Located in Costa Rica’s famous West Valley, Hacienda Santa Anita dates to 1850, when the Carvajal family first began growing coffee in the cloud-topped mountains of the Valle Occidental. In the recent past, Santa Anita has gained global attention for its sustainability focus, being the first farm in Costa Rica to achieve Carbon Neutral accreditation, through a national program called NAMA Café.

In addition to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the Hacienda has also been at the forefront of research into new coffee varietals (also referred to as breeds or cultivars). Climate pressures are being felt in the tropics increasingly year on year, corresponding changes to annual rainfall, weather patterns, and soil degradation are already putting strain on coffee trees. To combat this, new technologies and new research are needed in order to ensure that farmers have the tools they need to continue making a profit from their harvest. Enrique and the team at Santa Anita have been at the forefront of these new methodologies, working with the Costa Rican coffee association ICafe to trial experimental varietals such as this one.

Last but not least, this coffee was processed in the natural style, where the whole fruit – called a coffee cherry – is left intact as the bean dries. This method, as opposed to other styles, uses far less water and is by design a more sustainable method for processing coffee. An additional advantage for farmers is the increase in fruit flavours that this style imparts – something that you notice right away in this lot from Santa Anita. With notes of tropical fruit and ice cream, we simply can’t wait to tuck into this coffee ourselves!

  Caravan Coffee Roasters are proud members of 1% for the Planet. For more information please visit https://www.onepercentfortheplanet.org

BREWING GUIDE 

Natural coffees are a delight – loads of body, loads of sweetness, and packed full of fruity goodness. They can, however, be a bit tricky to brew. We recommend a slightly lower brewing temperature than normal, as these coffees tend to extract easier than their washed counterparts. Try using water between 92-93 degrees, filtered and fresh (but of course).