Coffee From Costa Rica |
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Coffee From Costa Rica |
| Costa Rica |
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Few coffee connoisseurs would fail to
mention Costa Rica, where coffee was introduced in 1779, in their
top three favorites. In Europe it is the most-prized of the Central
American "milds", and European countries seem to get the best of the
crop, which in 1996-97 amounted to only two per cent of the world
production. The coffee is all washed Arabica which is grown on many
small farms. The emphasis is on quality, and the processing, sorting
(often by hand) and grading is done to perfection, and carefully but
indirectly noted by each bag's label. The Pacific-side planters classify by bean hardness (not to be confused with the tasting term "soft"): SHB means Strictly Hard Bean; these are the best, as the highest altitudes, above 1,200 meters, produce the hardest beans. Also, the higher the altitude the more bluey-green the color, and some of these beans are virtually turquoise. GHB, or Good Hard Bean, are those grown from 1,000 meters to 1,200 meters; HB (Hard Bean) are 800 meters to 1,000 meters. The MHB (Medium) thrive in an area in the middle of the country in altitudes between 488 meters and 1,000 meters. On the Atlantic side, altitude is denoted more directly, as bags may be called HGA (High Grown Atlantic). In general the top quality Costa Ricans can be described as high in acidity: they can numb the tip of the tongue, but what a flavor when a little cream is added. (Once in a while they can be so good that they need to be blended down with something else so as not to curdle the milk.) the body can vary from "very good" to "slightly thin", but who cares with aroma and flavor like this? Some bags bear place-names, like Tres Rios, Tarrazu and Tapuzza; others have plantation names, which may be very limited in availability, but worth fighting for, such as HT, or Henri Tourneau. |
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