El Manantial Limited Release - Costa Rica

About El Manantial SL28 All of our fantastic Costa Rican coffees come directly from Exclusive Coffees, which was founded by Francisco Mena. He also still owns and operates a few farms including El Manantial, which translates to ‘the spring’ (as in a natural water spring, not the season). This limited lot is 100% SL28, a variety native to Kenya. The harvest is processed with the yellow honey method, which sits just under the halfway mark between a washed coffee and natural-processed coffee. Less than 50% of the mucilage left on the seed (aka bean) while drying. (Quick refresher: washed coffees have 0% of the mucilage left on and natural processed coffees have 100% of the mucilage/cherry left on.) After the coffee cherries are harvested, but before processing, they are put in plastic bins with slots to rest in the shade for 3-4 days. This is just one example for the experimentation that frequently goes on among Costa Rican producers. Costa Rican coffees are some of our favorites; we love the approachable complexities and variety of honey processing methods they’ve mastered. We’ve been so fortunate to work with producers like Francisco who continually bring us the best. Earlier this year, a few of us traveled to Costa Rica and got to taste this coffee with the producers. We really loved it, so, of course, we purchased this lot to share with all of you! REGION: Lourdes de Naranjo, West Valley, Costa Rica MILL: Sumava VARIETAL: SL28 ALTITUDE: 1,600 meters PRODUCER: Francisco Mena PROCESS: Rested Cherry, Yellow Honey Directly sourced through Exclusive Coffees. Tastes like Red Plum, Melon, Jasmine Brewing Recommendation While we strive to roast our coffees to be enjoyable using any brewing method, try this coffee on Chemex or V60. Chemex Brewing Ratio - 1:16 [i.e. 25g coffee and 400g water] V60 Brewing Ratio - 1:16 [i.e. 15g coffee and 250g water]