Costa Rica Rejolla Geisha Washed

94 points Coffee Review November 2021! Read the review.  We offered this coffee for two weeks as a Serious Select.  The Coffee Review was published near the end of those two weeks and so in order to give customers access to this coffee, we will continue to offer it a little longer.

This is a very fairly priced Geisha coffee presently lovely, delicate florals. This is our first offering of this interesting, floral geisha.

We have an excellent relationship with a person we consider to be Costa Rica's top exporter of specialty coffee and microlots. The exporter has been at the forefront of facilitating small growers to hone their standards which includes full control over the processing of coffee. Over the past few years the exporter, whose partner is an award winning grower, decided to purchase his own coffee operation - Sumava Farm. A few years ago we went to visit our exporter and while cupping coffees at origin in Costa Rica we were wowed by a really impressive natural processed coffee and it turns out it was from his own farm. We weren't surprised to hear that he had won first place at the Cup of Excellence 2016 competition for one of his lots as this is a truly unique and flavorful coffee, the attention to detail and processing really comes through in the cup.

The farm is located in Costa Rica's West Valley Region and in the micro region of Naranjo. There are two plots located on the Sumava Farm, one is called Monte Llano Bonito which is comprised of 9 plots. The other section is 6 plots called Monte Lourdes.The varietals grown on site are Caturra, Pacamara, Geisha, Mokka, and SL28. The farm prides itself on the best management practices that minimize use of herbicides and pesticides while focusing on using minerals and mountain micro-organisms (MM's) from natural origins instead.

There are a total of 10 workers on the farm that have access to clean drinking water, electricity, new showers, toilets and social security benefits.

This lot is 100% Geisha, an heirloom varietal from Ethiopia that produces a blue-green elongated coffee bean that is especially aromatic and floral. Price Peterson, who owns Hacienda Esmeralda in Panama, experimented by planting it some years ago along with a broader group of varietals. The result was the rediscovery of a great cultivar with extreme fruitiness and floral scents and flavors, but with balance and finesse not seen in other coffees. Coffee farmers in other countries soon followed suit, and the varietal regularly takes home awards in Cup of Excellence competitions held throughout the world.

Rejolla in Spanish means "little valley" but can also be taken as an indentation.  On the Sumava property, the Rejolla plot or block of land is in a small valley that shields the trees from the farm's robust wind.  This protection from wind is very helpful to Geisha trees which do not have a deep root system.  It is further protected by shade trees which provide cover to allow for slower growth as well as habitat for birds.  Rejolla was planted with Geisha 5 years ago.  Last season was its first harvest and this, its second season, is when the floral notes have really become more pronounced. This is a fully washed 100% Geisha varietal presenting very floral notes.  Total production of green coffee was between 2000 and 2500 pounds.

• Farm: Sumava de Lourdes
• Farm Plot: Monte Llano Bonito, "La Rejolla"
• Producer: Francisco A. Mena
• Region: West Valley
• Micro region: Lourdes de Naranjo
• Elevation: 1720 meters; 5500-5900 feet
• Varietal: Geisha
• Processing: Fully washed