Producer & Farm
Aquiares Estate takes its name from the Huetar indigenous language — "land between rivers" — and sits on the lush, biodiverse slopes of the Turrialba volcano in Costa Rica. Founded in 1890 and home today to 1,800 people, the farm was transformed by Alfonso Robelo, who arrived from Nicaragua in the 1980s and built Aquiares into something far beyond a coffee operation: a thriving community where workers own their homes, carbon emissions are actively measured and offset, and researchers from around the world are welcomed to study its agroecological environment.
Today the farm is managed by Alfonso's son Diego Robelo, whose commitment to specialty coffee, varietal experimentation, and processing innovation has made Aquiares one of the most celebrated estates in all of Central America. These lots come to us in partnership with our importing partners at Ally Coffee, reflecting our shared values around sustainability, equity, and innovation.
Varietal: Esperanza
Esperanza is a rare hybrid variety created by crossing Sarchimor T-5296 with a wild Ethiopian variety (ET25) — bringing together disease resistance and high yield on one side, and the complex, elegant cup character of wild Ethiopian genetics on the other. It's uncommon in Costa Rica and genuinely rare at commercial scale anywhere in the world. Aquiares is one of the very few farms equipped — both climatically and agronomically — to grow it well, with the farm's unique microclimate and meticulous management meeting the variety's complex nutritional demands. The result is a varietal that represents the best of both worlds: practical to grow, extraordinary in the cup.
Process: African Washed
Rather than a conventional washed process, this lot was processed using a method more closely aligned with traditional African — specifically Kenyan — washing techniques. This multi-step washing and fermentation process is more labor-intensive than standard washed methods, but produces an exceptionally clean, structured, and layered cup. After processing, the coffee was dried on raised beds in a solar dryer for 18–24 days, allowing for slow, even drying that preserves clarity and complexity through to the finish.
Cup Profile
Blackberry leads with deep, dark fruit sweetness — rich but not heavy — while lime adds a bright, clean lift that keeps the cup lively. Brown sugar rounds out the finish with a warm, grounding sweetness that ties it all together beautifully. This year's crop is a touch more rounded than previous harvests while still popping with clarity and definition. Elegant, balanced, and deeply satisfying.
