COSTA RICA LA PASTORA

La Pastora is a gorgeous example of the fine coffee we’ve come to expect from the Tarrazu region of Costa Rica. Berries, cherries and chocolate tumble together in a juicy cup of coffee which is sweet and bright, the crispness of green apple balancing the richness of the flavours perfectly. Brewed through an espresso machine the red fruit and chocolate combine beautifully, while as a filter coffee the more elusive notes of black tea and grapefruit become apparent. Costa Rica La Pastora is a coffee of depth and character.

COFFEE ORIGIN

La Pastora sits at the highest point of Tarrazu, the famed coffee growing region of Costa Rica, between 1200 and 1800 metres above sea level. These lofty heights cause the coffee to mature more slowly inside the cherry, creating higher levels of sugar and flavour compounds within the bean. Higher elevations come with clear sunlight, bringing warm days before the temperature plummets at night. This big swing in temperature is responsible for the vibrancy of flavour we find in the La Pastora. These conditions, in concert with the Costa Rican coffee culture, are what makes this coffee so special.

Country: Costa Rica
Canton: Tarrazu
Zone: Los Santos
Producers: 8 smallholder communities
Varietals:  Caturra, Catuai
Process: Fully Washed
Altitude: 1200 – 1800 m above sea level

TASTING NOTES & CUPPING PROFILE

Costa Rica La Pastora opens and closes with chocolate, the aroma drifting from the grounds and lingering in the finish of each sip. Between these delicious bookends, there’s a lot to enjoy. Warm cedar aromatics are set against deep rich molasses. Flavours of sweet cherry, red berries and grapefruit are balanced by a fine note of black tea. These fruit and tea characteristics are carried in a gorgeously juicy body, cut with the fizz of sparkling green apple acidity. All together the impression is overwhelmingly of berries, cherries and chocolate, fresh and bright, sweet and rich.

Aromas: chocolate, molasses, cedar
Flavours: sweet cherry, red berries, black tea, grapefruit
Acidity:  sparkling green apple
Body: juicy
Aftertaste: smooth chocolate
Cupping Score: 85.25

BREW GUIDE

Cool mornings call for a cosy chemex. Ask for a filter roast from your local merlo store or online and brew slowly to bring forward the notes of red berries and sweet cherry, and tease out the fine flavour of black tea.

For a 3 cup brew:

• 3 cup Chemex
• Filter paper
• Kettle
• 14g fresh ground coffee
  

1. Fold filter paper (refer to Chemex instructions), position on the Chemex with the three layers of paper sitting on the side with the spout.

2. Rinse the filter paper and heat the Chemex by pouring hot water through the filter. Discard the hot water (being careful not to lose the filter paper).

3. Pour ground coffee into the Chemex. Your aim is to have the grounds sitting level in the filter.

4. Gently pour hot water onto the coffee grounds. Using a circular motion, wind out from the centre until all of the grounds are saturated.

5. You will notice the coffee ‘bloom’- this is when wet coffee puffs up into a golden-brown dome. Leave the coffee to bloom for 30 seconds.

6. Continue to pour using a circular motion. Pause to let the coffee start to come through. Watch the coffee pour into the glass in steady, consistent drops. It shouldn’t be running through quickly, but not dripping too slowly either. Repeat this process.

7. Stop once the colour of the coffee dripping from the cone has become pale, or you have enough brew for your taste.

8. Once brew is complete, lift out the filter paper, gently swirl the Chemex to mix the coffee and enjoy!