Los Santos is a stunning, mountainous zone in central-southern Costa Rica, in the province of San José. It encompasses the cantons of Dota, Leon Cortes Castro and Tarrazú — the latter of which is the most well-known and respected coffee area in Costa Rica.
Recently, Tarrazú received a Denomination of Origin (DOE) certification, a legal distinction that, like Champagne in France, can only be applied to coffees from the area. For decades, a swath of these mountains — all benefitting from the same cool, humid climates, rich, volcanic soil, narrow valleys and lofty altitudes — were considered Tarrazú. The legal determination, however, is a decidedly smaller portion of the area.
While there is an ongoing legal dispute over who can and can’t use “Tarrazú,” we have decided to embrace the broader Los Santos distinction and rename our Tarrazú Don Roberto as Los Santos Diez Pueblos. We believe this new name celebrates exactly where this coffee is from — which is the same land and the same thousands of smallholder farmers that it has always come from.
“So many of these small producers have been selling to us for more than 40 years,” says Diego Guardia, a specialty trader with NKG export company Ceca. “These relationships contribute to the consistency of this coffee, which has the classic profile of the region.”
Diez Pueblos
Zona Los Santos (“Valley of the Saints”) is home to numerous small towns. However, 10 towns — San Marcos, San Lorenzo, San Carlos, Santa Maria, San Gerardo, San Pablo, San Andreas, San Isidro, Santa Cruz and (wait for it… ) Copey — hold most of its population and define its coffee culture. It was these towns that inspired our new brand.
We’re thrilled with the new logo, which was created by an artist in Costa Rica, and we hope to hear that you like it, too.
In these 10 towns, like in so much of Costa Rica, Diego says, life revolves around the church, the soccer field and the town café. Coffee is also an enormous focus in these communities. It’s estimated that approximately 7,000 families in Los Santos typically produce about half a million bags of coffee each year.
Coffee Processing
Los Santos Diez Pueblos was handpicked by smallholder producers and delivered, at the end of the harvest day, to either the Palmichal micromill or a handful of other nearby mills. Throughout the night, the coffee was de-pulped and washed. It was later dried on patios and finally mechanically dried at low temperatures and with a steady airflow.
“While a few mills are involved, the majority of the cherries were processed at our mill, Palmichal, which offers state-of-the-art processing,” says Diego. “That includes tight controls for water efficiency and temperature control systems in the drying process, to ensure consistency and a quality that allows the coffee maintain its cup attributes.”
Diego continues, “It’s a best seller for us, and for good reasons. To be included, lots must cup to the level of complexity that’s expected from this Valley. That means a cup profile that’s sweet and balanced, that has a really nice, bright acidity, flavor notes of cacao, caramel, citrus, maybe mild vanilla, and a really nice aftertaste. The goal is a regional coffee that exemplifies the region and that buyers know will be good every time.” •
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Want to learn more about coffee production in Costa Rica? Ceca Specialty Trader Diego Guardia offers an overview in this webinar.
