THE FRUIT FORWARD EXPERIENCE

• Origin: Tarrazú Region, Costa Rica

• Mill: San Diego Mill (Est. 1888)

• Process: Natural (Dry Process)

• Altitude: 1200-1750m

• Varieties: Caturra, Catuai

• Harvest: November - March

• Grade: Strictly Hard Bean (SHB), European Preparation (EP)

Flavor Profile: Strawberry, Plum, and Sangria. It has a wild, bold, fruit-forward with the distinctive characteristics that natural processing delivers - expect bright fruit notes and complex sweetness.

This exceptional coffee represents Costa Rica's innovation in natural processing. The San Diego Mill, Costa Rica's most modern facility established in 1888, meticulously sorts only the ripest red cherries for this micro-lot. Dried with fruit intact and turned regularly for even drying, this coffee showcases why Costa Rican producers receive nearly 80% of FOB value - a testament to their quality commitment.

Why I Selected This: The San Diego Mill's century+ of innovation combined with their sustainable community partnerships creates a coffee that's both ethically sourced and exceptionally processed. This wild, fruit-forward profile represents the pinnacle of Costa Rican natural coffee.

THE ETHIOPIAN TERROIR MASTERPIECE

• Origin: Buku Sayisa Kebele, Guji Zone, Oromia, Ethiopia

• Producer: Buku Sayisa Mill, Azeb Tadesse Coffee Supply

• Process: Natural

• Altitude: 2300m (7,545 ft)

• Varieties: Dega, Kurame, 74110

• Harvest: November - January

• Certification: Organic

Flavor Profile: Blueberry, honeydew, and honeysuckle notes creating elegant cup profiles with sweet and sugary taste - the signature of carefully controlled natural processing.

From coffee's birthplace comes this certified organic rarity. Grown at extreme altitude in Ethiopia's renowned Guji zone, this G1 grade represents the highest quality classification. The Buku Sayisa washing station specializes in natural processing, meticulously drying ripe, sorted cherries for 12-15 days on raised beds while avoiding overfermentation. A voucher system tracks each lot from farm to cup, connecting you directly to the farmers.

Why I Selected This: The blueberry notes in this coffee are absolutely stunning - they're what initially caught my attention and convinced me this had to be in our collection. Ethiopia's status as coffee's birthplace, combined with modern organic certification and meticulous traceability, creates a perfect bridge between coffee tradition and contemporary quality standards.

THE KENYAN INTENSITY ICON

• Origin: Bungoma County, Mt. Elgon slopes, Kenya

• Producer: Menu Farmers' Cooperative Society

• Process: Washed (Traditional Kenyan Method)

• Altitude: 1800-1900m

• Varieties: SL 34, SL 28, Ruiru 11, Batian

• Harvest: October - December

• Grade: Peaberry (PB)

Flavor Profile:  Cacao Nibs, Pineapple, and Brown Sugar. It has bold, fruit-forward flavors with complex acidity - the signature intensity that defines Kenyan coffee. Enhanced by peaberry characteristics: denser, rounder beans with concentrated sugars and nutrients.

Kenyan peaberry represents coffee perfection: single beans that develop alone in the cherry, concentrating all sugars and nutrients typically shared between twin beans. Grown on Mt. Elgon's volcanic slopes, these legendary SL-28 and SL-34 varieties undergo Kenya's meticulous washed processing - overnight fermentation, density separation, and careful sun-drying on raised tables until reaching ideal 10-12% moisture content.

Why I Selected This: The tropical pineapple notes in this peaberry completely won me over - they're vibrant and unexpected in the best way. Kenya's legendary SL-28 and SL-34 varieties, developed in the 1930s for exceptional cup quality, combined with the rare peaberry selection creates something truly special. The cooperative's sustainable farming model is the perfect foundation for this pinnacle of Kenyan coffee craftsmanship.