Carlos Montero Typica Natural (Costa Rica)

Flavour Description: Berries, Pecan, Floral, Syrupy.  

Producer: Carlos Montero.

Region / Country: Costa Rica.

Varietal: Typical.

Process: Natural Process.

Lot Name: Finca Monterrey.

Roast Level: Medium Light.

Roasters Notes: We have roasted this coffee to a medium light level which accentuates the floral like sweetness and very complexity. There's a soft gentle acidity with a pleasantly lingering syrupy sweetness which is mouth coating. Best brewed as filter coffee or espresso and served black or as a flat white sized drink. 

Monterrey is a farm located right before La Pastora and is a collaboration between Carlos, Jacob, and one of their neighbors on the mountain. The elevation is quite high and the weather has been more difficult to predict in recent years. The catuai here, although getting older,  is well treated and environmentally managed for ideal results. 

Processing:

Natural - When processing naturals it’s very important for Jacob to pay special attention to the initial drying phase. So, for the first few days the cherries are moved constantly in order to prevent too much fermentation. After a week, when the cherries look dryer they move them with a rake-like tool about every hour during the day and it takes roughly between 22 days and one month, depending on the weather, for the coffee to dry to its optimal moisture content. It’s very important for Jacob and Carlos after drying is done to let the coffee rest in the warehouse for about one month, especially the Natural process which seems to develop a lot of flavors while being in dried cherry for a month or so.

Drying:

This was the fourth season that Don Eli could peel their own parchment, but the second year that they truly sorted the vast majority of their own coffee from start to finish. Since the anaerobic lots are so small Jacob usually sorts them by hand at the very end. Carlos does it once again with his visionary idea of having their own dry mill. He sourced used, but good, equipment and Jacob quickly picked up how to use them to prepare excellent coffees for export.