the first country in Central America to commercially produce coffee, with the first shipments to the U.S. in 1860. The coffee sector has been vital in the development of Costa Rica’s infrastructure and economy.

Costa Rica coffee is a mainstay in the U.S. specialty market, prized for its lively acidity, light body and delicate aromatics, and utilized often for its consistently high quality. Along with medium sized estates that have been producing coffee for centuries, a new generation of small estates and “micro-mills” has recently captured the attention of specialty buyers around the world.

Luz Marina Trujillo produces one of the finest coffees available on her estate Santa Elena in the highlands of Costa Rica’s most famous coffee growing region, Tarrazú. This coffee is grown under shade, and the perfectly ripe cherries are hand picked, and sorted for quality at her own mill. The cherries are then carefully de-pulped, washed and dried slowly on the patios at Finca Santa Elena to fully develop acidity and depth of flavor.

She takes a holistic approach to sustainability, minimizing synthetic inputs and utilizing a closed-loop fertilizing system that composts discarded coffee pulp using red-wiggler worms. Her water treatment system meets the Costa Rican government’s high environmental standards, and preserves the cleanliness of the river that flows through the estate. She offers her seasonal employees outstanding housing and health care, as well as a state of the art drinking water filtration system.

Luz Marina was one of the first estate owners in Costa Rica to produce Pulped Natural “Honey” (Miel) coffee in volume, adding a dimension of cotton candy and butterscotch to the sophisticated washed profile.