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Coffee Info
- Country: Costa Rica
- Region: Lourdes de Naranjo, West Valley
- Farmers: Jaime Cardenas, Maribel Barrantes, Katya Barrantes
- Processing: Rojo (Red) Honey
- Varietal: Villa Sarchi
Story
This is one of our very favourite coffees of all time. And yes, that is quite a statement.
What makes this coffee stand out so much is the level of care and attention paid to all aspects of its production. Jaime, Maribel and Katya grow only Villa Sarchi, which is a natural mutation of Bourbon, and no tree on their plantation is older than 15 years. Because the trees are young, their cherries have the maximum potential for sweetness. This potential is realized by carefully hand picking only the ripest cherries from the tree. The farm employs 10 pickers per season (which is a very small number) who make several passes over the small plantation.
One of the most interesting developments in Costa Rica in recent years has been the proliferation of micro-milling equipment, which allows farmers to process their own coffee. Because each farm will often grow different varietals, and employ slightly different agronomic practices, their coffees will have different flavour profiles. This range of profiles would be lost if they sold the coffee to larger mills who would simply blend the offerings together. Café Sin Limites has taken full advantage of the micro-mill revolution, not only by milling their own coffees, but by experimenting with new processing methods. They try everything from mechanical washing to natural processing, with varying degrees of pulping (honeying) in between. Honeyeing refers to leaving some of the fruit mass around the bean as it dries, and the result is a coffee that has all the qualities of a good Costa Rican coffee (acidity, cleanliness, clarity), but sweeter, fruitier, and with a heavier body. Our particular lot of Sin Limites is the Rojo Honey, wherein roughly half of the fruit mass is left on the bean to dry with it.
Video
A short video introduction of Sin Limites used by Transcend's Chad Moss during his 2009 Canadian Barista Championship performance where he placed third in the country.
A more in-depth conversation with Poul and Chad about Sin Limites and the care and attention that goes into every bag.
Reviews
Product Reviews
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Simply Amazing
Posted by Steve T. on 21st Jan 2012
First time having the Sin Limites was this week, and I was blown away with how the bouquet of smells and flavors just overwhelms the senses, its rich and powerful but not extremely bold allowing you to understand that there was art behind growing and processing this bean. Brewed using siphon pot at 196 degrees.
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Amazing Coffee
Posted by Andrew on 16th Jan 2012
I first had this coffee two years ago. What amazes me, is that it gets better each year. This coffee is one of my favourites from Costa Rica, and I look forward to it arriving each year. The thing I like the best about this coffee is the fruitiness and sweetness. While I know the story about this coffee is inspiring, the coffee speaks loudly too.
