Costa Rica’s national tree, the Guanacaste, gives its name to this Core Coffee from the Los Tarrazú valley of Costa Rica. Guanacaste is produced by smallholder producers and mill owners and reflects the unique conditions of Tarrazú as well as the collective efforts of the farmers who grow coffee there. Coffee is a family affair in Tarrazú, with everyone working to help pick and sort coffee during the harvest season and maintain the land during the year.
Beginning in 2020, we began sourcing Guanacaste from smallholder micromills in the region. This has allowed for us to purchase larger volume lots from some of our producer partners, growing those relationships and creating the opportunity for these volume lots to become a more consistently profitable part of their business alongside their microlot production. Each partner mill is recognized for their production quality, contributing to the sweet and mild cup profile of Guanacaste which is a hallmark of Washed coffee from the region.
Coffee is produced and processed by each mill individually, with all contributions being cupped and blended by our Central American sourcing team based in Costa Rica for consistency and quality.
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 millimetres (94.5 inches) per year, with an average annual temperature of 19°C (66.2°F).
