Finca El Venado - SL-28

Country

Costa Rica

Region

Grecia, West Valley

Farm

Finca El Venado - Cerro San Luis Micromill

Variety

SL-28

Altitude

1200 - 1900 masl

Proc. Method

White Honey

The Farm:

Cerro San Luis Micromill is a family business run by two siblings Alexander and Magali Delgado and their spouses, who own and operate both farms and a small mill in Grecia, in the West Valley. In the interest of improving their quality and remaining competitive, they have focused on growing different varieties, and about 4 years ago they replaced their older stock with 10 or more different types of coffee, including Caturra, Red and Orange Bourbon, SL-28, Catuai, Villa Sarchi, and Maragogype. The family's farms are adjacent to one another, but the plots are given separate names for lot separation purposes, and the mill is located at the family home, just a few miles away.After harvesting, the cherry is brought right to the family home, where they are able to do a variety of different processes, from washed and honeys to natural. As is common at mills in Costa Rica, at Cerro San Luis the type of honey is decided by how much mucilage is left on the coffee after depulping.

The Process:

The White Honey process is a specific process developed by Cerro San Luis Micromill. Freshly harvested and sorted cherries are delivered to the mill and promptly depulped. After this, the coffee is placed directly onto raised beds for a few days at a minimal thickness and then transferred to a covered patio where it is turned regularly until the drying process is complete.

The Coffee Variety:

SL-28 is a ubiquitous Kenyan variety, derived from a selection made by Scott Labs (1935–1939) from a line of Tanganyika Drought Resistant trees; possible lineage to coffees from Yemen. SL-28 has a highly unique and desirable "bright, winey blackberry" character that formed the basis of the classic "Kenyan microlot" taste. But this variety is very susceptible to pest and disease, and is being pushed out of commercial production in favour of more resilient varieties; leading to the current rarity of the classic blackberry flavours.