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La Esperanza, Costa Rica, Natural
Caramel, raisin and dark chocolate
A fruit-forward and expressive natural, the La Esperanza delivers dark chocolate depth layered with sweet raisin. A buttery body carries to a long, caramel-sweet finish, the hallmark of precisely executed whole-cherry drying on raised beds.
| TASTES LIKE | Caramel, raisin and dark chocolate |
| ROAST | Milk-based |
Finca La Esperanza is a small, tightly managed farm in the community of La Esperanza in Tarrazú, operated by Rodolfo Monge and his son Gustavo. The family run a private micro-mill alongside the farm, giving them full control over cherry selection, processing, drying, and storage from harvest through to export. This in-house model allows the Monges to process individual lots separately and with precision, maintaining the high levels of traceability and consistency that define their work. This lot showcases the natural processing side of their output — demonstrating the fruit-forward expressiveness that Caturra and Catuai can achieve when dried whole on Tarrazú's high-altitude slopes.
| PRODUCER | Familia Monge (Rodolfo & Gustavo Monge) |
| REGION | La Esperanza de Tarrazu, San José |
| VARIETAL | Caturra and Catuai |
| PROCESS | Natural |
| ALTITUDE | 1500-1700 masl |
Costa Rica has one of the most celebrated coffee histories in the Americas, with coffee first arriving in the late 18th century and quickly becoming the country's most important export by the mid-19th century, funding roads, railways, and national infrastructure. Today, Costa Rica contains eight defined growing regions, with Tarrazú widely regarded as the finest, accounting for around 35% of national production and earning Denomination of Origin status in 2019. Costa Rica led the global micro-mill revolution — a movement that pushed traceability down to individual farms and processing stations — and remains one of the world's most innovation-oriented producing countries. Notably, it is the only country where growing Robusta is prohibited by law; only Arabica varieties are permitted.