This coffee is part of a special trio of releases and tasting opportunities provided by our good friends at Origin Coffee Roasting. Along with the Rivense Caturra and Rivense H3 Honey, not only do these coffees provide the type of comparative tasting that we specialty coffee lovers live for, but it offers a brief glimpse and illustration of the important role that Costa Rica has played in specialty coffee in the last half-century.

You could argue that it is thanks to excellent lots of coffee from Costa Rica, due in part to its fantastic micro-climates and terroir, that we have the term ‘specialty coffee’. According to the Specialty Coffee Association, Erna Knutsen coined the term to describe such coffees back in the early 1970s. She is known by many enthusiasts as the ‘Godmother of Specialty Coffee’ and was a lifelong advocate for Costa Rican coffees.

It was also in Costa Rica that the honey process, a version of which this coffee underwent, was employed for the first time. A honey process is a kind of hybrid of the more common 'washed', and more traditional African 'natural' process. The honey process is meant to offer the best of both worlds: some of the clarity and acidity that washed coffees enjoy, but also the sweetness and body that naturals are known for. This is achieved by drying the coffee bean (seed) in some of its mucilage, but not in the entire coffee cherry. You might think of it as the rose wine of the coffee world, though there are many variations on the process employed today.

All three of the lots released by Origin come from the Café Rivense del Chirripó Micromill, a processing facility and organisation that has earned awards for the quality of its coffees, and specialises in this now ubiquitous, originally Costa Rican honey processing method. Run by the Ureña-Rojas family, the mill processes cherries from many smallholder farmers. Like in Africa, most Costa Rican coffee farmers operate on a small scale, and smallholder farmers actually represent 85% of the country’s coffee production.

This lot was processed using a ‘Special Fermentation’ version of the honey process whose flavour results you will enjoy experiencing for yourself. It’s also worth pointing out that this lot, like one of the others in the trio, is of the Caturra variety, which is actually named after a town in Brazil where it was first discovered. While Brazilian in origin, Caturra has become one of the most popular varieties to grow in much of Latin America, including in Costa Rica.

Origin’s notes

“In the cup, this coffee presents flavour notes of blackberry, marmalade, chocolate-coated raisins, wild rooibos, and chocolate brownie. This lot has been recognised in specialty coffee competitions, such as the Cup of Excellence.”

• Flavour: Blackberry, marmalade, chocolate coated raisins, wild rooibos, chocolate brownie
• Body: Velvety
• Acidity: Berry-like
• Roast: Light-medium
• Suggested brewing methods: V60, chemex, AeroPress, plunger, espresso & milk-based

Coffee details from Origin

“Rivense Caturra Honey is produced by the Ureña-Rojas family at their Café Rivense del Chirripó Micromill. The varietal is Caturra, and the cherries are pulped but retain a significant amount of mucilage, which is dried in the honey process.

“The farm is located in the Chirripó micro-region within Costa Rica’s Brunca area. This high-elevation terrain ranges from about 1,300 to over 2,000 metres above sea level, and offers volcanic soils, cool temperatures, and abundant shade. The Ureña-Rojas family emphasises sustainable farming, managing shade trees, protecting water sources, and minimising environmental impact.”

• Origin: Cafe Rivense del Chirripó, Brunca region
• Country: Costa Rica
• Altitude: 1,300 -2,000 masl
• Variety: Caturra
• Processing: Honey Special Fermentation
• Owner: Régulo Ureña and Isabel Rojas